hkskyline
September 20th, 2004, 12:31 AM
Shenzhen merger unlikely
Wu Zhong, Hong Kong Standard
September 20, 3004
The proposal to scrap the Hong Kong border is politically naive and wishful
Shenzhen, in a desperate effort to safeguard its "special'' status in China, is becoming increasingly eager to integrate itself with Hong Kong - not only economically but physically as well.
In recent years, there have been repeated calls to scrap the Hong Kong-Shenzhen border to allow the free exchange of people and goods.
Politically, the idea is naive as it implies an early end to the separation of systems between the SAR and the Shenzhen Special Economic Zone (SEZ), which would thus breach the Sino-British Joint Declaration on Hong Kong and the Basic Law. In practice, such an idea is one-sided and wishful, without consulting Hong Kong.
Yet, despite these obvious pitfalls, various proposals for an arranged marriage between the SEZ and the SAR have been raised over the years in Shenzhen.
During the annual session of the Guangdong Provincial People's Congress in January, Yu Zhongwen, a deputy from Shenzhen, filed a motion that the provincial government consider letting the SEZ become a completely free trade zone to merge with Hong Kong to form "one metropolis with two cities''.
Under Yu's blueprint, the first border between Hong Kong and Shenzhen would remain an immigration checkpoint but customs checks would be cancelled. Customs checks would be retained, however, at the second border that separates the SEZ from the rest of the mainland. About the same time, some Shenzhen officials said they were considering allowing SEZ residents to travel to Hong Kong freely with their identity cards.
So Yu's proposal is to let Shenzhen take advantages from both Hong Kong and the rest of the mainland to become an even more "special'' place in the country.
To no one's surprise, Yu's proposal was immediately rejected by the government. In a formal reply, the Guangdong provincial foreign trade department politely said the possibility of turning Shenzhen into a free trade zone "is very slim'' as Beijing already made it clear in 1996 that no more free trade zones should be established. However, the government's reaction to the idea did not seem to cool off Shenzhen's enthusiastic advocates, as more proposals are being raised.
Just two weeks ago, an ambitious urban plan for Shenzhen beyond 2030 was unveiled, forecasting that Hong Kong, Shenzhen and Guangzhou are likely to grow together into one huge city of 50 million people by 2030 - 17 years before two systems are due to merge into what then would truly be one country.
The plan, produced by the Shenzhen branch of the Chinese Academy of Urban Planning and Design, is part of the Shenzhen government's development strategy.
The most wishful thinking, and some may say the most absurd part, in the study is that it "foresees'' that the second border will be retained even years after the first border is scrapped. By then business giants in Hong Kong supposedly would have shifted their headquarters to a new downtown in Shenzhen's Baoan district, marginalising the current downtown in Luohu and Futian districts into greater Shenzhen's suburbs. What the study refrains from saying is that by then Hong Kong would also become a Shenzhen suburb.
What self-centred thinking this is! It also reveals how much Shenzhen fears competition from other mainland cities. So much so that it still needs the second border to protect itself.
When Deng Xiaoping launched his reforms in late 1978, China was still dominated by Mao Zedong's socialist ideology. The Shenzhen SEZ was set up the next year. The second border was erected to ensure the SEZ remains a buffer zone between the mainland's socialism and Hong Kong's capitalism. But now that not only other Guangdong cities but the whole mainland as well have become as open as Shenzhen, the second border has accomplished its mission and must be scrapped.
In fact, after 25 years of fast growth, the second border today is a big hurdle to Shenzhen's further development, with land and resources becoming increasingly scarce and the cost of production and living continuing to rise. Aware of this, the central government has made it clear it is now up for Shenzhen to decide whether and when the second border should be removed.
But out of selfish reasons, Shenzhen has stubbornly resisted scrapping it.
SEZ property prices are more than double those outside the second border, so Shenzhen officials, most of them living in the SEZ, do not want to see their property prices plummet.
Under China's SEZ policy, government workers in a SEZ can enjoy some special subsidies.
As long as the second border remains, local government employees can earn more than their counterparts elsewhere.
Shenzhen police can also make some cash by issuing SEZ entry permits. They charge a non-Shenzhen resident 50 yuan for a single-entry permit. Their income will shrink if the second border is removed.
Shenzhen has plans to turn itself into an international city over the next couple of decades. However, international cities are open cities. If Shenzhen cannot even fully open itself domestically, how can it become an international city?
It might be wiser for Shenzhen to reckon how to integrate itself into the rest of the mainland before dreaming of a possible merger with Hong Kong.
