Un local “election committee”, made up of 1,461 representatives of the political and economic elite all committed to Beijing, appointed former security boss John Lee as the city’s new leader, after a campaign in which he was alone candidate. John Lee, a 64-year-old former police officer, is the only candidate to succeed outgoing leader Carrie Lam, who has decided not to seek another five-year term. Hong Kong has never been a democracy, which has fueled public frustration and sometimes massive and violent protests for years.
According to local media, around 7,000 police officers were mobilized to avoid any incidents during the designation process. The League of Social Democrats – one of the last remaining pro-democracy groups – staged a three-person protest before the polls opened, chanting “power to the people, universal suffrage now”. “We know this action will have no effect, but we don’t want Hong Kong to be completely silent,” protester Vanessa Chan said as dozens of police watched.
John Lee will be Hong Kong’s first leader to come from a police background. He was Hong Kong’s security chief at the time of the massive pro-democracy protests of 2019. In this capacity, he oversaw the crackdown on the protest as well as the severe political takeover that followed. Under Xi Jinping, Beijing in 2020 imposed a draconian national security law on the former British colony that stifled dissent, as well as a reform of the political system to ensure that Hong Kong is ruled exclusively by “patriots”. loyal to the Chinese regime.
Beijing’s Repression and Trust
According to analysts, it was John Lee’s fervent support for this campaign of repression that earned him the confidence of the Chinese regime, which has traditionally been wary of Hong Kong’s political elites. “He is the man who passed the test,” said Lai Tung-kwok, John Lee’s predecessor as Hong Kong’s security chief. But it also applies to John Lee Lee to appear on a list of Chinese and Hong Kong personalities sanctioned by the United States.
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John Lee will inherit a struggling town. The pro-democracy movement has been crushed by the national security law, but much of the population still harbors deep resentment towards Beijing and anger at the deep-seated inequalities in Hong Kong society. And Hong Kong, the world’s third largest financial center, continues to live practically cut off from the world due to its drastic restrictions against Covid-19.
Under the slogan “Starting a new chapter for Hong Kong together”, John Lee promised “results-oriented” governance. But his 44-page program, published last week, contains few concrete measures. He said he will reveal more details after taking office on July 1, the 25th anniversary of the UK’s handover of Hong Kong to China.
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