Hong Kong

[Neko-koku]

In a direct appeal to demonstrators, she [Carrie Lam] said: “Let’s set aside differences and spend one minute to look at our city and our home. Could we bear to push it into an abyss where everything will perish?

“We need to object to violence and maintain the rule of law ... When this all calms down, we will start to have sincere dialogues and rebuild harmony.”

The PRC: sends people to gulags, has opponents killed, is "reeducating" the uighurs, is run by a corrupt tyrant who takes out every one he doesn't wanna share the spot light with.

Carrie Lam: dang, there's so much violence in Hong kong. What happened to rule of law.

And this is the problem with a lot of people in East Asia folks. Every culture has its strengths and weakness and the biggest weakness of a lot of people in East Asia is they always do what they're told. They don't stop and try to think for themselves or act on their own accord. Some guy in a funny outfit tells them "obey my laws or else!" And they're just like " we need to maintain social harmony and order. " Look, fuck social harmony and order too. If the government is unjust and tyrannical then people need to fight it. Your social order isn't as important as human rights and freedom. If lawlessness and chaos are what spawns from taking on a dictator then slap me silly and call me an anarchist because that's exactly what needs to happen I guess. The protesters in Hong Kong are fighting a losing battle but have their dignity at least. Carrie Lam is just like the coward from the "first they came for the communists" poem. She just keeps hoping Beijing won't have her sent to a "reeducation center" somewhere in the western desert. Trust me, once the PRC takes over Beijing completely, they are replacing that entire government. Doesn't matter how much you grovel, they're paranoid and they will wanna make sure anyone running the city of Hong Kong was handpicked by Xi himself.

We gotta change this way of thinking. We need more dissidents

The people in China do think (in fact at least in the Hu era we generally mocked the CCP fuckers in our dorms lmao). What we tend to lack is the courage to openly disobey.

When people actually openly disobey in this region you tend to get Zhangism because only Zhang Xianzhongs who have nothing to lose and are about to die tend to not give a shit about anything and openly disobey the gov...

[LiberNovusAmericae]

China won't get away with it, severe economic sanctions will follow and perhaps even military actions. But in the unlikely event in which Hong Kong gains independence, then they will most likely join Taiwan. Not to mention, integrating Hong Kong will cause some anger in the Cantonese provinces of Guangxi and Guangdong.

I doubt many countries will sanction China. Western businesses kiss their ass, and lobby Western governments to also kiss their ass.

[The New California Republic]

With the military build up it's looking like Tiananmen Square II.

I'm not sure that they will. Hong Kong will become a pariah city for the next few decades if they do.

[Costa Hermosa]

This world is a sad place to be living in.

[The South Falls]

>Implying China is communist

Considering the fact you support North Korea, I'm surprised you wouldn't consider China communist. Is it not totalitarian enough for you?

It's market communism, essentially. They are on a partially-free market system, though the large companies are state-administrated and there's very little economic freedom.

[Neko-koku]

Large numbers of Chinese paramilitary forces have been filmed assembling just 30km (18.6 miles) from Hong Kong in the city of Shenzhen, as the UN warned Beijing to exercise restraint in its response to growing unrest in the territory.

Hong Kong’s pro-Beijing leader Carrie Lam said on Tuesday the city had been placed on a “path of no return” after 10 weeks of increasingly disruptive protests.

Flights at the international airport in Hong Kong were cancelled for a second day, as thousands of demonstrators gathered in the departure hall at the main terminal despite the implementation of increased security measures designed to keep them out.

Chinese state media described the build-up of armed police units, shown in videos gathering at an arena called the Shenzhen Bay Sports Centre, as preparations for “apparent large-scale exercises”. Alexandre Krauss, a policy advisor for the EU’s Committee on Foreign Affairs, called the videos a sign that “something extraordinarily bad is about to happen”.

Similar exercises on 6 August featured up to 12,000 troops, according to the Chinese state-run Global Times newspaper, and featured armoured personnel carriers, helicopters and amphibious vehicles.

The newspaper described the People’s Armed Police forces as being mandated by Chinese law for “dealing with rebellions, riots, serious violent and illegal incidents, terrorist attacks and other social security incidents”.

