About the Lecture: 

During the period of Chief Executive Election in Hong Kong, it is hard to get rid of heated debates and controversies. Date back to the summer of 2014, Beijing’s rigid attitude towards democratic election in Hong Kong had triggered the Umbrella Movement. Over the past two years, social and political ambiance in Hong Kong has experienced significant shift, coincident with the geopolitical dynamics of Asia-Pacific region since the inauguration of President Trump in the US. As a result, we have observed candidates of the Chief Executive Election taking different approaches trying to be in line with Beijing on one hand and to be more harmonious to the public on the other. But the future strategic role of Hong Kong in China’s grand strategy, and the corresponding functionalities and responsibilities the Hong Kong Chief Executive ought to take in the new era, remain largely under-addressed. This seminar will explore the social and political climate surrounding the Hong Kong Chief Executive Election in 2017, and the implication of this election on Hong Kong – Beijing relationship in the future, from the geopolitical perspective.

About the Speaker: 

Dr. Simon Shen serves as director of Global Studies Programme, director of Master of Global Political Economy Programme and co-director of International Affairs Research Institute, Chinese University of Hong Kong. He is a prominent international relations commentator, serving as the Lead Writer (Glocal) of the Hong Kong Economic Journal and has contributed to media all over the world. In Hong Kong he has served in various government consultation committees and founded several think tanks that have close interaction with the government, academia and civil society. His research interests include China-US relations, Chinese nationalism and regional security and external relations of Hong Kong, among others. He has worked as visiting fellows at Brookings Institution, Warwick University, East-West Center and Rikkyo University.