DEMOCRACY

I'm going to keep my comments brief as i'm sure everyone else will be blogging furiously on this too, but my two-penneth worth is...

The CCP are clearly terrified that if Hong Kong were ever to achieve democracy then that would put pressure on their monopoly on power, and so will never allow universal suffrage, no matter how much they have to twist the words of the Basic Law.

At the same time however I doubt we will see PLA tanks on the streets here, no matter how big this years July 1 march is, as that will simply prompt Taiwan to formally declare independence.

Lastly - I hate to say it but I have some sympathy with the view that Hong Kong (and indeed many countries, and not only in Asia) is not ready for democracy.

I have never understood why it is considered a good idea for every moron to have input into who governs. There should be some form of qualification criteria before you are allowed to vote to demonstrate that you understand the election process and what government is able and not able to do. Otherwise you get massive corruption, so prevalent in Asia, as politicians simply buy votes, and a discontented public that doesn't understand why the government can't simply give money out to everyone.

No doubt lots of people will disagree but that's my view and I'm sticking to it.