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Hong Kong tycoons head for Beijing for talks
2003-09-26
HONG KONG - Hong Kong's super tycoons and their heirs apparent headed for Beijing on Friday on an annual pilgrimage with added significance this year as Chinese rulers try to prop up support for the city's unpopular leader.Asia's richest businessman Li Ka-shing, Henry Fok and Gordon Wu are among more than 80 people in the delegation, the latest in a string of Hong Kong's movers and shakers who have been invited to China's capital in recent weeks. Chinese President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao are expected to receive the tycoons on Saturday, when they will be asked to throw their weight behind Tung and help preserve stability in Hong Kong. Massive public protests in July against Tung Chee-hwa's administration rocked Hong Kong's ruling elite and alarmed China's leaders. Beijing has been working for months to rebuild support for Tung among the territory's pro-China and pro-business leaders. "This time, the message will be to fully support Tung Chee-hwa in the next two to three years. Beijing will appeal to the tycoons to be patriotic to ensure stability for Tung's administration," said political commentator Sonny Lo. Frustrated with years of economic malaise and the government's insistence on pushing through a controversial anti-subversion law, hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets in July to demand more democracy and call on Tung to resign. The bill was finally withdrawn, but Tung's government has said it will have to be enacted one day as required by Hong Kong's constitution. Shocked by the huge protests, Beijing has moved quickly to engage with people across a wide spectrum of Hong Kong society to find out what went wrong in the former British colony, which returned to Chinese rule in 1997. China has gone all out to try to help prop up Hong Kong's sluggish economy, including making promises to speed up a free trade pact and easing travel restrictions which should encourage more mainland tourists to visit Hong Kong. The delegation of Hong Kong's super-wealthy is certain to heed the call from the central government. Besieged by reporters as his trip began, Li Ka-shing said Beijing's role in trying to help Hong Kong out of its economic quagmire was clear. "What the central government has done, everyone can see. Freeing of tourists, CEPA (the trade deal) and other measures, all these were done for the good of Hong Kong, to help its economy, employment and its future," Li told reporters. China believes political unrest in the territory and calls for greater democracy will begin to dissipate once the economy recovers, but the first test could come in district-level elections in November, and then legislative elections next year. Some analysts predict democractically inclined candidates could make significant inroads at the expense of pro-government parties who supported Tung, a prospect which would unnerve Beijing. "If everyone is supportive, then the elections will be more favourable to pro-government forces, and that will reduce the momentum for more democratisation," Lo said. "This is a very well-orchestrated long term plan and was skillfully put together after the protests." Tung was anointed by Beijing to run Hong Kong and the legislature is dominated by pro-China lawmakers. Hong Kong's constitution allows for full democracy after 2007, but analysts say authorities in Hong Kong and Beijing are reluctant to let that happen. (Reuters)
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