China’s Pomp Out of Step With Hong Kong’s Fury

(Bloomberg) --

In Beijing, President Xi Jinping declared China’s rise unstoppable in kicking off a parade that saw thousands of smiling cadres in bright costumes march alongside mammoth pictures of Communist Party leaders.

In Hong Kong, black-clad protesters occupied roads, set fires and clashed with riot police around the financial hub in the 17th week of protests opposing Beijing’s increased grip over the city.

The stark contrast on a day marking the 70th anniversary of Communist rule in China showed the challenges Xi faces in convincing people in Hong Kong and Taiwan of the benefits of Beijing having greater control over their political systems and paths to prosperity. At the same time, it underscored how the party has been successful at preventing unrest from spreading to the mainland.

In the run-up to the anniversary, fears spread that China may use troops to restore order in Hong Kong. Yet Xi has signaled he’ll be patient, endorsing the “one country, two systems” principle under which Hong Kong has been governed since its return from British rule in 1997.

Beijing’s strategy now appears to be waiting out the protesters. If the past four months is any indication, that could take a while.

Global Headlines

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What to Watch:

• The U.S. arrested a California man accused of spying for China’s security service while working as a tour guide. The charges come as U.S. law enforcement officials also apply intense scrutiny to ethnic Chinese scientists.
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And finally ... Prime Minister Narendra Modi has big plans to eliminate single-use plastic by 2022 in a country that now generates 9.4 million tons of waste from the material each year. What makes India’s problem especially urgent is an absence of disposal systems — a vast amount of the refuse ends up in landfills, lakes and oceans, eventually making its way into the food chain. He’s launching the initiative tomorrow, on the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, a champion of sustainable living.

--With assistance from Karl Maier, Muneeza Naqvi, Jon Herskovitz and Kathleen Hunter.

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Ruth Pollard at rpollard2@bloomberg.net, Michael Winfrey

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