Explained: What awaits Hong Kong under new leader John Lee

Hong Kong has a new leader. The 64-year-old John Lee was elected as the city’s next leader on Sunday in a vote cast by a largely pro-Beijing committee. The Associated Press reported that Lee was the only candidate and won with over 99 per cent of the vote in which nearly all 1,500 committee members were carefully vetted by the central government in Beijing. “I look forward to all of us starting a new chapter together, building a Hong Kong that is caring, open and vibrant, and a Hong Kong that is full of opportunities and harmony,” Lee said in his victory speech. Here’s a look at the new chief executive, set to replace Carrie Lam and what it means for the future of Hong Kong. Who is John Lee? Unlike his predecessors, who either had ties with the business community or experience in the civil service, Lee’s background is in law enforcement. He joined the Hong Kong police in 1977 at the age of 20 and served in the force till 2012 when he was appointed Under Secretary for Security in 2012 and promoted to Secretary for Security in 2017. According to a report published in The Global Times, an incident in which he was robbed when he went mountain climbing with his school friends spurred him on to join the police force. Lee acquired a reputation of handling criminal cases decisively. In 1994-95, he cracked down on a gang who was injecting drugs into packaged drinks to loot victims. Thanks to his efforts, the gang leader was later sentenced to 14 years. Also, Lee led operations against Zhang Ziqiang, who had multiple looting, kidnapping and murder charges. Lee then was the head of Organized Crime and Triad Bureau. His role was to ensure the safety of all police officers and residents despite the presence of criminals as dangerous as Zhang. While Lee acquired a reputation of being tough on criminals, he also received criticism for using excessive force, such as deploying rubber bullets, tear gas, and water cannons, and occasionally using live ammunition against protesters. In the Carrie Lam administration, he was the key figure behind the extradition bill in 2019 that would’ve sent Hong Kong suspects to mainland China, where courts operate under the ruling Communist Party. However, the bill sparked massive anti-government protests over fears that Beijing was encroaching on Hong Kong’s autonomy, and soon morphed into calls for wider democratic rights, including universal suffrage. The government backtracked on the bill. In 2020, he also backed the imposition of a controversial national security law which criminalised most forms of political protest and dissent, and reduced the city’s autonomy. Lee maintained that the law would help restore “stability from chaos”. Despite his tough image and perceived to be a Beijing loyalist, bankers, diplomats, politicians have described him as even-handed and receptive to the concerns of the business community, as per a report in The Print. The report adds that he seems more responsive to suggestions and comes off as a ‘gentleman’ who knows how to balance his views. Hendrick Sin, a former HSBC Holdings Plc banker and co-founder of locally listed CMGE Technology Group, said Lee was a “good listener and able to analyse quickly,” said The Print. Challenges for Lee There are many tasks awaiting Lee before he takes office on 1 July. First off, he will have to smother all dissenting views in Hong Kong. Analysts at Eurasia Group told CNBC.com, “Lee’s appointment will reinforce Hong Kong’s shift from being a global financial and business center to playing a narrower role as a capital gateway for China. While the risks to political and financial stability are modest, Lee’s administration may be poorly equipped to respond to a major shock.” Another challenge awaiting Lee is the economic situation in Hong Kong, which has turned the once-thriving international business centre into one of the world’s most isolated cities, in part because of China’s very strict ‘zero-COVID’ policy. Lee has promised to breathe life back into the economy, tackle the city’s housing crisis, curb rising unemployment and strengthen governance. However, experts note that his lack of experience — either in government or in business — puts him in a tough position. Tara Joseph, the former president of the American Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong, described to Al Jazeera as “flabbergasting” that a business hub like Hong Kong will be led by someone with no commercial experience. Earlier in the week, Lee pledged to enhance Hong Kong’s status as international business center, while cautiously charting a path forward towards managing COVID in a city still without quarantine-free travel to either the mainland or the rest of the world. Last Thursday, he said reopening the border was “the first task on my mind” and he would seek to “remove the obstacles to satisfy the requirements” for doing so, without elaborating. What Lee means for Hong Kong? With his security background and his crackdown on dissent in the past, it appears that China is looking for someone to ensure that its authority won’t be question in Hong Kong again. In fact, he has previously said that Hong Kong should adopt a local version of its Beijing-imposed national security legislation, known as ‘Article 23‘ of the city’s Basic Law, its mini-constitution. Article 23 says that the city should enact its own legislation to “prohibit any act of treason, secession, sedition, subversion against the Central People’s Government,” another term for Beijing. Activists and scholars also say the move will only further hinder civil liberties and human rights. It is left to be seen if Lee is able to be more successful than his predecessor Carrie Lam or will he too face the same fate. With inputs from agencies Read all the Latest News , Trending News ,  Cricket News , Bollywood News , India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.