“I should have done more”, reflected Lord Chris Patten, the last governor of the last British colony, Hong Kong, on the 20th anniversary of the territory’s handover to China. In 1997, the country was left to the Chinese government with a form of rule of law guaranteed by an independent Court of Final Appeal, but no democracy. For the past 20 years, Hong Kong’s people have repeatedly fought for their rights. Yesterday again, one million Hong Kongese took to the streets to protest against a proposed new extradition law which could see suspected criminals sent to mainland China for trial.

The possibility of facing the arbitrary criminal justice system of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) is the stuff of nightmares for many of Hong Kong’s citizens who hope to vigorously defend the freedom left to them by the Basic Law, the mini constitution negotiated by London and Beijing before the handover, and which was supposed to recognise Hong’s Kong’s differing capitalist nature and relative autonomy from Chinese society.

However the powers of legal interpretation and amendment of the Basic Law are the preserve of the National People’s Congress of China – this is no democracy and Hong Kong civil society is fierce in its resistance.

It has long proven its determination, as in 2014 with the “Umbrella Movement” and “Occupy Central with Love and Peace (OCLP)”, to launch campaigns of civil disobedience that advocate for free elections on the basis of universal and equal suffrage.

As a result of those protests, in April this year the leaders of the Umbrella Movement, sociology Professor Chan Kin-man, 60, law Professor Benny Tai, 54, and Baptist minister the Rev Chu Yiu-ming, 75, were convicted to 16 months in jail for conspiracy to commit public nuisance. Rev Chu’s sentence was suspended for two years but the judgement was seen as a serious blow to the pro-democracy camp.

Hong Kong: Extradition law protests continue into second week Show all 40 1 /40 Hong Kong: Extradition law protests continue into second week Hong Kong: Extradition law protests continue into second week A reported two million people took to the streets to protest against a controversial extradition law in Hong Kong on June 16 AFP/Getty Hong Kong: Extradition law protests continue into second week Protesters part to allow an ambulance to pass through during a protest on June 16 that reportedly attracted two million people AFP/Getty Hong Kong: Extradition law protests continue into second week A protester pays tribute to a man who died after falling from a scaffolding during the protests against against the extradition law proposal on June 17 Reuters Hong Kong: Extradition law protests continue into second week Following the demonstration, protesters cleared rubbish from the roads where a reported two million people had marched AP Hong Kong: Extradition law protests continue into second week Protesters part to allow buses to pass through during a protest on June 16 that reportedly attracted two million people Getty Hong Kong: Extradition law protests continue into second week A riot police officer strikes at protesters during a protest against the extradition law proposal outside the Legislative Council of Hong Kong on June 12 Reuters Hong Kong: Extradition law protests continue into second week A police officer fires tear gas at protesters during a protest against the extradition law proposal outside the Legislative Council of Hong Kong on June 12 Reuters Hong Kong: Extradition law protests continue into second week Protesters scatter as police fire tear gas during a protest against the extradition law proposal outside the Legislative Council of Hong Kong on June 12 Pauline Leung via Reuters Hong Kong: Extradition law protests continue into second week Protesters carry a banner opposing the extradition law proposal outside the Legislative Council of Hong Kong on June 16 AP Hong Kong: Extradition law protests continue into second week A protester holds a picture of an injured man who later died after falling from a scaffolding during the protests against against the extradition law proposal on June 17 Reuters Hong Kong: Extradition law protests continue into second week Protesters run after police fire tear gas during a protest against the extradition law proposal outside the Legislative Council of Hong Kong on June 12 AFP/Getty Hong Kong: Extradition law protests continue into second week A protester rests after facing water cannons fired by police during a protest against the extradition law proposal outside the Legislative Council of Hong Kong on June 12 Reuters Hong Kong: Extradition law protests continue into second week Police officers use a water canon on a lone protestor near the Legislative Council in Hong Kong on June 12 AFP/Getty Hong Kong: Extradition law protests continue into second week Protesters gather outside the Legislative Council in Hong Kong on June 12 AP Hong Kong: Extradition law protests continue into second week A protester waves a British flag outside the Legislative Council in Hong Kong on June 12 Getty Images Hong Kong: Extradition law protests continue into second week Protesters leap over barricades as they occupy roads by the Legislative Council in Hong Kong on June 12 AFP/Getty Hong Kong: Extradition law protests continue into second week Some protesters run after police fire tear gas during a protest against the extradition law proposal outside the Legislative Council of Hong Kong on June 12 AFP/Getty Hong Kong: Extradition law protests continue into second week Police officers use pepper spray against protesters during clashes after a rally against the extradition law proposal on June 10 AP Hong Kong: Extradition law protests continue into second week A protester sits down in front of riot police during a protest against the extradition law proposal on June 12 Reuters Hong Kong: Extradition law protests continue into second week Protesters sit in a demonstration following violence in the previous day of protests on June 13 Reuters Hong Kong: Extradition law protests continue into second week Protesters barricade themselves in an area outside the Hong Kong Legislative Council during clashes with police after a rally against the extradition law proposal in Hong Kong on June 10 AFP/Getty Hong Kong: Extradition law protests continue into second week A bloody-faced police officer is led away by a colleague after clashing with protesters in a rally against the extradition law proposal on June 10 AP Hong Kong: Extradition law protests continue into second week Protesters march through Hong Kong in opposition to the extradition law proposal on June 9 AFP/Getty Hong Kong: Extradition law protests continue into second week A protester sits in front of a riot police line during clashes between protesters and police following a protest in Hong Kong in opposition to the extradition law proposal on June 10 AFP/Getty Hong Kong: Extradition law protests continue into second week Protesters march through Hong Kong in opposition to the extradition law proposal on June 9 EPA Hong Kong: Extradition law protests continue into second week A protester lifts a barricade while a police officer charges in with his baton during clashes after a rally against the extradition law proposal in Hong Kong AFP/Getty Hong Kong: Extradition law protests continue into second week A protester is arrested during a clash after a rally against the extradition law proposal in Hong Kong on June 10 Getty Hong Kong: Extradition law protests continue into second week Protesters hold pictures of Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam during a rally against the extradition law proposal in Hong Kong on June 9 AP Hong Kong: Extradition law protests continue into second week A protester wave a Union Flag in front of police officers during a protest against the extradition law proposal in Hong Kong on June 10 Reuters Hong Kong: Extradition law protests continue into second week Protesters gather outside the Hong Kong Legislative Council during a rally against the extradition law proposal in Hong Kong on June 10 AFP/Getty Hong Kong: Extradition law protests continue into second week A protester is grabbed by a policeman as he crosses the police line during a rally against the extradition law proposal in Hong Kong on June 10 AP Hong Kong: Extradition law protests continue into second week Protesters gather outside the Hong Kong Legislative Council during a rally against the extradition law proposal in Hong Kong on June 10 AFP/Getty Hong Kong: Extradition law protests continue into second week A police officer detains a demonstrator during a protest to demand authorities scrap a proposed extradition bill with China, in Hong Kong, China June 9, 2019. REUTERS/Thomas Peter Reuters Hong Kong: Extradition law protests continue into second week Police officers detain a demonstrator during a protest during a rally against the extradition law proposal in Hong Kong on June 10 AP Hong Kong: Extradition law protests continue into second week A protester shouts next to police officers during a protest during a rally against the extradition law proposal in Hong Kong on June 10 AP Hong Kong: Extradition law protests continue into second week Protesters march through Hong Kong in opposition to the extradition law proposal on June 9 AP Hong Kong: Extradition law protests continue into second week Police officers detain a demonstrator during a protest during a rally against the extradition law proposal in Hong Kong on June 10 Reuters Hong Kong: Extradition law protests continue into second week Police officers detain a demonstrator during a protest during a rally against the extradition law proposal in Hong Kong on June 10 Reuters Hong Kong: Extradition law protests continue into second week Protesters gather in a park in Hong Kong opposition to the extradition law proposal on June 9 Reuters Hong Kong: Extradition law protests continue into second week A protester sits by ramshackle barriers after clashes between protesters and police following a protest in Hong Kong in opposition to the extradition law proposal on June 10 AP

