Hong Kong on Edge 2: How the City Is Navigating China’s Security Law

(Bloomberg) -- With a sweeping national security law imposed by China rapidly changing life in Hong Kong, a new Bloomberg Television documentary released on Friday captures the tense atmosphere at one of the most critical moments in the financial hub’s history.

In “Hong Kong On Edge 2,” the sequel to a special aired in 2019, Bloomberg Television speaks to some of the most pivotal figures shaping an evolving confrontation that has become central to a wider ideological clash between the U.S. and China.

In the days leading up to the law's promulgation, Chief North Asia Correspondent Stephen Engle spoke to a wide range of influential interviewees — from Justice Secretary Teresa Cheng to democracy activist Joshua Wong — about how the security law will change the former British colony.

“Everyone has to be much more careful than before,” Michael Tien, a prominent businessman and politician, said in the documentary. “I don’t think I can make it more blunt.”

It also features the views of a gritty opposition struggling to continue its political battle against the city government and Beijing, even as the security law brings fresh arrests of protesters and people posting comments on social media. “Beijing’s coming down on us like a ton of bricks,” said Emily Lau, the former chair of the city’s opposition Democratic Party.

“Hong Kong on Edge” also includes conversations with Hong Kong Financial Secretary Paul Chan, Lan Kwai Fong Group chairman Allan Zeman, street protesters at recent rallies, the last British governor of Hong Kong Chris Patten, as well as other influential legal, business and political opinion leaders in the city.

Part one released last September focused on the unprecedented protest movement that captivated the world and eventually triggered the backlash from Beijing this year.

Click here to watch part one of “Hong Kong on Edge”

©2020 Bloomberg L.P.