Jeffie Lam - Rebel City: Hong Kongs Year Of Water And Fire

This excellent book is an inspiring reminder of the vital importance of a free press in any society that is struggling with difficult social and political problems. Throughout 2019, international observers relied on the South China Morning Post to reveal the full complexity of the Hong Kong situation. This book provides a chance for readers to reflect on what happened, and draw lessons for the future.

Kurt Tong, former United States Consul General to
Hong Kong and Partner at The Asia Group

One of the British Prime Ministers once complained of bias in the media and he was asked in which direction, and he said its biased in every direction. Chris Patten. The events in 2019 shocked and polarized Hong Kong. A fearless and vibrant press is indispensable in such times. It is the price to pay for a free and pluralistic society that the press provokes disagreement, irritates, or even occasionally gets it wrong. The pieces in this volume will not and are not designed to please everybody. This is in the best traditions of the Post long may it continue. I congratulate the Post for a job well done.

Paul Shieh SC, former Chairman,
Hong Kong Bar Association

As mentioned in this book, the protests in Hong Kong against the extradition bill of 2019 were among the worlds most visible political events in history. Like the 2003 protest against the national security bill and the umbrella movement of 2014, the 2019 movement was a watershed moment that raised fundamental questions about the future of one country, two systems. This book, written by South China Morning Post journalists who eyewitnessed the turmoil is an indispensable guide for anyone who wants to know what happened and to understand why.

Albert H.Y. Chen, Cheng Chan Lan Yue
Professor of Constitutional Law, University of Hong Kong,
and member of the Basic Law Committee

2019 was a turbulent and tumultuous year for Hong Kong. Events followed fast upon each other. This collection of stories, interviews and analysis by seasoned reporters from the South China Morning Post performs the crucial service of recording what happened, asking why it happened, and, most important of all, not rushing to any quick conclusions. A powerful, and at times moving, account of a city under siege, but trying to find its way.

Kerry Brown, Director, Lau China Institute,
Kings College London

SCMP Team

Published by

World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd.

5 Toh Tuck Link, Singapore 596224

USA office: 27 Warren Street, Suite 401-402, Hackensack, NJ 07601

UK office: 57 Shelton Street, Covent Garden, London WC2H 9HE

and

South China Morning Post Publishers Limited

19/F, Tower One, Times Square, 1 Matheson Street

Causeway Bay, Hong Kong

National Library Board, Singapore Cataloguing in Publication Data

Name(s): Zuraidah Ibrahim, editor. | Lam, Jeffie, editor.

Title: Rebel city : Hong Kongs year of water and fire / edited by Zuraidah Ibrahim & Jeffie Lam.

Description: Singapore : World Scientific Publishing Co Pte Ltd ; Hong Kong : South China Morning Post Publishers Limited, [2020] | Includes index.

Identifier(s): OCN 1140723502 | ISBN 978-981-121-859-0 (hardback) | ISBN 978-981-121-860-6 (paperback) | ISBN 978-981-121-861-3 (electronicbook for institutions) | ISBN 978-981-121-862-0 (electronic book)

Subject(s): LCSH: Hong Kong Protests, Hong Kong, China, 2019 | Protest movements--China--Hong Kong. | Civil disobedience--China--Hong Kong. | Hong Kong (China)--Politics and government--1997

Classification: DDC 322.44095125--dc23

British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

Copyright 2020 by South China Morning Post Publishers Limited

All rights reserved.

For any available supplementary material, please visit

https://www.worldscientific.com/worldscibooks/10.1142/11777#t=suppl

Printed in Singapore

I am proud of this book and yet humbled by it. It is a chronicle of the greatest social and political upheaval that Hong Kong has undergone in our times, a non-partisan account of the events of 2019 encapsulating the blood, sweat and tears of a world city at a crossroads.

Its also a fact-based attempt to explain all the contradictions, nuances and complexities of the story of the anti-government protest movement that was triggered by the ill-fated extradition bill, and continues to impact this city and the lives of its 7.4 million people.

And its a labor of love by a team of outstanding journalists at the South China Morning Post, supported by a wider network of dedicated colleagues, who deserve a separate book someday to tell the story of their passion for the job and their professionalism against formidable odds.

I am talking about the grueling hours, the relentless pressure, and the immense personal risks at the front lines of often-violent protests, all to tell the story of their times.

Reporters, photographers, videographers and artists, along with editors, made many sacrifices, regularly working marathon hours and toiling late into the night for weeks on end, to cover the chaos sweeping the city, all too often at great risk to their own safety and health.

The physical and emotional stress on the people who produced the articles collected in this book has been tremendous.

At the worst moments, some have been tear-gassed, pepper-sprayed and hit with projectiles during chaotic confrontations between police and protesters, while others have been intimidated and threatened for doing their job.

And it wasnt only our journalists take, for instance, one of our key administrative staff members having her car petrol-bombed while on her way to work.

But we stayed the course, kept calm and remained focused, doing what it took to tell the world the real story of what happened to our city, warts and all, without taking sides, and without fear or favor.

Our coverage has been as comprehensive as it has been objective and professional throughout. It has sifted through sharply conflicting narratives and bitterly divided opinions to bring out every shade of color in between the ubiquitous blue and yellow that lit up much of what was dubbed the revolution of our times by activists but condemned as rioting and illegal behavior by both the local and central governments.