Today is perhaps the second saddest anniversary in China (perhaps not for them but for those of us with a slightly different view of freedom…in the philosophical sense). The saddest day, I’ve already mentioned here is probably the June 4th massacres at Tiananmen square. Today is the anniversary of the British handover of Hong Kong to the Chinese government. This occurred in 1997 with the promise of the one country, two systems government. Of course, this isn’t really the case. The handover occurred 12 years ago today which gives Hong Kong 38 more years of supposed freedom…I’ll be surprised if they make it that long before Beijing exerts its iron-fisted control over that beautiful city. During my visit last summer we saw the monument (memorial?) to the event. A large striking black obelisk on the banks of Victoria harbor, a fitting symbol of a dark day in history when the ideals of the western world caved to a new superpower. Prince Charles wrote in his diary about the day as a witness to the historical event. Excerpts are available here
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/4740684.stm
Well worth a read to remember what was and to hope for what still might be. Patrick OUT!!!
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