◀ anchor ▶
On July 1, 1997, 25 years ago today, Hong Kong was returned to China.
Hong Kong people’s anxiety was high, and China promised to ‘guarantee ‘one country, two systems’ Hong Kong autonomy for 50 years.
However, China did not leave Hong Kong alone, and citizens resisted the Umbrella Revolution in 2014 and protests against the extradition bill in 2019.
President Xi Jinping, who visited Hong Kong for the first time since the corona virus, evaluated the past 25 years as follows:
[시진핑/중국 국가주석]
“I’m robbing once again. One country, two systems has achieved world-renowned success.”
However, the world’s assessment is very different from that of Xi Jinping, and the number of citizens leaving Hong Kong continues to grow.
Correspondent Jo Hee-hyeong from Beijing focused on the coverage.
◀ Report ▶
I’ve found someone who can tell me what Hong Kong looks like now. The two are outside Hong Kong.
Carmen Lau, Jang Mo- the family said they were in Hong Kong and asked to cover their faces.
Retired Correspondent Chen Junming Mr. Lau is based in London, UK, and Mr. Zhang is based in Taiwan.
Carmen Rauchum is a woman holding a microphone at a rally to commemorate the victims of the 6.4 Tiananmen Square massacre in London on the 4th of last month.
Mr. Lau, a former member of the Democratic Party of Hong Kong, resigned last year and fled to the UK.
[카르멘 라우/전직 홍콩 구의원]
“There were rumors that (democratic camp) members of the district would be arrested. At the time, they were being followed.”
Last November 2019. Hong Kong was at war.
Binwa Ilbo reporter Chen Shenming was wearing a gas mask around his neck and covering the protests in Hong Kong.
In Hong Kong, the press has been subject to repression.
A water cannon is shot down by a reporter who was filming the protest, and the water cannon fired by the police flies several meters away.
The Bean Fruit Daily was forcibly shut down, and the six reporters are still in prison.
Chen Junming also lost his job and started broadcasting on the Internet alone.
[천줴밍/빈과일보 퇴직 기자]
“They (unemployed reporters) are in a difficult situation to find a job in the same industry.
Hong Kong’s National Security Law, enacted in 2020, allows for up to life imprisonment on charges of dividing the country
In 2021, the next year, 89,200 Hong Kong residents went abroad, more than four times the number of the previous year.
[장 씨/대만 이민 홍콩인]
“(What was Hong Kong like you knew?) Each citizen was able to think for himself and communicate with the government.
The annual tribute to the victims of Tiananmen Square in Victoria Park has been banned.
[빅터/홍콩 시민 (지난 4일)]
“Everyone is silent for fear of being arrested.”
Hong Kong now requires foreign teachers to pledge allegiance to the Chinese government and reinforces Xi Jinping ideology and patriotic education for students.
[장쩌민/1997년 당시 국가주석]
“Hong Kong is finally back in China’s arms”
The Chinese five-star and red flag replaced the British flag Union Jack in 1997. One country, two systems. Hong Kong promised autonomy.
At the 25th anniversary of the return of Hong Kong today, President Xi Jinping emphasized that Hong Kong should be ruled by patriots.
The United States and Britain have criticized Hong Kong’s democracy as being dismantled and its freedoms being wiped out. China’s state-run media reported that the West’s accusations were narrow-minded and Hong Kong was moving forward.
This is Heehyung Cho from MBC News in Beijing.
Video Source: YouTube (Epoch News UK), (CBN)/ Video Editing: Minwoo Jo
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