Having publicly stated he believes it wrong that a Cambridge college award Carrie Lam an honorary fellowship, Evan explores how he arrived at this conclusion. Ms.Lam may be a good candidate on paper, but the Hong Kong that she has shaped is increasingly authoritarian in nature, and represents the antithesis of what the university should champion.
編按：《金融時報》亞洲新聞編輯、香港外國記者會 (FCC) 副主席馬凱 (Victor Mallet) ，被入境署拒絕工作簽證續期申請，外間質疑這是與早前主持民族黨午餐會引起，是打壓新聞自由之舉。 Evan 認為事件已顯示香港已撤底地改變，馬凱為新聞自由而作的行為不單是不被接受，更會被懲罰。
Let there now be no shadow of doubt. Any pretence that Hong Kong has not changed fundamentally, and that the city’s core values, way of life and institutions remain intact and functioning has now to be dropped.
The news that the Hong Kong authorities refused to renew a working visa for Financial Times Asia editor Victor Mallet has deservedly caught the headlines not only in Hong Kong but around the world. Questions will be raised in the UK parliament and statements will be made by the relevant government departments. Academics, journalists and other China-watchers are twittering privately.
編按： Evan 在本文之中評論英國導演杜浩綸 (Matthew Torne) 最新紀錄片作品《分域大道》，他認為《分》雖然某些部份節奏太慢，但整體捕捉到 2014 年後的香港民主與身份認同的政治多樣性，是罕見誠實、有深度的政治紀錄片 。
Evan reviews Matthew Torne’s new documentary film, and finds a film that despite being slow at times dares to capture the diverse nature of the politics of democracy and identity in Hong Kong post-2014 with a rare honesty and depth.
* * *
Last Exit to Kai Tak, which has its Hong Kong premiere today (26.9) at the Hong Kong Arts Centre, is British filmmaker Matthew Torne’s third documentary film on Hong Kong’s increasingly complex pro-democracy movement. Torne’s new film expands on the narrative of his previous films, Lesson’s in Dissent (2014) and Joshua, Teenager vs. Superpower (2017), which won an audience award at the Sundance Film Festival, in a way that mirrors both the changing circumstances and social and political complexities of Hong Kong as well as the directors own maturity.
The results of this month’s Legislative Council by-election were split evenly between the pro-democracy and pro-establishment camps, with each returning two of the four seats contested.
The results however do represent a loss for the pro-democracy camp, given that the by-election was called following the disqualification of four of pro-democracy legislators. The loss of these two seats is an effective loss, as the pan-democrats will no longer have sufficient seats in the Legislative Council to veto legislation. Indeed, two further seats may be vacated pending upcoming court rulings.
Hong Kong has a lot going for it. Victoria Harbour is world renowned, a natural and man-made haven that has sheltered a variety of merchantmen from stormy weather.
The city of the same name, once perched precariously on the steep slopes of mountains that rise majestically from the South China Sea, now stands a beacon of modernity — and yet, between its towering skyscrapers, streets and alleyways full of business, life continues.
Then there is Kowloon, the sister city across the water, built in the shadow of the Lion Rock. It is a city developed along connections, between roads that once ran from the waterfront fort to the colonial boundary, and others that long ago linked local settlements and clans to the North. Through its heart runs the first boulevard in China, Nathan Road.
The government’s 2018 budget address has generally been positively received. Paul Chan, the Financial Secretary, glows in an almost embarrassment of riches.
Last year the economy grew by 3.7 per cent, whilst inflation fell to 1.7 per cent. Government revenues continue to grow, and a record surplus of HK$138 billion was recorded for the last financial year.
Hong Kong now has HK$1.1 trillion in reserves, and another HK$3.6 trillion in the Exchange Fund. For any city in the world — indeed for most sovereign states — these would be outstanding figures.
The news that two influential members of the US Republican Party, Senator Marco Rubio and Representative Chris Smith, the respective chair and co-chair of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China, intended to nominate Joshua Wong Chi-fung, Nathan Law Kwun-chung and Alex Chow Yong-kang for the Nobel Peace Prize came as a surprise.
My initial reaction was one of disbelief. It was a reaction shared among almost everyone I know, regardless of political persuasion. However, as is so sadly to be expected, this unusual source of unity had to be dismissed. “The yellow-ribbon people in Hong Kong are ecstatic. The “bluer” commentators and politicians, though, have expressed outrage and bafflement.”
As controversy continues to rage over illegal structures and land use, Evan considers the Small House Policy, and the history behind it and the relationship between the villagers of the New Territories and the government. There was always Two Systems in operation. Sadly he sees that it is the urban system of liberal values and rule of law that is under greater challenge today.
編按：非法僭建與佔用土地的爭議繼續升溫之下， Evan 認為這種爭議源於丁屋政策、背後的歷史與新界村民與政府之間的關係——香港一直以來都有兩種制度並行。而丁權正正衝擊自由主義價值觀與法治城市體系，使到今天的香港正處於更大的挑戰之中。
Evan reflects on The Hong Kong Story, a documentary produced just before the 1997 handover. It documents a different city, one not defined by the flag but by its people. It was a city that recognised its diverse ethnic, cultural and national identities, not only among western immigrants but also among its Chinese community. This was the Hong Kong that Evan remembers.
編按： Evan 於本文回顧於 1997 年回歸前拍攝的「香江故事」。該片記錄了一個與現在截然不同的城市，一個不是由旗幟而由其人民定義的城市。這個城市不僅承認其來自西方的移民，也承認了華人社區中的民族多樣性、文化和民族特色。 Evan 認為這才是香港。
編按：這故事是關於 Evan 家中小狗——雖然可能只是軼事，但亦悲哀地反映了香港變遷，是其中一件顯示出這個城市擁有特權的人之間表現出越來越自我中心與不合理態度的事。
This is the story of Evan’s family dog. It is a story that reflects sadly on a way Hong Kong has changed. It may be anecdotal, but it is one of many that demonstrate an increasing ego and unreasonableness among the city’s more privileged people.