This radicalism is unsurprising. Hong Kong is known for its dynamism as a global financial hub – but also for its history of welcoming dissidents. Since the 1989 Tiananmen crackdown, numerous Chinese radicals have found shelter on the island. The best independent research on China is produced by think tanks, NGOs and prestigious universities now constantly under scrutiny if not direct pressure by the PRC.

Professor Johannes Chan, the previous dean of Hong Kong University Law School paid a hard price for expressing his views freely when he was forced to step down for “excessive political participation” and support of the Occupy Central movement.

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A real worry for the people of Hong Kong is how the Basic Law only guarantees certain rights for them over a period of 50 years – without specifying how Hong Kong will be governed after 2047.

Currently, although a “Special Administrative Region” of China, Hong Kong is an independent customs territory and as such a member of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) in its own right. A result of the “one country two systems” formula invented by China to reassure Hong Kong people at the time of the handover – yet this now rests on fragile ground.

The British never gave democracy to the colony but planted its seeds, creating a unique system grounded in education and justice. This rather schizophrenic approach to government now poses problems.

It was an illusion to believe Singapore like prosperity could suffice for the Hong Kongese. The idea of freedom had already blossomed in the forward thinking business community. Yet the country now lacks the necessary institutional tools to protect its own independence.

In 1842, at the end of the Opium War, the island of Hong Kong was ceded in perpetuity by Qing China to the British crown. Later, in 1898, additional new territories on the mainland were leased for 99 years to the British. Since that time, Hong Kong has grown as a blend of both Chinese and western cultures. Yet many rue that the final act of the British empire was not more decisive in entrenching democracy into the country’s constitution.