It is a further sign of Beijing’s waning patience with the unrest in Hong Kong, after the Chinese government said on Monday that the protest movement in the city had begun to show “sprouts of terrorism”.

While China defines terrorism loosely, it has previously used the term to describe non-violent opposition movements in minority regions such as Tibet and Xinjiang, justifying greater uses of force and the suspension of legal rights for detainees.

Speaking on BBC radio, Britain’s last governor of the city before the 1997 handover said it would be “a catastrophe for China and of course for Hong Kong” if there was a military intervention.

Chris Patten said it was counter productive of China to warn of “other methods” if the protests did not stop. “Since President Xi has been in office, there’s been a crackdown on dissent and dissidents everywhere, the party has been in control of everything,” he said.

“I very much hope that even after 10 weeks of this going on, the government and President Xi [Jinping] will see the sense in establishing a way of actually bringing people together,” Lord Patten said.

Steve Tsang, director of the China Institute at Soas University of London, said that despite repeated shows of force “we are still some distance from [Chinese] security forces being deployed in Hong Kong”.

“But it is much closer today than a month ago,” he added, when protesters targeted the main central government headquarters in Hong Kong and a Chinese flag was defaced.

Mr Tsang said the shift in China’s perception of the protests, rather than its troop movements, was the critical issue. “Beijing now sees events in Hong Kong as a ‘colour revolution’… part of an American-led global conspiracy which aims ultimately at regime change in China,” he said. “This is totally intolerable to Xi Jinping.”

In a statement, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet said that by conflating the Hong Kong protests with “terrorism”, China risked inflaming the situation.

She urged the authorities to exercise restraint and to investigate evidence of uses of excessive force by police – one of the protesters’ key demands.

“Officials can be seen firing tear gas canisters into crowded, enclosed areas and directly at individual protesters on multiple occasions, creating a considerable risk of death or serious injury,” Ms Bachelet said, referring to videos of recent clashes in the city.

Ms Lam, however, reiterated her support for the police and their tactics, saying they have had to make on-the-spot decisions under difficult circumstances, using “the lowest level of force”.

During angry exchanges in which reporters repeatedly shouted over her, Ms Lam said dialogue would only resume “after the violence has been stopped, and the chaotic situation that we are seeing… subside[s]”.

And she again dismissed calls for her resignation, saying that: “I, as the chief executive, will be responsible to rebuild Hong Kong’s economy ... to help Hong Kong to move on.”

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/worl ... 55591.html

So, NSG, is another Tiananmen Square inevitable? I'm seeing similarities between the two events. While what China is doing is going to be horrible, sadly as usual, there is nothing we can do about it.

Hey, to correct the terminology....the so-called "People's Liberation Army" is a militant group, not a military.

[Vivolkha]

One Country, Two Systems is obviously a joke, and it is going to be de facto abolished in the coming year. That is what happens when you trust communists.

World's leading, most powerful totalitarianism*

Really, in the end who cares about their ideology here, if China was fascist it would do the same.

[Thermodolia]

With the military build up it's looking like Tiananmen Square II.

I'm not sure that they will. Hong Kong will become a pariah city for the next few decades if they do.

I don’t think Xi gives a shit. It’s evident that he doesn’t because his treatment of the Uyghur people

[The New California Republic]

Hey, to correct the terminology....the so-called "People's Liberation Army" is a militant group, not a military.

What on Earth are you talking about?

The Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) is the armed forces of the People's Republic of China (PRC) and its founding and ruling political party, the Communist Party of China (CPC).

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/People%27 ... ation_Army

[Neko-koku]

Hey, to correct the terminology....the so-called "People's Liberation Army" is a militant group, not a military.

What on Earth are you talking about?

The Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) is the armed forces of the People's Republic of China (PRC) and its founding and ruling political party, the Communist Party of China (CPC).

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/People%27 ... ation_Army

Is the Islamic State a country?

[Neko-koku]

I'm not sure that they will. Hong Kong will become a pariah city for the next few decades if they do.

I don’t think Xi gives a shit. It’s evident that he doesn’t because his treatment of the Uyghur people

Xi doesn't give a shit about anything lol. He is an Elliot Rodgers in power.

