The PLA Hong Kong Garrison announced the day before yesterday (9th) that Major General Peng Jingtang, deputy chief of staff of the Armed Police Force, was appointed as the commander of the PLA Hong Kong Garrison, replacing Major General Chen Daoxiang who took office the year before.
The special feature of this appointment is that it is the first time that a soldier with a background in the armed police takes over the garrison in Hong Kong.
Peng Jingtang, the former chief of the Xinjiang Armed Police's general staff, has rich experience in counter-terrorism in the past, which has attracted the attention of the community. Does it mean that the role of the Hong Kong garrison in Hong Kong will change in the future?
Liu Zhaojia, vice-chairman of the National Association of Hong Kong and Macao Studies, believes that there is no need to over-interpret it, but Peng Jingtang does have experience in pacifying chaos. Once the SAR seeks the assistance of the People's Liberation Army in the future, these experiences may come in handy.
However, he believes that as the situation in Hong Kong stabilizes, the SAR has little chance of seeking the PLA to pacify the chaos. On the contrary, the PLA may consider participating in more social affairs in the future to narrow the distance with the people of Hong Kong.
The background of the armed police is particularly eye-catching and is regarded as an anti-terrorism and chaos general
There is not much public information about Peng Jingtang. According to past media reports, Peng Jingtang was the brigade commander of a brigade in the Jinan Military Region of the People's Liberation Army and the head of the military training department of the Jinan Military Region Command. He was promoted to major general on July 19, 2018.
Peng Jingtang's most eye-catching positions are chief of staff of the Xinjiang Armed Police Corps and deputy chief of staff of the Armed Police Force. The year before last, he was interviewed by the People's Liberation Army media "Voice of the Straits" as the chief of staff of the Xinjiang Armed Police Corps, talking about the joint counter-terrorism work between China and Kyrgyzstan , mentioned: "For the means of terrorist attacks that have occurred and may occur, we have put more emphasis on actual combat in the content and subject setting of the joint exercise."
According to the People's Armed Police Law of the Mainland, the tasks of the armed police force include "participating in the handling of emergencies such as disturbances, riots, riots, illegal gatherings, mass incidents, etc." In Xinjiang, the armed police are the main force in counter-terrorism and have participated in pacification. 2009 Urumqi riot "July 5th Incident".
Its Xinjiang "Shanying" commando is a top force
The "Shanying" commando team of the Xinjiang Armed Police Corps is the top fighting force in the mainland and one of the main forces waiting to carry out anti-terrorism missions. Peng Jingtang once said in an interview that "Shanying" has been practicing practical anti-terrorism shooting methods. Such as memory shooting, instinct shooting and target pointing shooting.
The anti-amendment movement took place in Hong Kong last year, and unprecedented chaos emerged. The police have repeatedly stated that the threat of terrorist attacks has not been eliminated.
This appointment of personnel inevitably leads the outside world to speculate whether Peng Jingtang's past experience means that the role of the garrison in Hong Kong will usher in changes, such as more active participation in the management and control of social security in the SAR, and pacifying riots.
Carrie Lam met with Major General Peng Jingtang, Commander of the People's Liberation Army Garrison in Hong Kong, at Government House.
(Information Services Department)
Liu Zhaojia: Opportunity to seek help from the People's Liberation Army is very small
However, Liu Zhaojia pointed out that there is no need to over-interpret a personnel appointment. The Basic Law regulates the role of the Hong Kong Garrison. In order to be responsible for the defense of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, it will not interfere in the local affairs of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. Request the garrison to assist in maintaining social order and disaster relief.
The Garrison Law also has detailed regulations on the role of the People's Liberation Army in Hong Kong, and will not change significantly because of a commander's background: "Is the background of a person more important than the law itself?"
Liu Zhaojia agreed that Peng Jingtang has experience in pacifying chaos in the past. Once the Hong Kong government seeks the assistance of the People's Liberation Army, these experience in maintaining stability can come in handy, but he reminded the commander of the garrison in Hong Kong to make adjustments every few years and not to overestimate the importance of individual personnel appointments.
He also pointed out that since the implementation of the "Hong Kong National Security Law", Hong Kong has a National Security Office, National Security Committee, police and other disciplined forces stationed in Hong Kong, and their ability to deal with external security threats has been greatly enhanced. Wei: "Unless it's a natural disaster and you need assistance in disaster relief, it's hard to predict."
Relatively speaking, Liu Zhaojia believes that under the new political situation, the PLA can participate in more local social affairs in Hong Kong, because in the past period, Hong Kong people had a certain "sensitivity" towards the PLA, which hindered the understanding of the national army.
When the society stabilizes, the garrison in Hong Kong may increase exchanges and contacts with Hong Kong civilians, play an active role, promote national sovereignty, and strengthen the trust and respect of Hong Kong people in the army. People-friendly activities such as National Education Day are also a good idea.”
Liu Zhaojia.
(file picture)
The People's Liberation Army Garrison Announces Peng Jingtang as Commander Carrie Lam meets the new Hong Kong Garrison Commander Peng Jingtang Ji join hands to safeguard national sovereignty and security