Politics

Beijing’s top official overseeing Hong Kong and Macau affairs has concluded a five-day fact-finding trip to three mainland Chinese cities in the Greater Bay Area to explore ways of deepening the international financial hub’s integration into the national blueprint.The Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office said its director, Xia Baolong, had visited Guangzhou, Zhaoqing and Foshan on the trip from Monday to Friday, accompanied by officials from the mainland and Hong Kong.“[The trip] focused on how to deepen the integration of Hong Kong and Macau into the national development strategy, including the 15th five-year plan,” it said.“[Xia also] conducted research on how [the cities] could deeply participate in the construction of the [bay area] and better serve the overall national development strat...

Beijing has summoned the United States’ top envoy in Hong Kong to protest against the consulate’s move to issue an alert to American citizens about legal changes in the city that punish those who withhold smartphone passwords from police during national security investigations.The foreign ministry’s office in Hong Kong revealed on Saturday that its commissioner, Cui Jianchun, had summoned and lodged “solemn representations” with US Consul General Julie Eadeh the day before in response to the “so-called ‘security alert’” issued by her office about recent amendments to the national security law.“Commissioner Cui expressed strong dissatisfaction and firm opposition, urging the US side to immediately cease interfering in Hong Kong affairs and China’s internal affairs in any form,” the statemen...

This is more than a procedural shift. For the first time, Hong Kong is attempting to align its policy cycle in advance with national planning priorities, yet alignment on its own is not a strategy. The more pressing question is whether the city can define a role that is distinct, necessary and difficult to replicate as China enters its next phase of development.At present, Hong Kong does not lack direction. The latest policy address outlines a broad agenda spanning innovation and technology, the Northern Metropolis, green finance and talent attraction, positioning the city as a bridge between the 14th and 15th five-year plans.What remains less clear is how these initiatives come together into a coherent strategy that differentiates Hong Kong from mainland cities that are scaling rapidly in...

Singapore Prime Minister Lawrence Wong has met Hong Kong political heavyweights and business leaders – including former Chief Justice Andrew Li Kwok-nang and Richard Li Tzar-kai, the son of tycoon Li Ka-shing – in what he described as a “short but meaningful visit” to the city.Wrapping up his first official visit to the city since he became prime minister in 2024, Wong said in a Facebook post on Saturday that closer cooperation between the two Asian financial centres would contribute to the region’s growth and resilience.“A short but meaningful visit to Hong Kong,” Wong wrote of his three-day visit. “The city feels familiar yet renewed, with a clear sense of dynamism.”Apart from Richard Li, who is chairman of Pacific Century Group, Wong also spoke to other influential business leaders, inc...

The official transcript of a public hearing into Hong Kong’s deadliest blaze in decades has wrongly recorded several key details, the South China Morning Post has found, prompting an academic to urge that future proceedings be live-streamed to strengthen transparency and public trust.The errors included incorrect figures for the number of residents who escaped using lifts and the percentage of flats suffering severe damage, according to the SCMP’s review of the committee hearing investigating the Tai Po fire last November, which claimed 168 lives.In response to the SCMP’s inquiry, the committee’s secretariat said the transcripts had been produced with help from a “professional live transcription service provider”, adding that it would correct any mistakes or discrepancies and upload the am...

Last week, a friend and I chatted about our children’s favourite art pieces after happening upon an auction house’s exhibition in a building in the heart of Hong Kong’s business district. We both recalled stopping to look at Yayoi Kusama’s Mount Fuji prints. “I pass by the space twice every day,” my friend said. She told me that my son’s pick – a piece by Sam Francis – was a new installation, replacing what had been a display of handbags.How often do we pause to notice art, or enjoy life in general? Perhaps that’s the very essence of art: getting immersed in a much-needed and captivating distraction from the demands of a busy schedule and looking at something beautiful that transcends time and space.March has given Hongkongers the chance to escape the hustle and bustle to admire meaningful...

The newly appointed Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Janice Tse Siu-wa will prioritise formulating Hong Kong’s first five-year plan, the city’s leader has said, citing her rich experience in government as a key strength.“She is the best candidate among all as she has a solid foundation in working and communicating with the civil servants, and the network she established with the Legislative Council will be good for pressing ahead with the five-year plan,” Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu said on Monday.Lee’s remarks followed a state media report on Beijing’s decision on Monday to appoint the 61-year-old former permanent secretary for environment as the constitutional and mainland affairs minister, upon his nomination.The city leader said the most important task for the new...

Hongkongers who refuse to provide passwords for smartphones or other electronic devices during national security investigations face up to a year in jail under legal changes that also allow police to question organisations if they have reasonable belief that they are overseas political groups or agents of foreign forces.The government said the new rules would not affect people’s daily lives or how institutions normally operated.The amendments, gazetted on Monday, are the first substantial changes to the implementation rules of the national security law since it was imposed by Beijing in 2020. A minor technical amendment related to frozen property was made in 2023.A government spokesman said the revised rules would strengthen enforcement, improve crime prevention and assist in case investig...

Hong Kong and Hainan should forge a strong partnership and explore new models of cooperation, the city’s leader has said, urging the business sector to capitalise on the mainland Chinese province’s free-trade port status by offering professional services in areas such as finance, law and accounting.Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu’s call followed a meeting with Feng Fei, the Communist Party secretary of the Hainan provincial committee, on the sidelines of the Boao Forum for Asia annual conference on Wednesday.Hainan, a 35,000 sq km (14,000 square miles) island that is 32 times the size of Hong Kong and 49 times that of Singapore, implemented a separate customs regime last December as it sought to develop into an offshore financial and duty-free hub amid escalating external trade barriers.U...

Beijing has selected Zhang Dongmei, a former vice-president of the All-China Women’s Federation, as a new deputy director of the top office overseeing Hong Kong affairs, making her the first woman to take on the role since the body’s status was elevated in 2023.Zhang’s appointment as the new deputy head of the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office (HKMAO) fills the vacancy left by the departure of Xiang Bin, a Communist Party of China group member of the office, earlier this year.The State Council’s decision was announced by the Xinhua News Agency on Wednesday. Her selection brings the office’s total number of deputy directors up to five.The body’s top leadership also includes Zhou Ji, director of Beijing’s liaison office in Hong Kong.Xia Baolong has led the HKMAO since 2020. Three years late...