HK has risen from the ashes, Xi says during rare visit

HONG KONG • Hong Kong has overcome its challenges and "risen from the ashes", China's President Xi Jinping said yesterday, as he arrived in the former British colony to celebrate 25 years since its return to Chinese rule.

Mr Xi will swear in the global financial hub's new leader, Mr John Lee, today during his first visit to the city since 2017, which is also his first known trip outside the mainland in more than two years, amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

Wearing masks, Mr Xi and his wife, Ms Peng Liyuan, stepped off a high-speed train to be greeted by children waving flowers and Chinese and Hong Kong flags.

"Hong Kong has withstood severe tests again and again, overcoming challenges one by one," Mr Xi said during a brief speech. "After the wind and rain, Hong Kong has risen from the ashes."

Security was tight at the train station, with police making stop-and-search checks, assisted by sniffer dogs.

Some analysts see Mr Xi's visit as a victory tour after Beijing tightened its control of Hong Kong with a national security law, following mass pro-democracy protests in 2019. "It is a celebration of the central government's victory over the political opposition in Hong Kong," said Professor John Burns from the department of politics and public administration at The University of Hong Kong.

Outgoing city leader Carrie Lam and her husband were among those who welcomed Mr Xi at the station, which has not been used for two years because of Covid-19 curbs. City streets were festooned with red China flags and posters declaring a "new era" of stability.

Mr Xi's full official schedule for the visit has not been released. It was not immediately clear if the celebrations would be affected by an expected typhoon.

On his last visit to Hong Kong, Mr Xi warned against any acts endangering China's sovereignty, saying the city needed to beef up its national security arrangements.

While tens of thousands of demonstrators marched during Mr Xi's visit five years ago, no protests are expected this time because of the city's heightened security and with the most outspoken opposition politicians and activists either in jail or self-exile.

Hong Kong returned to Chinese rule under a "one country, two systems" formula meant to preserve its freedoms, but critics say these have been eroded as Beijing exerts control. Beijing and Hong Kong's government reject that, saying they have "restored order from chaos" so that the city can prosper.

To ensure security for the event, police closed parts of Hong Kong, blocking roads and enforcing a no-fly zone over Victoria Harbour.

Resident Karis Ho, 31, said the security measures were an inconvenience for the public and "made Xi appear sensitive".

But resident Angel Chau, 62, was excited, saying: "It shows how much he values Hong Kong."

Members of the League of Social Democrats, a pro-democracy group, said they would scrap plans for demonstrations after national security officers warned them not to protest during Mr Xi's visit.

Incoming leader Lee, a former policeman whom the United States has placed under sanctions over the national security law, and Mrs Lam have been taking daily Covid-19 tests and staying in a quarantine hotel for days before Mr Xi's visit, the media said.

Hong Kong reported 2,358 Covid-19 cases yesterday, with daily infections rising. China's strategy of stamping out Covid-19 outbreaks as soon as they occur, at just about any cost, contrasts with a global trend of co-existing with the disease.

Some journalists have been blocked from covering the ceremonies, with the Hong Kong government citing security requirements.

REUTERS