On the 10th anniversary of the return of Hong Kong to China. commentators are divided in their assessment of the territory's progress in the decade since the British handover.
Those primarily concerned with business and finance are pointing to the 6.5 per cent growth in GDP for 2006, a bullish stock market and a new property boom. Hong Kong appears to have ridden out the economic uncertainties and financial crisis of the late nineties and the memory of the SARS epidemic of 2003 is beginning to fade.
Not surprisingly, the pro-Beijing lobby wants to forget the whole SARS affair because the circumstances that allowed the outbreak to occur very much exposed the downside of post-1997 Hong Kong, whose administration seemed to have taken on some of the corruption and secrecy normally associated with the ruling Chinese Communist Party (CCP).
It was also in 2003 that the territory faced the CCP's most determined attempt to date to try and erode Hong Kong's fundamental rights by introducing the infamous Article 23. The legislation, allegedly designed to curb opposition's voices, was vague and open to abuse by the authorities. A million people took to the streets in protest and the Government was forced to drop the bill.
The defeat spelled the end for Beijing's puppet chief administrator Tung Chee Hwa who resigned mid-term. Sir Donald Tsang, who is very much a product of the old British Civil Service and a practicing Catholic, replaced Mr Tung. Sir Donald is seen as being a more independent spirit than his predecessor, but nonetheless still kept on a pretty tight leash by his overlords in Beijing.
Media Control
One of the keystones of the Chinese Communist Party's authoritarian rule has been total control of the media and after 1997 nothing irked the party cadres more than Hong Kong's free press.
While the "optimists" claim that free press is evidence that "one country-two systems" is working, a closer examination reveals that press freedom has been under constant attack in the territory and only preserved with great difficulty.
Excuses were concocted by leading media outlets to dismiss journalists who displayed a penchant for stories critical of Beijing. Direct pressure then became unnecessary as those who wanted to keep their jobs started to exercise self-censorship.
It was made very clear to Hong Kong's media that they could criticise the local administration as much as they liked, but they were not to criticize the CCP and they were not to support Taiwan, Tibet or Falun Gong.
Last week Hong Kong professionals called on the international community to pay attention to the declining media freedom in Hong Kong.
While speaking at a forum in Taiwan, Chairperson of the Hong Kong Journalists Association (HKJA), Serenade Woo said: "There are 18 different Chinese and English newspapers at Hong Kong newsstands, while the number of electronic media outlets has increased to eight. At first glance, Hong Kong appears to enjoy freedom of the press, but this is in fact deceptive because quantity has nothing to do with quality," reported Taiwan News Online.
According to a survey conducted by HKJA, 58.4 per cent of the Hong Kong media think that the main reasons for the regression of media freedom in Hong Kong are censorship and Government control of information.
And although many media, including Hong Kong Voice of Democracy and The Epoch Times, persevere in their drive to bring news free from Mainland censorship, the job is becoming ever more difficult.
In a letter dated December 10, 2005 the Foreign Correspondents' Club of Hong Kong expressed grave concerns over the jailing of Strait's Times journalist Ching Cheong. They demanded that he be allowed to seek a fair trial and legal representation.
In 2004 the host of a popular political radio show, Wong Yuk-man, quit his job citing worries about his personal safety after he was beaten by unidentified thugs, reports Radio Free Asia.
Last year a gang armed with hammers burst into the Epoch Times office and smashed equipment —temporarily putting the publication out of commission. Other media outlets have also been subject to advertising boycotts by business interests who want to curry favour with the Chinese regime.
While Hong Kong strives to maintain a certain degree of independence, it may be increasingly difficult with the pressing restrictions from its communist neighbour.
Hong Kong's post-handover constitution says universal suffrage is the ultimate goal, but is vague on a timetable, giving Beijing scope to dictate the pace of reform. Beijing's parliament has ruled out direct elections until at least 2012.