Merkel should use the bilateral meetings in China to advocate for democracy in Hong Kong and on behalf of persecuted human rights activists

Today, given the current protests of tens of thousands of people in Hong Kong, the Society for Threatened Peoples (STP) has started an online appeal to Chancellor Angela Merkel, asking her use next week's bilateral meetings between Germany and China in Berlin to advocate for a political reform and for more dialogue in Hong Kong. "Also, the third German-Chinese government consultations on October 10, 2014, must be used to address the serious persecution of human rights activists in China," said the STP's Asia-consultant, Ulrich Delius, in Göttingen on Tuesday. "If tens of thousands people take to the streets to demand more democracy, it is wrong to look the other way. If China's government does not stick to the promises made to Hong Kong, this is also a bad sign in terms of the country's reliability and loyalty to Germany."

"Today, the People's Republic is not the same as it was when the massacre on Tiananmen Square took place in 1989, but the Chinese authorities are now sending out censors instead of tanks to systematically suppress any independent reports on the protests in Hong Kong. In the past two days, more than three times as many messages were deleted from social networks as on occasion of the 25th anniversary of the massacre on Tiananmen Square on June 4, 2014," criticized Delius. However, unlike in 1989, China's Communist Party will not manage to suppress reports concerning the Umbrella Revolution completely. The 641 million Internet users in China are creative in finding ways to circumvent the state-imposed news blackout.

"In 1997, when Hong Kong was handed over from the British colonial power, China had promised a country with two political systems. However, the Chinese government does not stick to these promises and is constantly trying to undermine the democratic development in Hong Kong," said Delius. Most of the people in Hong Kong will not accept to be forced into line with the Chinese system.

Germany also has an interest to ensure that the protesters and the authorities in Hong Kong will enter a peaceful dialogue on further political reforms. "The city-state can be seen as a pressure cooker without a valve. An explosion would have unforeseen consequences for China and its global relevance. Nobody would want that!"

You can find the online appeal (in German) here:

Click this link and appeal to chancellor Merkel! (in German)

Ulrich Delius, head of STP's Asia department, is available for further questions: +49 551 49906 27 or asien@gfbv.de.

Header Photo: STP