Hong Kong will press on to expand its economic reach by seizing opportunities to create new networks while fighting “a serious disinformation campaign” orchestrated by the West, John Lee Ka-chiu has said, looking ahead to his third year in office as chief executive.
In an exclusive interview with the Post, he identified investment and business potential in Asean, Central Asia and Middle East countries as well as Peru, where the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Forum meeting will be held in November and which he will attend, singling out the South American nation as an emerging market less ensnared by geopolitical rivalry.
The city leader stressed the need for his administration to continue battling negative narratives “head-on” in the coming year but also staying singularly focused in pushing Hong Kong’s economic agenda and letting the “truth prevail” about the financial hub.
“The serious disinformation campaign will just go on. It’s not easy. We have very professional liars, thieves, who are all trained up by different governments to steal, to lie, and to cheat you,” he said.
“I, by nature, like making friends. I don’t like making enemies. But I have to defend myself if I’m punched in the face.
“But my top priority is to promote Hong Kong, to make more friends. We work on people rather than [those] governments … by expanding our network, inviting people to come to Hong Kong.”
The city had to play to its strengths, Lee said, capitalising on its role as an international city but with strong connections to mainland China and also its unique advantages, such as having a low tax environment benefiting individuals as well as enterprises.
Over the past year, Lee’s administration achieved a major political milestone with the enactment of a domestic security law that was two decades in the making. It has also sought to revitalise the sluggish local economy dragged down by weak global demand, high interest rates and continuing US-China tensions.
Lee said that in his two years in office, he had succeeded in changing the culture of the government to get everyone to work as a results-oriented team, and the over-200 KPIs he set for them had been achieved. He acknowledged some fumbles, however, including the postponement of an unpopular waste-charging scheme – a policy he inherited from the previous government but tried his best to improve upon, he pointed out.
The economy was in recession when he took on the job, Lee noted, but now growth this year was forecast to be at 2.5 to 3.5 per cent and the push to get investments had yielded results with investors coming to the city, pledging HK$120 billion in investments and creating 20,000 jobs.
“I think I’ve changed the culture of the government in a lot of ways … The most important thing for a chief executive is ensure that we are on the right track. We’re doing things in the right direction.”
Lee’s halfway point in his five-year term will coincide with the US presidential election in November, with the campaign and outcome likely to impact Washington’s approach towards Beijing and Hong Kong.
When asked about firewalling Hong Kong from further sanctions that could potentially be imposed on the city, he said what he could do was keep “building a strong team” to win support from other allies.
“I can’t change extreme weather. I can only do better myself. What should I do? Build a stronger team. Make us be able to protect ourselves. And also build strength so that we can win on other sides,” he said.
“This world is not just monopolised by one or two countries. It’s a big world. It’s a big world of almost 200 countries. And there are a lot of new opportunities for us to capitalise on.”
Washington has imposed sanctions on mainland and Hong Kong officials, including Lee as a former security minister, claiming they undermined the city’s autonomy with the Beijing-imposed security law that took effect in 2020.
Lee described US lawmakers’ latest move to introduce a bill to sanction Hong Kong judges as a “despicable attempt to pervert the course of justice”.
He also rebutted warnings by departing British judge Jonathan Sumption about Hong Kong becoming “a totalitarian state”, saying that it was “heartbreaking” to see respectable legal practitioners making “very unusual” comments about ongoing cases.
The sacrifice of my family is something I feel guilty about. It’s that being the chief executive, well, there’s not much I can do. And I thank them for [giving] me the support. The best is seeing people smile … When we opened up Hong Kong again, they smiled, they hugged each other. I cried. Happy cries.
The recent resignations of three overseas judges from the Court of Final Appeal have raised questions about the city government’s commitment to retaining foreign justices, a tradition seen by some as an indicator of confidence in the rule of law.
“The sacrifice of my family is something I feel guilty about. It’s that being the chief executive, well, there’s not much I can do. And I thank them for [giving] me the support. The best is seeing people smile … When we opened up Hong Kong again, they smiled, they hugged each other. I cried. Happy cries.”
“The Basic Law allows us [to do so]. We may, it’s not saying we must, right? The system is working fine,” he said. “We will continue because I want to tell the world we are transparent … I think we shouldn’t be affected by one or two individuals’ behaviour or their own perspective of things.”
Hong Kong’s relations with the UK have also hit a rough patch over a recent alleged spying case involving a 63-year-old office manager of the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in London. Lee said bilateral ties were not going to “improve quickly” considering the ongoing “political agenda” against China.
But he remained hopeful about business exchanges and people-to-people engagements that could yield benefits for Hong Kong’s European allies. He also suggested that by hosting additional international conferences and inviting opinion leaders and influential figures to the city, people would have the opportunity to witness Hong Kong’s situation first-hand.
In addition to the emerging markets in the Middle East and Asean countries that Lee’s administration has often expressed interest in tapping into, the city leader also highlighted Peru, where the annual Apec meetings will be held in November. Lee confirmed that he would join this year’s Apec leaders’ summit.
Lee, who is under US sanctions, did not attend last year’s Apec meetings in San Francisco citing “scheduling issues”. Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po represented Hong Kong instead.
“[Peru is a nation] which hasn’t been so badly led by this impact [of geopolitics]. We have a very good information campaign and there hasn’t been the focus of the political battlefield. So it may be an easy place to start,” Lee said.
“And there are a lot of good products from Peru and neighbouring countries for Hong Kong … So the potential is vast.”
Peruvian President Dina Boluarte is currently on a state visit on the mainland.
In the past two years, the city has been advocating for joining the world’s largest free-trade pact – the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), which encompasses all 10 Asean member states plus China, Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand.
The government filed an application in January 2022, while Beijing officials have been lobbying member states to speed up the approval process.
When asked why it was taking so long, Lee said without elaborating: “The real world may not be the world we want to be in … All these counter-currents are working against us.”
Towards the end of the interview, the city leader became emotional as he shared what he liked least about his job.
“The sacrifice of my family is something I feel guilty about,” he said, tears welling up.
And the best part of the job? “Seeing people smile … When we opened up Hong Kong again [after the Covid pandemic], they smiled, they hugged each other. I cried … And when I see some economic benefits being obtained over the years … I feel happy.”
