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Article: China Buys Hong Kong Capitalism; Communist Control Will Begin in 1997
- Article from:
- The Washington Post
- Article date:
- December 25, 1988
- Author:
CopyrightThis material is published under license from the Washington Post. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Washington Post. (Hide copyright information)
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Xu Jiatun, the shadow governor of Hong Kong, has mellowed.
The senior Chinese Communist Party official here used to wear
dark glasses, and he pounded the table when he got angry. He sounded
threatening when British administrators proposed modest steps toward
a more democratic system for this crown colony.
But in recent years, Xu, 73, has softened both his appearance and
his rhetoric. He's dropped the dark glasses and has even begun
praising capitalism as "a great creation of human civilization."
China, which is due to take control of Hong Kong in less than a
decade, has been smiling on this booming, free-market enclave lately.
Its largess has extended even to the point of accepting a ...