Thread by @WilliamYang120

John Lee, #HongKong's former chief secretary and security chief, has just become the city's next chief executive. Many described today's "election" as a process tightly controlled by #Beijing and expressed their concerns about his leadership. My latest: dw.com/en/hong-kong-e…

"He has very little experience with the policy issues other than police, security or by extension also national security," said Kenneth Chan, a political scientist at Hong Kong Baptist University.

"He has built a reputation as a tough guy and a law enforcer that would not like to listen to others' views, be accommodating, or be measured. Whatever tasks his superiors assign to him, he will get them done," Chan from Hong Kong Baptist University told DW.

"I think John Lee worries most people because of how he says he is going to push for Article 23 to be enacted in Hong Kong, while not talking about pushing for universal suffrage," said @chungchingkwong.

"These things make people think that he is only going to be Beijing's puppet and try to crack down on civil society and make sure there can be no democracy or freedom in Hong Kong," she added.

Chan from Hong Kong Baptist University says the international community shouldn't expect any change for the better in terms of civil society, civil liberties, or freedom under John Lee's leadership, despite his efforts to reverse his public image.

"He's been trying very hard to improve his image by speaking more softly and deliberately with respect to free press, the opposition and democracy," he said.

"We all know that autocrats are pretty good at making those cosmetic changes but in essence, they won't change. In that sense, because of these cosmetic changes, they are more determined to implement those tough measures against Hong Kong's civil society," he added.

@chungchingkwong expects Lee to keep enforcing the National Security Law that was implemented in 2020 while continuing the crackdown on freedom of speech.

Over the last two years, several pro-democracy media outlets have been forced to shut down following mass arrests of their staff. "He probably will arrest more people under the law while cracking down on the media even more," she told DW.

"The Hong Kong Foreign Correspondents' Club's decision to suspend the Human Rights Press Award is another indicator. He will push for more national security-related legislation, and Article 23 is definitely going to be something that he'll push for," she added.

Chan added that Beijing wants people in Hong Kong and the rest of the world to know that the city's priority will be all about stability and security through John Lee's sole candidacy.

"Xi Jinping is seeking his third term this fall, so having a loyal, obedient, and tough person like John Lee would also provide a sense of security as far as his ambition is concerned," said Chan.

"I believe John Lee will emphasize how to make Hong Kong instrumental to Beijing's great ambitions and plans and try to integrate Hong Kong with the Greater Bay Area, which consists of Hong Kong, Macau and cities in China's Guangdong province," Chan said.

"He would like to pay lip service to the international dimensions of Hong Kong, but obviously, he hasn't thought much about that."

Chan added that while Lee has mentioned Hong Kong's international dimensions, he probably won't be the best person to reflect the city's international interests.

"As a person who has been sanctioned by most of the Western world, he can't be a very respectable and credible spokesperson for Hong Kong's interests," he said.