Monday, September 26, 2005

War of words in Guangdong

Over the weekend, 60 59 of Hong Kong's legislators made a trip across the border to Guangdong to meet senior provincial and national leaders. Signalled as a new willingness on Beijing's side for dialogue, this officially-sanctioned trip was a first. Among the 60 59 were Hong Kong pro-democracy legislators, including the indefatigable democrat Martin Lee (who last year had the honour of being branded a 'traitor' by a senior mainland official), Democratic Party leader Lee Wing-tat, trade unionist legislator Lee Cheuk-yan and Frontier group convenor Emily Lau. Almost all had previously been barred from entering the mainland for any reason whatsoever.
China's main man at the White Swan Hotel talks? Zhang Dejiang, member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and secretary of the CPC Guangdong Provincial Committee.
Things went reasonably well until someone from Hong Kong brought up June 4, 1989. No, that someone wasn't pseudo-Trotskyist and street agitator Leung Kwok-hung (Longhair), although he did manage to create some argy-bargy, earlier.
South China Morning Post (paid; no link).
(Hong Kong) Standard.
Bloomberg.
The mainland's Xinhua.

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