editorial
Written by: Hong Kong 01
2020-10-19 06:00
Last update date: 2020-10-19 06:00
At the 40th anniversary celebration of the establishment of the Shenzhen Special Economic Zone last week, President Xi Jinping praised the city for only 40 years to complete the road that many large foreign cities took hundreds of years to complete.
From the "Ten Summary" and "Six Missions" mentioned by Xi Jinping, we can see that the central government not only affirms Shenzhen's impressive achievements, but also has high hopes for its comprehensive deepening of reforms.
It is foreseeable that under the favorable policies of the central government and the blessing of talents from all over the world, Shenzhen will continue to take off, which will inevitably make the former "Shenzhen Teacher" Hong Kong in an embarrassing situation.
It is believed that the Chief Executive Carrie Lam, who was present at the meeting, like many Hong Kong citizens, no longer feels that Hong Kong is being chased, but is beginning to be thrown away.
How to help Hong Kong find itself, regain its glory, and Shenzhen has its own splendor, is something people who love this homeland must think deeply.
The Shenzhen miracle is a product of China's "emancipating the mind" from the dogma of the ultra-left Cultural Revolution.
As early as the beginning of reform and opening up, Deng Xiaoping agreed that "the central government can give some policies" to implement special policies and flexible measures in Shenzhen.
Over the past 40 years, Shenzhen has undergone a profound transformation from extensive to refined, from cottage to innovation, from being unable to raise its head in Hong Kong to being confident in Hong Kong.
Nowadays, the central government has even given Shenzhen more autonomy in reforms in important areas and key links, which shows that as long as it steadfastly makes achievements, the central government will give more space and opportunities.
Hong Kong, which is across the river, enjoys much more special policies and flexible measures than Shenzhen.
According to the Basic Law, in addition to issuing currency, implementing the original legal system, and even maintaining financial independence, Hong Kong has a "high degree of autonomy" not only greater than Shenzhen, which is a sub-provincial city, but even above the four municipalities.
Everyone understands that when you have great power, you need to use it properly. However, the Hong Kong government is under the burden of doing nothing in areas such as housing, education, medical care, and economic structural reform. Since you can't grasp it, how can you complain " Planned"?
(Visual China)
System arrogance hinders progress, liberates the mind, releases creativity
For a long time, Hong Kong people have a strong "institutional arrogance." This comes from the successful experience of the "Four Asian Dragons" in the past, and on the other hand from the comparison of the general poverty in the Mainland under Maoist socialism.
But history always develops dynamically. "Emancipating the mind" unleashes the creativity of Chinese people. Shenzhen alone clarifies the relationship between market and government, government and society, development and institutional innovation that scholar Zheng Yongnian said. Achieved a balance between external capital and internal capital.
This is an improved socialism. In the process, Shenzhen has become a gifted student, and has been given the status of "a pilot demonstration zone of socialism with Chinese characteristics", undertaking the task of comprehensively deepening reform and opening up.
Of course, this does not mean that Hong Kong should change to the path of socialism, but just as Mao-style socialism requires reforms, so too does Hong Kong’s "fundamental capitalism" that is outdated.
Xi Jinping said, "If you live a good life, the people have the most say." Hong Kong officials also know how to say "people-oriented". However, when Hong Kong has obvious drawbacks on deep-seated issues such as housing, medical care, elderly care, education, transportation, and labor. , How can we continue to hide our ears and steal the bell, thinking that our "guidance" is invincible?
Rather than being complacent, it is better to "liberate the mind" like Deng Xiaoping, or "break the ice" like Xi Jinping, and let Hong Kong break through reforms.
It may be said that the Greater Bay Area, with a population of 70 million, is undergoing an ideological contest. One is the socialist Shenzhen and the other is the capitalist Hong Kong.
The competition will distinguish between superiors and inferior ones, but it should be noted that this is not a matter of life or death, but to promote and learn from each other in the competition, so as to realize the common progress of Hong Kong and Shenzhen.
(Profile picture)
In fact, the Central Government has high expectations for Hong Kong and Shenzhen.
According to the “Opinions on Supporting Shenzhen’s Construction of a Pilot Demonstration Zone of Socialism with Chinese Characteristics” issued in August last year, the central government required “to seize the important opportunities in the construction of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, strengthen the core engine functions, and move towards building a pilot demonstration zone of socialism with Chinese characteristics. The whole paragraph did not specifically mention Hong Kong-Shenzhen cooperation. In the "Shenzhen Construction of a Pilot Demonstration Zone of Socialism with Chinese Characteristics" released on October 11 this year, the central government requested "promote a higher level. "Shenzhen-Hong Kong cooperation will strengthen the core engine function in the construction of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, and strive to create an urban example of a socialist modern power." The document puts "Shenzhen-Hong Kong cooperation" and "core engine" side by side, which can be interpreted as a kind reminder from the central government. To play the "core engine" function, Hong Kong and Shenzhen cooperation is needed.
