July, 2007

CHURCH-STATE RELATIONS
Criticism and Communication Characterise Relationship with the Government

Chan Shun-hing

(The author is an associate professor in the Dept. of Religion and Philosophy at Hong Kong Baptist University.)

During the colonial period, Christian churches enjoyed a close relationship with the Hong Kong government. Over the years, the churches launched many educational, medical and social services and received funding from the government as their relationship developed into a close "partnership." With the return of Hong Kong to China in 1997, the partnership underwent a change, and the churches have been learning to deal with the new relationships, both with the Hong Kong and central Chinese governments. The various churches or Christian denominations have responded differently to these changes, responses that can be divided into two main categories: (1) a critical stance adopted by some churches and (2) a close relationship with the two governments by others.

Upholding the Principle of 'One Country, Two Systems'
The most prominent socio-political issue raised by Christian churches since the 1997 handover has been the need to uphold the principle of "one country, two systems." Addressed mostly by the Catholic and Protestant mainline churches, this subject has been raised in response to such issues as political reform and the reinterpretation of the Basic Law by the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC). The churches maintain that the principles of "one country, two systems" and "Hong Kong people ruling Hong Kong" with a "high degree of autonomy" stipulated in the 1984 Sino-British Joint Declaration should be rigorously upheld. Over the years, the churches have closely monitored the government's defence of these principles.

Emphasising Communication with the Government
The second theme running through Christian social discourse in Hong Kong has been an emphasis on communication with the government. Some church leaders insisted publicly that such communication was essential. Surprisingly, most of those who took this view were from the Protestant evangelical and charismatic churches.

Christian social discourse over the election of Hong Kong's chief executive was likewise enlightening. When the government commissioned the Hong Kong Christian Council (HKCC) to provide representatives for the Election Committee, the council decided to hold elections within the Protestant church community in 2006. Five pro-democracy Protestants formed an alliance and took part in the election. Some leaders of the evangelical and charismatic churches also took part in the Protestant election with two candidates attracting the most attention-the Rev. Chung Ka-lok, the former general secretary of the Hong Kong Chinese Christian Churches Union (HKCCCU), and Hugo Chan Sai-keung, an elder of the Praise Assembly.

According to media reports, the Chinese government invited members of the HKCCCU to an exchange programme in Beijing where members met with officials from the United Front Work Dept., the State Administration for Religious Affairs and the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office. Chung attended the meeting then as deputy general secretary of the HKCCCU. Later, during the election period, he openly advocated the importance of building a good relationship with the Chinese government.

In addition to his post as an elder of the Praise Assembly, Chan was also the vice president of the Hong Kong Professionals and Senior Executive Association. Two honorary sponsors of the association were Donald Tsang Yam-kuen, the current chief executive, and Gao Siren, the top Beijing government representative in Hong Kong. Two months before the Protestant election, the association was invited to meet Chinese government officials to learn about "issues related to the nation" at the Communist Party School in Beijing. During the election, Chan emphasised that his principle for voting for the chief executive was "trusted by the central government" and that he was able "to communicate effectively with the Chinese government."

A report from the Chung Chi Divinity School of the Chinese University of Hong Kong made the following observation: "According to our sources, the officials of the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the Hong Kong SAR actively supported and encouraged some church leaders, church organisations and denominations to take part in the Protestant direct election. In fact, many elected representatives were these church leaders."

Boosting Reconciliation and Reconstruction
The third theme raised by Christian social discourse can be called "boosting reconciliation and reconstruction." In May 2004, 15 evangelical church leaders drafted a mission statement entitled "Reconciliation and Reconstruction: The Mission of Christian Churches in Hong Kong" in which they expressed their views on society and the role of Christian churches after 1997. The mission statement was signed by 178 evangelical Protestants and published in Ming Pao on July 12, 2004.

The statement reflects the chaotic situation faced by Hong Kong society at the time. It said social discontent had been triggered by political problems and the economic downturn as well as the effect of global disconnection. The cultural conflict of values between Beijing and Hong Kong had also contributed to social disintegration. It went on to outline the duties of evangelical Protestants as being "confident, seek communication and interaction with others and care about people in society." It added that the vision of churches was for "hope for cultural reconciliation and the building of [a] constructive relationship."

The statement listed four goals for Protestants. First, it stated that Protestants should help Hong Kong's people search for spirituality, tolerate people who are different, overcome the obstacles of individualism and consumerism and respect and care about others. Secondly, the statement said that the Church should mobilise Christians to fulfil their civic responsibilities, uphold the rule of law and human rights, share the burdens of others and build a caring and righteous civil society. Thirdly, in response to the "clash of civilisations" experienced in Hong Kong, the Church should seek to revolve conflicts and build cultural reconciliation between Beijing and Hong Kong. Lastly, it stressed that Christian educational bodies should shoulder the responsibility for equipping future generations with leadership skills and cultural values.

