China's Political Gridlock in Hong Kong

Despite the fact that Hong Kong is a self-governing territory of the People's Republic of China, the Chinese government still exerts considerable influence over its political sphere. For example, the Sino-British Joint Declaration of 1984 dictated the terms of Hong Kong's return to China in 1997. In addition, Beijing maintains diplomacy and defense for Hong Kong.

Traditional Chinese arts coexisted with Western-influenced culture

Despite its relatively recent history, traditional Chinese arts coexisted with Western-influenced culture in Hong Kong. This relationship dates back thousands of years. It is a complex and multifaceted topic, involving different forms of art, religious figures, political figures and teachers.

Early "stone age" art was composed of simple pottery and sculptures. This style of art lasted about 10,000 years, and has its origins in the Palaeolithic period.

Later, the Tang Dynasty extended the imperial examination system, which helped eliminate feudalism. This prompted artists to create new art forms, such as papercutting. During the Tang Dynasty, the qin, a seven-stringed plucked instrument, was popular.

U.S. goods and services trade with Hong Kong

Among all of the economic relationships that the United States has with Hong Kong, the trade in goods and services is the largest. These transactions were estimated to be worth $53.9 billion in 2020.

Exports from the United States to Hong Kong were $12.5 billion in 2020. This represents a decrease of 10.9% from 2018. However, exports increased to $30.0 billion in 2021. This growth was driven largely by aircraft, electrical machinery, and works of art.

The services trade surplus was $2.7 billion in 2020. This was the largest trade surplus with Hong Kong. The leading services sectors were financial services, professional and management services, and transportation.

Beijing exerts considerable influence over Hong Kong's political sphere

Despite China's promises to preserve the uniqueness of Hong Kong during the former British colony's handover, Beijing has increasingly taken brazen steps to exert greater control over the territory's political sphere. In particular, Beijing has limited the freedoms of the press and voting rights, and has acted to suppress dissent. Its actions have sparked mass protests.

In September 2014, tens of thousands of Hong Kong residents took to the streets. The protests, which came under the banner of the Umbrella Movement, called for true democracy. They also demanded the resignation of Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying. Some of the protesters were students, while others were ordinary citizens.

Turnout rate of 30.2 percent was a record low since the handover to the People's Republic of China in 1997

During the Hong Kong legislative election on Sunday, voter turnout was the lowest since the city's handover to the People's Republic of China in 1997. Officials said Monday that 30.2 percent of eligible voters cast their ballots. That is 5.6 percentage points lower than the turnout in the 1995 legislative election.

Beijing overhauled the city's electoral system earlier this year. It shortened the number of directly elected lawmakers from 35 to 20. It also established a pro-Beijing vetting committee to select candidates. It also barred many mainstream pro-democracy parties from participating.

During the election, the Hong Kong government urged voters to turn out, claiming that the election was representative. However, the poll was widely criticized.

The Sino-British Joint Declaration of 1984 dictated the terms of Hong Kong's return to China in 1997

Almost 20 years after Britain handed Hong Kong back to China, there are questions about Beijing's commitment to its core freedoms. On Saturday, Hong Kong marks the 20th anniversary of Chinese rule.

The Sino-British Joint Declaration of 1984 was an international treaty signed by Britain and China to set the conditions for the transfer of Hong Kong to China. The document sets out the terms of the handover and the arrangement for the city's administration after 1997.

The document is also known as the "one country, two systems" policy. It states that Hong Kong will remain a special administrative region with a high degree of autonomy, but that the central government policies will be unchanged for at least 50 years. The document also guarantees that Hong Kong's capitalist system will remain intact for the foreseeable future.

Beijing maintains diplomacy and defense

Despite the political gridlock in Beijing, the Chinese government continues to show a commitment to diplomacy and defense in Hong Kong. For example, the PRC has repeatedly called for cross-strait talks on equality, parity, and one China. It has also continued to assert its sovereignty.

A similar message was sent to Taiwan. Although the US has no diplomatic ties with Taiwan, it remains committed to providing defense articles and services to Taiwan. The Obama Administration has been talking about a peaceful development of cross-strait ties since 2009.

The Chinese government has also been calling the shots in this regard. It has engaged in a series of high-level meetings, some of which have included former U.S. Secretaries of State. It has even proposed procedural consultations for political negotiation. It has also initiated strategic focus groups.