It can be seen from various signs that the central authorities have not left Hong Kong behind, as some comments pointed out.
Vice Premier Han Zheng in charge of Hong Kong and Macao affairs and Xia Baolong, director of the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office, attended the celebration ceremony as non-voting delegates, and even Xi Jinping stated "promoting the integration of rules and mechanisms for the economic operation of the three places (Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macao)", which shows that the central government hopes to implement "One Country, Two Systems" from a positive perspective , Completely abandon the old negative "one country, two systems" that does not interact with each other and the well water does not violate the river water.
As the country’s top leader, Xi Jinping’s focus is "a game of chess across the country," and he will not elaborate on the details. However, he made a very clear statement at the celebration meeting, including "speeding up the construction of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Intercity Railway. Promote the efficient and convenient flow of various elements such as personnel and goods, and enhance the level of market integration."
To a certain extent, this is another expression of "Hong Kong-Shenzhen co-city", but it should be noted that "co-city" does not abolish the Hong Kong-Shenzhen boundary as some people have said, but implements the "Development of Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area" at the beginning of last year. According to the "Planning Outline", "adhere to the principle of "one country" and make good use of the benefits of the "two systems"" to break through the administrative boundaries and protectionism between cities, expand the development space of Hong Kong, and open up more opportunities for the public.
Xi Jinping (third from right) attended the celebration meeting for the 40th anniversary of the establishment of the Shenzhen Special Economic Zone and delivered an important speech.
(Xinhua News Agency)
Hong Kong-Shenzhen integration becomes a major trend to help Hong Kong break through development bottlenecks
Although the interaction between the two places has shrunk significantly due to the epidemic, this will not fundamentally reverse the general trend of Hong Kong-Shenzhen integration.
Hong Kong should seize the opportunity as Shenzhen promotes comprehensive and deepening reforms, and in particular strengthen coordination between the two places, promote the flow of people, goods, capital and information, and use Shenzhen's advantages in innovative technology and industrial manufacturing to initiate Hong Kong's economic structural transformation.
The Qianhai Shenzhen-Hong Kong Modern Service Industry Cooperation Zone mentioned by Xi Jinping is deepening, but the Loop Shenzhen-Hong Kong Science and Technology Innovation Cooperation Zone has only completed the land formation project. In this regard, officials from both places must strengthen cooperation. If progress is satisfactory, it will be Hong Kong in the future. It is not a fantasy for youth to provide innovation and technology outlets.
For all this to become a reality, the key lies in whether Hong Kong officials have reform awareness and actions.
Carrie Lam suddenly postponed the announcement of the "Policy Address" earlier, and public opinion determined that this was to tie in with the "14th Five-Year Plan" to be announced by the central government.
For a long time, Hong Kong officials have missed many development opportunities due to their lack of knowledge of the Mainland’s governance culture and inability to understand the "red-head documents" in the Mainland. Now Hong Kong officials can learn about the country’s development plans through the "14th Five-Year Plan" and the Mainland ministries and commissions can give guidance. Actually it's not a bad thing.
In the process, the most important thing for the Hong Kong government is to think about what Hong Kong can gain from it, and make good use of its advantages in the rule of law, finance, and professional services to strengthen its connection with Shenzhen and other Greater Bay Area cities to inject new impetus into the lifeless Hong Kong. .
Since Shenzhen's GDP surpassed that of Hong Kong two years ago, people began to mention "Xin'an County" on the Internet.
Looking back at history, Hong Kong and Shenzhen once belonged to Xin'an County, but they were separated by the Opium War. Hong Kong developed first, while Shenzhen started very late.
Nowadays, Shenzhen has a tendency to come from behind. Some people believe that Hong Kong does not have to wait until 2047 before it will be annexed by Shenzhen and become "Xin'an County."
This statement is of course joking, but the sense of urgency reflected is real.
We do not advocate self-defeating, and Hong Kong is not always with us.
As long as we learn from the painful experience, formulate a mid- and long-term development plan for Hong Kong's future as soon as possible, and "a good blueprint is done to the end", Hong Kong can definitely break through the development bottleneck and fly with Shenzhen, each with its own splendor.
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