June, 2006

God or the Empire

Rose Wu

Political discussion in Hong Kong is beginning to focus on the subsector polls to choose members of the Election Committee that will select the next chief executive in 2007. Among the subsectors is the religious subsector that includes Christians, both Catholics and Protestants. My fear is that as Christians contemplate their participation in these subsector polls they are not reflecting deeply enough about the role we are called to play in society based on the principles of our faith. We should not forget that our involvement in politics is not for the benefit of our own political interests or to gain political power. Rather, our role is to be a moral conscience of society, to be a prophetic voice for justice for the powerless and people who are marginalised by those who dominate our society politically and economically. As members of a subsector of the Election Committee, however, we move outside of these boundaries and become trapped in another political realm designed by the Chinese government, a political arena that is undemocratic and unjust. In this process, we lose our detachment and independence from politics, a distance that we must maintain in order to be faithful to our Christian values and role in society.

In the 2002 chief executive election, the Church attempted to participate in this political process in a passive manner by merely collecting the names of Christians who wished to be candidates. This year, however, the Hong Kong Christian Council (HKCC) will inaugurate a more active method by encouraging all Protestants to register as electors in the subsector and to nominate candidates for an election HKCC will hold to determine the Protestant representatives. While this procedure is more democratic and responsible, it continues to confuse our political role as Christians in society. It negates our independent position in society and potentially, if not actually, muzzles our moral voice as we as Christians and the Church no longer stand outside of the political system but are a willing participant inside of it. In effect, it transforms the Church and Christians into a political interest group rather than a group concerned with the political and socio-economic interests of the weakest sections of society. Consequently, we as Christians should refrain from accepting this political privilege and should not participate in the subsector elections for the Election Committee.

Recently, the harmonious atmosphere between the Hong Kong Protestant churches and the Chinese government was disturbed by Yu Jie, a prominent Christian author and a member of the unofficial church in mainland China. Chung Chi College of the Chinese University of Hong Kong invited Yu to be a speaker at the second Christian Festival in early April. During his visit, he was invited by the China Graduate School of Theology to join the seminary for a scholarly function in June. However, after Yu and two mainland legal scholars, Wang Yi and Li Baiguang, met U.S. President George W. Bush at the White House on May 12, he received an e-mail from the School of Theology informing him that their invitation had been withdrawn. They did not give any reason except that, in view of the current situation, it was not appropriate for Yu and his friend Li Baiguang to visit the China Graduate School of Theology. Yu then issued a public statement expressing his deep regret about the School of Theology's decision and asked for an open apology and compensation. He also expressed concern about religious freedom in Hong Kong. According to the South China Morning Post on May 13, Yu commented that Hong Kong is becoming more like the mainland: "I had thought this would only have happened in the mainland and never thought it would occur in Hong Kong."

Yu, however, is not only known as a prominent author; he is also respected as a strong fighter for China's human rights and freedom of expression. During his visit with Bush, Yu and other friends urged the U.S. president to discuss the issue of religious freedom and human rights in his future talks with China's leaders. They also emphasised that Christians on the mainland are determined to use China's Constitution to defend their rights and that they want political prisoners to have the right to be baptised and worship in jail. Moreover, in his most recent book, Jujue Huangyan (Rejecting Lies), Yu reflects on the role of China's intellectuals in the post-Tiananmen era. In addition, Yu has frequently intervened on behalf of mainland writers and activists, calling on the Chinese authorities to protect freedom of speech and to safeguard people's basic human rights.

On Oct. 1, 2000, Yu issued an open letter of protest to the China Writer's Association in which he criticised the withdrawal of their job offer after they had signed a contract with him in June 2000. In his letter, he wrote, "People who know what is going on within the Writer's Association told me that I have been refused a job there because of some of my writings. I don't know where the problem lies, but I do believe that every citizen has, within the limits set by the Constitution and the law, freedom of thought, speech and written expression. . . . I have no fear at all of assuming responsibly for every chapter and for every character in every article I have written. . . . If the association thought that my books have political errors or bad political tendencies, . . . they could criticise them openly. This has been completely a black box, behind-the-scenes manipulation to violate someone’ right to work as a way of silencing unwelcome voices."

In his letter, he also argued that, as a citizen of a modern society and as the citizen of a country that stresses the importance of democracy and the rule of law, "I am determined to defend my natural rights. I am confident that the law is on my side as is righteousness and a good conscience." He even stressed that he does not want to be like his elders who, when they were mistreated in violation of the law, just submitted and took the punishment. "I will take up the weapons of the law and the force of public opinion and use them in a rational manner to fight for my rights as an ordinary citizen. I believe this is the fight of every intellectual who is treated unfairly."

In his letter, he added, "I have lived, I have written and I have fought. That is good enough in itself. From this moment on, the one who lives in fear will not be me. It will be those fellows who hide in the dark corners. From this moment on, I will live out in the sunlight. I will live a fuller and happier life. I am stronger and more self-confident. I have no fear of harm."

From the above incidents, it is clear that implementing "one country, two systems" involves a dynamic process between the mainland and Hong Kong. Since the handover, the influence of China's system poses a threat to Hong Kong's system. On the other hand, the frequent exchange of people between the two systems creates an opportunity for Hong Kong to also influence China's system. Therefore, it is important for the people of Hong Kong and its Christian community to uphold the positive values of Hong Kong's system, such as an independent judiciary, freedom of religion and the press and a lack of corruption in both the public and private sectors.

In the past few years, there has been a tendency, especially in the Protestant Church in Hong Kong, for self-censorship of the Church's prophetic voice in an attempt to avoid upsetting China's leaders so that work with mainland churches can be maintained. The participation of Protestants in the Election Committee subsector and the withdrawal of Yu's invitation are reflections of this self-understanding.

As members of Christ's Church who seek to be faithful to his teachings, the challenge for us is whether we choose God or the empire of those who hold power. Because of human nature, we understand there is always a temptation for us to choose the empire instead of God because the empire tends to give us security and privilege. However, based on Yu's example, only when Christians fully actualise their freedom of conscience and dare to take an oppositional stance against the oppressive empire of their time can they be the true witnesses of Jesus Christ. Bowing down to any state power will only be a form of idol worship.