Last Governor of Hong Kong Chris Patten Says the CCP Tries to Rewrite History

Chris Patten spoke on June 8, at a virtual launch of the Chinese translation of his new book 'The Hong Kong Diaries'

Chris Patten spoke at the virtual launch of the Chinese translation of his new book "The Hong Kong Diaries" on June 8, 2023. Screenshot via YouTube/黑體文化

The Chinese translation of “The Hong Kong Diaries” authored by the last governor of Hong Kong, Chris Patten, was recently published in Taiwan. The publisher, Black Body Culture, invited Patten to attend an online sharing session on June 8. During the session, Patten criticized the CCP for being like a 19th-century colonial power and lacking the ability to economically and politically reform. He accused them of distorting history by claiming that “Hong Kong was never a British colony.”

“The Hong Kong Diaries” is a collection of Patten’s diary entries during his tenure as governor from 1992 to 1997. It describes the governance of Hong Kong as a British colony and the events leading up to its sovereignty transfer. In his diary, he recorded negotiations with Chinese representatives and his emotions when leaving Hong Kong in 1997. He was not sure then if Hong Kong could maintain its status as an international city.

Patten described in his book that being the Hong Kong governor as one of the most important positions in his career and shared what happened during his term as the governor and to the Hong Kong people. He urged people to continue to express their concerns about Hong Kong and speak up for its citizens for “free speech, right of assembly, or the right to choose their own government, as they had in the past.”

In his book, he describes his tenure as the Governor of Hong Kong as a very important part of his public service career, perhaps the most important position he has ever held in his life. He believes that “what happens in Hong Kong in the next few years is of vital importance to all of us,” so we must continue to express our concern and voice for Hong Kong, “to show that we share the values of the people of Hong Kong in their courageous struggle for freedom and democracy.”

Patten said at the virtual launch that Taiwan was a free society, and Hong Kong was once the same. He recalled that when he first served as governor of Hong Kong, he felt it was an “extraordinary and very different job.” He believed that it was very difficult to hand over Hong Kong to the Communist Party of China, that is to give Hong Kong, a free society to a society that is not. When the British government tried to push for democracy in Hong Kong faster, it was opposed by the CCP, as they feared that Hong Kong would become independent like Singapore or Malaysia. Patten admitted that the British  were slow in pushing for democratic development in Hong Kong, but they handed over a “free and open” society to China.

Patten pointed out that the CCP promised in the Sino-British Joint Declaration and Basic Law that Hong Kong’s existing way of life, open society, and high degree of autonomy would be retained for 50 years after 1997, which the then CCP leader Deng Xiaoping called “One Country, Two Systems.”  This slogan is now very familiar in Taiwan because it was originally used to deal with Beijing’s relationship with Taiwan. He added that there was a difference between the “rule of law” and  “rule by law” which is what is happening in China.

Chris Patten: The CCP Tries to Rewrite History

Patten said that the only colonial power today is China, which acts like a 19th-century colonial power in many respects, incapable of economic and political reform.  He said that he CCP is trying to tamper with history by claiming that “Hong Kong was never a British colony, and was never run by the British colonial empire,” and it was an occupied territory.”

Patten said Hong Kong was “occupied” by Chinese mainland refugees who fled from Great Famine, Great Leap Forward, and Cultural Revolution. People like Jimmy Lai, who is now imprisoned fled to Hong Kong, a haven and British colony, to escape from the CCP, which was a humiliation for the CCP.

Patten said that in the early stage of the transfer of sovereignty in 1997, the CCP “largely left Hong Kong on its own,” but the situation began to change from 2010 to 2012. The CCP broke its promise and was afraid of losing control over Hong Kong.

Sang Pu: Patten, the Best Governor of Hong Kong

The guests of the online sharing session include Sang Pu, President of Taiwan Hong Kong Association, Ping Lu, former director of Kwang Hwa Information and Cultural Center, Tristan Y J Liu, President of Taiwan Thinktank, and Lai I-chung, former Vice President at The Taiwan Thinktank.

Sang Pu said he was born in Hong Kong and completed his primary and secondary education under the governance of Chris Patten. He praised Patten as the best governor he had ever seen and was moved by the book “Hong Kong Diary.”

Sang Pu asked how much help the UK can provide to Hong Kong and British Hongkongers, given that the British government has already given a helping hand to Hong Kong by extending the BNO visas and other means, and over 100,000 Hongkongers having immigrated to the UK.

Patten responded that about 140,000 Hong Kongers have immigrated to the UK in the past one or two years, including teachers, lawyers, former civil servants, and entrepreneurs and they have made great contributions. For example, Patten’s alma mater recently hired a new chemistry teacher who is a recent immigrant from Hong Kong to the UK. A few days ago in Oxford, he met a couple from Hong Kong whose son had just graduated from medicine and was applying for a job in the National Health Service, so the UK has benefited greatly from Hong Kong immigrants, who have a lot of talent.

Patten revealed that he recently wrote to the British Foreign Secretary asking under what circumstances Britain would directly negotiate with CCP on Jimmy Lai’s case. Regarding why CCP hates Jimmy Lai so much, Patten believed that Lai was a refugee fleeing CCP who later achieved great success in a free society and another reason is that Lai could have escaped Hong Kong with his money at any time for Britain, United States, or Taiwan, but he chose to stay in Hong Kong.

“What the Communists hate, probably more than everything else, is people who have the guts to stand up for what they believe in,” Patten said.