Hong Kong – Rock bands and dancing dragons on Sunday celebrated the 10th anniversary of Hong Kong’s handover to China, but there were also protests to demand democracy, and anxiety about the future of the former British colony.
After a bumpy decade of recession followed by a robust recovery with help from the booming mainland, its ports are losing dominance to Shanghai and Sing apore, and impatience for full democracy is growing – a source of friction with the city’s Communist overlords in Beijing.
Many Hong Kongers agree the next 10 years will be full of tough challenges for the 7 million people living in this global business center on China’s muggy southern coast.
They fear rivals such as Singapore and Shanghai will seize a bigger chunk of the city’s key businesses, such as shipping and financial services. And pollution is a severe problem.
As he began a new term Sunday, Hong Kong leader Donald Tsang reminded the public that the city faces “fierce” competition and must transform itself. Tsang wants Hong Kong to be a financial capital on par with New York and London.
“Hong Kong is not the biggest city in China, but it can be the best,” said Tsang.
But Rusli Lie, a 60-year-old clerk who lives in the city, fears Singapore and Shanghai might eclipse Hong Kong because their leaders are more decisive and better planners.
“They are really running after Hong Kong,” he said.
After 156 years of British rule, Hong Kong was handed back to China on July 1, 1997, with the promise that it would enjoy a wide degree of autonomy from the Communist mainland.