The mission statement though failed to recognise the reality of what was taking place in Hong Kong. Instead, it brushed over the problems and ignored the relationship between civic participation and social conflict. Firstly, the statement is an oversimplification of Hong Kong's social and political problems. Evangelical Protestants suggested that political problems, the economic downturn and the effect of global disconnection were the three major factors behind Hong Kong's social problems. Yet other Christian groups were arguing that the community's political and economic problems were due to poor governance on the part of the Hong Kong government and that if social problems to a large extent were due to poor governance then the best way to rectify this dilemma would be for citizens to criticise government policy and seek change.

Secondly, the statement also analysed the relationship between mainland China and Hong Kong. Evangelical Christians suggested that the problems expressed were due to a "cultural conflict of values between Beijing and Hong Kong." It held that individuals should try to reconcile the values of Beijing and Hong Kong. In my view, the statement is merely a description, rather than an explanation, for the conflict between Hong Kong and mainland China. If the Chinese government and Hong Kong's citizens disagreed on a political issue-for example, the NPC's reinterpretation of the Basic Law-they should be allowed to present and discuss their views and should be permitted to decide whether to accept a reinterpretation by the NPC. The statement, however, failed to offer a practical solution.

Finally, the statement advocates civic participation for Protestants in Hong Kong in so far as they should fulfil their civic responsibilities, uphold the rule of law and human rights and build a caring and righteous civil society. However, the demand for institutional reform and criticism of the NPC's reinterpretation of the Basic Law by Catholics and mainline Protestants was already a form of civic participation. To issue statements and take action to oppose government policy reflects the attempts by Hong Kong's churches to build a caring and righteous civil society and does not reflect an attitude of pessimism or the behaviour of a bystander. Monitoring and criticising the government is an effective way of solving social problems, although it may produce conflict in society. The statement may show that some leaders of the evangelical Protestant churches do not understand the meaning of civic participation, or simply have made a selective explanation of it, through which they have attempted to mobilise evangelical Protestants to support their proposal.

Improving Morality in Society
Protestant communities have expressed concern about many moral issues over the past 10 years, i.e., gambling, poverty, sexual views, homosexuality, etc. Both mainline and evangelical Protestants have addressed these issues, but the evangelicals have been more active. Some parachurch organisations, such as the Society for Truth and Light (STL), the Hong Kong Alliance for Family and the Hong Kong Sex Culture Society, etc., have been outspoken on a number of controversial cases.

The financial crisis that hit Asia in 1997 made life very difficult for lower-income earners in Hong Kong. In December 2002, seven evangelical organisations sought to raise tens of millions of Hong Kong dollars to establish an emergency fund to help 1,000 low-income families and individuals, and earlier that year in April three cross-denominational church organisations joined together to launch a programme called Christian Care for the Unemployed that aimed to mobilise the resources of the Protestant community. One participant in the Christian Care for the Unemployed programme said in an interview that Philemon Choi Yuen-wan, an evangelical Protestant church leader, was a key figure in promoting the programme. Choi is the former chairperson of the Commission on Youth, a government advisory body. He persuaded church leaders to organise the programme at an internal meeting by saying that the government would value the churches if they backed such social services.

The parachurch organisations of the evangelical Protestants often issued press statements and entered into public debate with other organisations on various moral issues. One such organisation was STL. According to their publications, STL has three key concerns: the media, sex culture and social and family ethics. On April 29, 2005, the Hong Kong Alliance for the Family, a sister organization of STL, launched a signature campaign in Ming Pao in opposition to the government's proposed anti-discrimination legislation on sexual orientation. Spread over four pages, the group's statement contained signatures from 374 organisations and 9,800 individuals.

Differences in Social Discourse
The social discourse of the Catholic and Protestant churches has included both socio-political and moral issues, although they have been more outspoken on socio-political issues. The churches have often criticised the Hong Kong government and its policies and practices as well as condemned cases of "interference by the mainland Chinese government in Hong Kong's affairs." For example, they urged the Hong Kong government to introduce political reform and criticised the NPC's reinterpretation of the Basic Law.

A study of the social discourse of the evangelical churches reveals a very different socio-political viewpoint. Since the 1997 handover, evangelical church leaders have actively sought to build a close relationship with the Hong Kong and Chinese governments. Their social discourse indicates that there have been at least three types of strategies at work: to mobilise the Protestant community to back the government, to support government policy with concrete action and to play a role in the government's political mobilisation. The evangelical churches have proven adept at the formidable mobilisation of their followers as was seen in their opposition to the government's proposed legislation on sexual orientation. Yet these churches have otherwise remained largely silent on other socio-political issues, such as political reform and the reinterpretation of the Basic Law by the NPC. Although the evangelical churches have occasionally criticised government policy, they have narrowed their focus to moral matters and have shunned socio-political issues. One possible explanation for this stance is that these churches have avoided challenging the government in order to maintain their good relationship with the authorities.