Hong Kong Outlook On the Eve of Handover By VIVIAN CHIU	フレームで見る  英文をプリントする  脚注をプリントする
中国返還を前に… 香港からの新海外レポート"Hong Kong Outlook"の第2弾は、返還を間近に控えた香港市民の表情を、世論調査の結果を交えてレポートします。返還後も何も変わらないとする人から、中国政府のやり方に不安を抱く人、民主派の行動を懸念する人など、市民の受け止め方はさまざまです。

Let Hong Kong people rule Hong Kong; democrats should stop causing trouble; we fear an economic downturn; the return to Chinese sovereignty is cause for a big celebration.: These are just a few of many Hong Kong people's views about the handover.

"I have no feeling about 1997. As long as I have rice to eat and work to do, I am not afraid. The Communists promised us 50 years ― no change," said Chow Chen-hung, a Kowloon Motor Bus driver for 29 years. After struggling with poverty for years, Mr. Chow, 59, is living well now.

"Whoever rules, maintaining social stability is the most important thing to do. If that happens, there won't be any change to my lifestyle, " Mr. Chow said.

According to an opinion poll conducted by Asian Commercial Research, which tracked 586 people's feelings about the handover, only 57 percent of the respondents feel happy about the handover, a drop of nine percent compared with February's finding.

The ratio of people who are saddened by the transition surged from 11 percent to 17 percent. It was the first decline in people feeling happy since last August. Just under 48 percent were confident about political freedom in the following year while almost 44 percent were not confident.

The poll showed the popularity of Chief Executive-designate Tung Chee-hwa had fallen ― 45.3 percent of respondents said they had "less trust" in Mr. Tung safeguarding Hong Kong's interests than when he was chosen last November.

Taxi driver Chan Mang-cheung, originally from China's Guangdong Province, came to Hong Kong in the 1960s. He is unsure of the future.

"I am suspicious about the Chinese government. Everybody's guessing. We don't know what the future will be like," he said.

Mr. Chan earns around HK$10,000 (・50,000) a month and lives with his wife and three children. He does not foresee any changes in his life. "I'll be a taxi driver just the same," he said.

Mrs. Tsang, a housewife, said: "I believe there's no point in worrying about the future. My children are small. We don't have money, there's no means for us to escape. Even if we emigrated, nobody would hire us. I can't speak English. I can't worry too much or I'll go insane."

For 43-year-old villager Cheng Laisheung, 1997 is something of which to be proud.

"We should celebrate. Hong Kong people have not had a country to belong to for so long. It's like a child without a mother or father. But the map of China will be rewritten soon. In July, it means I am going back to my own country," she said.

In one month the transfer of Hong Kong's sovereignty will take place. Should things go awry, says Democratic Party Chairman Martin Lee, the world community will look to Britain for leadership in defending Hong Kong's free society and people.

In 1984, China and Britain signed the Joint Declaration on Hong Kong. Under the declaration, Hong Kong and its 6.5 million people will be returned to China under the "one country, two systems" policy.

In the declaration, Britain and China clearly promised Hong Kong an elected legislature, an independent judiciary, the rule of law, personal freedoms and a capitalist economy.

"Throughout the past decade, China has broken these promises with increasing frequency. Today China's policy toward Hong Kong can be summarized in a single word: control. China is already making profound changes to curb civil liberties laws and elected institutions," Mr. Lee said.

Mr. Wong, proprietor of a shark's fin and dried food store for 40 years, said everything would be fine in Hong Kong after 1997 if the democrats did not rock the boat. "The communists say we will be our own masters. If it is Hong Kong people who rule Hong Kong, I am absolutely confident about the future. But the democrats keep antagonizing China with their candlelight vigils, marches and demonstrations.

`The more trouble the democrats make, the worse the economy gets. They've got overseas passports," Mr. Wong said.

I believe after the handover Hong Kong will be stable. There well be so much international attention focusing on Hong Kong to see how China will behave toward Hong Kong ― will China keep her promise?

If everything goes right, Hong Kong will be taking over China ― exporting its capitalist system and technological advances to China. There are already many joint venture companies between Hong Kong and China with Hong Kong businessmen revolutionizing China's way of doing business and management style. China has much to learn from Hong Kong.

Since China opened its economy more than a decade ago, the population has prospered. The Chinese people seem to put economics first, before politics. People want to live in peace. Nobody is willing to put up with another Cultural Revolution or June 4 massacre. It won't happen in China or Hong Kong.

China has promised it won't interfere in Hong Kong's freedom of the press but later, may be, there will be more control. The Hong Kong press has to stand up for its right to tell the truth to the people instead of printing what China wants to see.

Shukan ST: June 6, 1997

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