‘Hong Kong is over’? Economist Stephen Roach defends article intended as ‘wake-up call’; Xinhua hits out at ‘so-called experts’ trying to ‘contain China’
- In fresh opinion piece, Stephen Roach says title of original commentary claiming ‘Hong Kong is over’ was overstatement, but maintains doubts exist over city’s future
- Chinese state media Xinhua weighs into wider debate, saying some Western news outlets and ‘so-called experts’ spread false claims to use ‘Hong Kong to contain China’
An American economist has defended an article he wrote that claimed “Hong Kong is over”, saying it was intended as a “wake-up call” given his perception of a “growing undercurrent of angst” about the city’s future.
Chinese state media also weighed into the wider debate over the city’s investment and business environment, saying some Western news outlets and “so-called experts” had spread false claims to “achieve their sinister plot of using Hong Kong to contain China”.
“Time and again, Hong Kong has defied the calls for its demise, with a series of Phoenix-like resurrections. Why shouldn’t we expect the same this time?” he wrote.
But Roach maintained that serious doubts existed over the future.
“Resilience this time will require a new-found political and economic policy autonomy that seems highly unlikely,” he said.
