The Hong Kong government announced earlier this month that it had nominated a leading jurist, Justice Geoffrey Ma, to be the next head of the judiciary, succeeding Chief Justice Andrew Li, who served in that post since the former British colony became a special administrative region of China in 1997.

The development reflects the paradox of Hong Kong. On one hand, it can be seen as evidence of the success of China's policy of "one country, two systems," with the choice of Justice Ma having been made entirely within Hong Kong, with no interference from Beijing.

At the same time, however, there is speculation that Chief Justice Li, who is taking early retirement, is stepping down to pre-empt any move by China in the coming years to rein in the Hong Kong judiciary to make it more responsive to Beijing's wishes.