CBC: Chinese flags and red scarves spark debate at Vancouver city hall
Hi guys. Sorry, this isn't too city-related but I find the news story above disappointing and I'm disheartened to see that the petition has so few signatures.
My family fled China (and eventually came to Canada) following the Communist revolution, thankfully escaping the famine and atrocities of the following decades. Here in Hong Kong (a supposedly autonomous territory) we have seen increasing influence of the Chinese government in recent years (often via the Hong Kong puppet administration), including
denying Hong Kongers the right to elect their leader through universal suffrage,
efforts to implement pro-Communist, anti-democratic curriculum in public schools, increasing marginalisation of the Cantonese language in favour of Mandarin, the
kidnapping and disappearance of numerous booksellers from Hong Kong, smear campaigns and revenge against academics who take a political stance, like
Johannes Chan and
Lau Siu Lai, political interference in university affairs generally,
banning popular candidates from election on the basis of their political beliefs,
electoral fraud, interference of the China Liaison office in the LegCo elections, etc etc. It seems endless and many of Hong Kong's young people feel hopeless.
Meanwhile in mainland China, which unlike Hong Kong lacks a free media and an independent judiciary, the government has just
jailed a human rights lawyer for 12 years amid a wider crackdown against human rights activists, having detained hundreds of lawyers in the past couple years.
What angers me above all is councillor Jang's suggestion that criticism of his actions should be dismissed as "racism" or anti-China sentiment. This guy should really consider a second career writing for Chinese state media. He can say these things on his own time but I strongly object to an elected Canadian official raising this flag in front of a Canadian public building. Through these actions we are endorsing something that completely clashes with the Canadian values of freedom and democracy.
PETITION: Vancouver Mayor and City Councillors: Request apology and resignation of Vancouver City Councillor Kerry Jang