Cool the HK debate

With 147 days to go before Hong Kong becomes part of China, debate over details continues. Some of the debate is highly important, such as the recent Beijing announcement it will roll back civil rights. Some of it is nitpicking and tiring. Arguments between the departing British and incoming Chinese have been largely uneven.

The lack of respect Hong Kong people give to communist representatives has made it easy for the British to get their last-minute demands across.

Now, the war of words has taken on a new look. The outgoing colonial governor -- and British politician -- Chris Patten no longer has the stage to himself. He now faces a formidable and worthy adversary. Incoming governor Tung Chee-hwa may be China's choice to lead Hong Kong after July 1. But he has proved to be quite a substantial threat to Patten in the debating ring.

It is important to realize what Tung is not. He is not a communist, for starters. He is a wealthy shipping tycoon and taipan, a position which earns respect. He is not an interloper, either. He is a Hong Kong citizen, with a home and family and business and friends in the territory. His appointment as the replacement for the governor effectively switched the positions of Patten who is the outsider.

Tung is articulate in three languages -- including Patten's English, Beijing's Mandarin, and the Cantonese of almost all Hong Kong citizens. In the past, Patten could speak directly to many Hong Kong people, while the often-clumsy Beijing representative needed an interpreter. Now, it is Patten whose interpreter is more visible.

The debate over details about post-Britain Hong Kong will continue. Democrats are rightly concerned about the China takeover, given Beijing's dismal and violent record in dealing with even the most mild criticism of its communist party dictatorship. But Tung lived in Britain and the U.S. for 15 years and appreciates freedom. But,'we are masters of our own house,' as he says.

Patter's long, arduous battle on behalf of democrats is appreciated. At the same time, Tung is the man who will take over on July 1. Britain's last golden colony is leaving the empire. The last British governor would do well to talk seriously with Tung rather than confronting him.

-- The Bangkok Post