Politics

China remains a secure investment destination despite recent geopolitical tensions, Beijing’s foreign ministry arm in Hong Kong has told diplomats and business chambers at a high-profile meeting, while highlighting the city’s strategic role in building international ties.Cui Jianchun, commissioner of the foreign ministry’s office in Hong Kong, on Wednesday met about 60 envoys, commerce chamber representatives and members of the international media for a one-hour sharing session on the Communist Party’s fourth plenum.The fourth plenum concluded on October 23, with the core agenda centring around formulating a blueprint for the country’s 15th five-year plan, which will guide national development from 2026 to 2030.Cui said the session in Hong Kong aimed to enhance foreign consuls and business...

In a new occasional series, outgoing lawmakers reflect on their time in Hong Kong’s Legislative Council, which wrapped up its four-year term on October 24, ahead of the next general election on December 7.Hong Kong’s first “patriots-only” legislature has established a good model of executive-legislative relations where key policies are first discussed with officials in closed-door meetings, retiring legislator Doreen Kong Yuk-foon has said.Kong, 55, a solicitor by training, made her debut as an independent lawmaker in 2021, winning a seat in the first Legislative Council election after Beijing revamped the city’s electoral system to ensure only “patriots” held political power.Known for her outspoken views, she declared recently that she was ending her career as a lawmaker to return to her ...

Hong Kong is bouncing back, especially in finance, defying predictions of decline after the 2019 unrest and the 2020 national security law. The Hong Kong stock exchange has surged to the top of this year’s global rankings as the world’s largest initial public offering venue, with over 300 companies queuing up to list their shares.This resurgence signals resilience, but it also ignites a deeper debate: what kind of Hong Kong is emerging?Concern has swirled around the recent influx of mainland Chinese and whether their arrival will erode the city’s social fabric, hastening its slide into “just another Chinese city”. These worries surfaced vividly in my conversations with academics who hail from the mainland and foreign journalists revisiting after years away.Such concerns, while understandab...

Hong Kong Olympic gold medallist Vivian Kong Man-wai has declared her bid to run for the tourism constituency in the coming Legislative Council election and has applied to give up her Canadian passport, pledging to continue to “bring honour” to the city.The 31-year-old fencing star was flanked by tycoons such as Sino Group chairman Daryl Ng Win Kong and Kerry Properties chairman Kuok Khoon Hua as she submitted her nominations on Monday.Miramar Group chief operations officer Alan Chan Chung-yee and Travel Industry Council chairman Tommy Tam Kwong-shun also made appearances to show their support.Kong said she was grateful for the opportunity and the support of the tourism industry, adding that she hoped to “show the world” how great Hong Kong was.“As an athlete, I had the opportunity to repr...

There has been more intense competition for the coming Legislative Council election amid an unprecedented level of uncertainty, with neither a “blessing list” nor a “sure win” scenario for any candidate, according to a commentary posted by Beijing’s top office for the city’s affairs.The piece, reposted by the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office (HKMAO) on Monday night, marked Beijing’s latest attempt in recent weeks to stress that there were no candidates being endorsed by central authorities in the December 7 poll.The commentary, which first appeared in the pro-Beijing newspaper Ta Kung Pao, said there would be “tougher” competition in the coming poll than in previous elections, with a “diverse” range of candidates providing “a real choice” for voters with higher expectations.“There is nei...

Beijing’s liaison office in Hong Kong has pledged to support the city’s integration into national development plans while stressing the importance of studying and applying the “spirit” of the country’s recent political leadership meeting, which will shape policymaking over the next five years.The head of the central government’s liaison office, Zhou Ji, conveyed on Saturday the guiding ideology of the fourth plenary session of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and laid out the work requirements for the city. The plenary session concluded on Thursday.The meeting, which was attended by the heads of various departments of the office and representatives of other Beijing’s arms in Hong Kong, stressed that studying and implementing the spirit of the fourth plenum was “a ...

The Business and Professionals Alliance for Hong Kong party has put forward 14 candidates for the coming Legislative Council election, while one of its lawmakers has joined a wave of legislators opting not to seek another term, bringing the total to 28.The party announced the line-up on Monday, as 41-year-old legislator Benson Luk Hon-man revealed he had no plans to run for re-election.Luk said on Monday that the decision was made after careful consideration and discussions with fellow party colleagues and his wife.“I will continue to serve with a grateful heart in my new role, connecting various sectors to promote economic, cultural, sports and tourism development, support youth upward mobility and contribute to the nation and Hong Kong,” he said.The new role he was referring to was not i...

Hong Kong should identify its “advantageous positioning” within the national development blueprint and proactively reform and adapt to changes, Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu has said.The city leader also said the 15th five-year period from 2026 to 2030, as outlined in the national blueprint, was a “new stage” for implementing the “one country, two systems” governing principle, and “crucial” for Hong Kong to realise its transformation from stability to prosperity.Lee’s remarks on Monday follow a high-level meeting with top officials that he chaired to study the “spirit” of the fourth plenum of the Communist Party’s Central Committee.The fourth plenum concluded on Thursday, with its core agenda centred on formulating the country’s 15th five-year plan for guiding development during the per...

Hong Kong’s leader has arrived in South Korea for an Apec economic leaders’ meeting and has pledged to share with other attendees the city’s policies and experience in investment promotion and artificial intelligence (AI) application.Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu, who arrived in Korea with his delegation on Wednesday afternoon, is expected to attend an Apec economic leaders’ informal dialogue in the city of Gyeongju and the Apec Business Advisory Council dialogue with Apec economic leaders on Friday.He is then expected to take part in an Apec economic leaders’ retreat on Saturday.“During the meetings, I look forward to sharing Hong Kong’s policies and experience in areas such as investment promotion and AI application with government and business leaders from other economies,” Lee said ...

Hong Kong’s security chief has warned that encouraging people not to vote or to cast blank ballots in the coming Legislative Council election may violate the city’s national security legislation, pointing to such activities already occurring online.Secretary for Security Chris Tang Ping-keung also said on Thursday that there would be swift law enforcement action against such conduct and criticised fugitive activist Ted Hui Chi-fung for urging people not to vote in the December 7 election on social media.“These acts are very vicious … I hope the public will understand the facts clearly and not be misled into illegal conduct,” Tang said.He said the acts could violate national security laws and the Elections (Corrupt and Illegal Conduct) Ordinance but did not elaborate.Former lawmaker Hui, ba...