Wu Zhong is China Business Editor of The Standard
wu.zhong@globalchina.com
Wu Zhong, Hong Kong Standard
September 20, 3004
The proposal to scrap the Hong Kong border is politically naive and wishful
Shenzhen, in a desperate effort to safeguard its "special'' status in China, is becoming increasingly eager to integrate itself with Hong Kong - not only economically but physically as well.
In recent years, there have been repeated calls to scrap the Hong Kong-Shenzhen border to allow the free exchange of people and goods.
Politically, the idea is naive as it implies an early end to the separation of systems between the SAR and the Shenzhen Special Economic Zone (SEZ), which would thus breach the Sino-British Joint Declaration on Hong Kong and the Basic Law. In practice, such an idea is one-sided and wishful, without consulting Hong Kong.
Yet, despite these obvious pitfalls, various proposals for an arranged marriage between the SEZ and the SAR have been raised over the years in Shenzhen.
During the annual session of the Guangdong Provincial People's Congress in January, Yu Zhongwen, a deputy from Shenzhen, filed a motion that the provincial government consider letting the SEZ become a completely free trade zone to merge with Hong Kong to form "one metropolis with two cities''.
Under Yu's blueprint, the first border between Hong Kong and Shenzhen would remain an immigration checkpoint but customs checks would be cancelled. Customs checks would be retained, however, at the second border that separates the SEZ from the rest of the mainland. About the same time, some Shenzhen officials said they were considering allowing SEZ residents to travel to Hong Kong freely with their identity cards.
So Yu's proposal is to let Shenzhen take advantages from both Hong Kong and the rest of the mainland to become an even more "special'' place in the country.
To no one's surprise, Yu's proposal was immediately rejected by the government. In a formal reply, the Guangdong provincial foreign trade department politely said the possibility of turning Shenzhen into a free trade zone "is very slim'' as Beijing already made it clear in 1996 that no more free trade zones should be established. However, the government's reaction to the idea did not seem to cool off Shenzhen's enthusiastic advocates, as more proposals are being raised.
Just two weeks ago, an ambitious urban plan for Shenzhen beyond 2030 was unveiled, forecasting that Hong Kong, Shenzhen and Guangzhou are likely to grow together into one huge city of 50 million people by 2030 - 17 years before two systems are due to merge into what then would truly be one country.
The plan, produced by the Shenzhen branch of the Chinese Academy of Urban Planning and Design, is part of the Shenzhen government's development strategy.
The most wishful thinking, and some may say the most absurd part, in the study is that it "foresees'' that the second border will be retained even years after the first border is scrapped. By then business giants in Hong Kong supposedly would have shifted their headquarters to a new downtown in Shenzhen's Baoan district, marginalising the current downtown in Luohu and Futian districts into greater Shenzhen's suburbs. What the study refrains from saying is that by then Hong Kong would also become a Shenzhen suburb.
What self-centred thinking this is! It also reveals how much Shenzhen fears competition from other mainland cities. So much so that it still needs the second border to protect itself.
When Deng Xiaoping launched his reforms in late 1978, China was still dominated by Mao Zedong's socialist ideology. The Shenzhen SEZ was set up the next year. The second border was erected to ensure the SEZ remains a buffer zone between the mainland's socialism and Hong Kong's capitalism. But now that not only other Guangdong cities but the whole mainland as well have become as open as Shenzhen, the second border has accomplished its mission and must be scrapped.
In fact, after 25 years of fast growth, the second border today is a big hurdle to Shenzhen's further development, with land and resources becoming increasingly scarce and the cost of production and living continuing to rise. Aware of this, the central government has made it clear it is now up for Shenzhen to decide whether and when the second border should be removed.
But out of selfish reasons, Shenzhen has stubbornly resisted scrapping it.
SEZ property prices are more than double those outside the second border, so Shenzhen officials, most of them living in the SEZ, do not want to see their property prices plummet.
Under China's SEZ policy, government workers in a SEZ can enjoy some special subsidies.
As long as the second border remains, local government employees can earn more than their counterparts elsewhere.
Shenzhen police can also make some cash by issuing SEZ entry permits. They charge a non-Shenzhen resident 50 yuan for a single-entry permit. Their income will shrink if the second border is removed.
Shenzhen has plans to turn itself into an international city over the next couple of decades. However, international cities are open cities. If Shenzhen cannot even fully open itself domestically, how can it become an international city?
It might be wiser for Shenzhen to reckon how to integrate itself into the rest of the mainland before dreaming of a possible merger with Hong Kong.
Wu Zhong is China Business Editor of The Standard
wu.zhong@globalchina.com