Voters on the small island of Taiwan in late November gave an important lesson to their government and to Big Brother China watching from across the narrow strait that separates the island from the people's republic on the mainland — hands off our democracy. Was Chinese President and Communist Party boss Xi Jinping listening? Does he understand?
Xi's policies in the other island territory of Greater China, which is within his grasp, suggest that he wants to have no truck with true democracy. Protesters in Hong Kong demonstrating for democracy with democratic characteristics, rather than communist ones, were given not the slightest concessions. Strongman Xi demonstrated his preference to being the emperor of "one country" rather than the benign master of "two systems" and the high degree of autonomy pledged to Hong Kong under the agreement between China and the United Kingdom in 1984.
Last week also saw the effective end of the protests in Hong Kong as police removed barricades, leaders of the Occupy movement surrendered to the authorities. And student Joshua Wong gave up his hunger strike. Commentators claimed this meant that it was game, set and match to China.