[Rojava Free State]

I called this a few weeks back. I knew xi wouldn't stand by while someone challenged him. Looks like we're getting close to Tiananmen 2. If you're in Hong kong, all I can say is hide

[Thermodolia]

On Tuesday the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet, urged authorities to exercise restraint during protests - amid criticism of the police response.

"Officials can be seen firing tear gas canisters into crowded, enclosed areas and directly at individual protesters on multiple occasions, creating a considerable risk of death or serious injury," she said in a statement that called for an investigation.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-49330848

Firing tear gas inside buildings is a big nono, as high concentrations of tear gas can kill, as shown in previous cases:

a number of people have died following exposure to high concentrations of tear gas in enclosed areas. "Deaths and respiratory tract injuries were reported after release of tear gas in prisons," the CDC said.
https://www.newsweek.com/what-are-effec ... as-1231058

The thing is that Xi and co don’t give a shit. The west is dealing with people who quite frankly don’t give a flying fuck about human rights, death, or anything else that the west cares about. And unfortunately the west is going to sit on its ass because we don’t want to upset Xi and his cronies for some strange reason

[Estanglia]

What on Earth are you talking about?

Is the Islamic State a country?

The PRC is.

[Rojava Free State]

What on Earth are you talking about?

Is the Islamic State a country?

Kinda. It wasn't recognized by anyone but it had all the trappings of a country

The PLA is the Chinese army. It started out as a militia but now is the defense force of a nation recognized by every one except Hong Kong

I mean america's army traces it's roots back to the continenrals who were basically a militant group

[Neko-koku]

Is the Islamic State a country?

The PRC is.

How is the so-called PRC a country while IS isn't? Neither is legitimate.

[Thermodolia]

I don’t think Xi gives a shit. It’s evident that he doesn’t because his treatment of the Uyghur people

Xi doesn't give a shit about anything lol. He is an Elliot Rodgers in power.

Power is all he cares about. Xi isn’t an Incel though

[Loben The 2nd]

With the military build up it's looking like Tiananmen Square II.

And the UN said to have “restraint.”

Doesn’t the UN know that they are a joke to countries with the military might to tell them to fuck off or ignore them?

[The New California Republic]

What on Earth are you talking about?

Is the Islamic State a country?

The PLA is the armed forces of the PRC. I don't know what way you are trying to twist and distort that fact to make it seem not true, but the fact that you are even trying to is just fucking ridiculous.

[Rojava Free State]

>Implying China is communist

Considering the fact you support North Korea, I'm surprised you wouldn't consider China communist. Is it not totalitarian enough for you?

Corporations flourish in China and the free market reigns supreme there. It's far from communist. It's definitely a totalitarian nightmare but anything communist about it died under deng xiaopeng. North Korea is communist as hell, but China isnt. It isn't about how tyrannical the state is. It's about what the tyrants are cool with

[Dogmeat]

The PRC is.

How is the so-called PRC a country while IS isn't? Neither is legitimate.

Basically everyone but Taiwan says it is.

[Electic]

The PRC is.

How is the so-called PRC a country while IS isn't? Neither is legitimate.

What are you basing this personal opinion on?

[Loben The 2nd]

Is the Islamic State a country?

The PLA is the armed forces of the PRC. I don't know what way you are trying to twist and distort that fact to make it seem not true, but the fact that you are even trying to is just fucking ridiculous.

Technically they are the armed wing of the CCP. Always have been.

[Estanglia]

The PRC is.

How is the so-called PRC a country while IS isn't? Neither is legitimate.

Legitimacy of a government doesn't determine whether or not the country the government controls is a country.

Did Venezuela stop being a country when Guaidó declared himself the acting president and a bunch of countries recognised him?

[Neko-koku]

Is the Islamic State a country?

Kinda. It wasn't recognized by anyone but it had all the trappings of a country

The PLA is the Chinese army. It started out as a militia but now is the defense force of a nation recognized by every one except Hong Kong

I mean america's army traces it's roots back to the continenrals who were basically a militant group

Well, the PRC is the illegally occupied parts of Republic of China legally (that's right) in the same sense that Mosul between 2014 and 2018 was an illegally occupied Iraqi city. Since PRC and IS are illegal rebel groups controlling territories just like the Taliban or the former FARC they don't have militaries. The so-called PLA is as much of a Chinese military as ISIS militants in Iraq are the Iraqi military.