Regulate Dissent in Hong Kong, Jackie Chan Says

Posted on Dec 13, 2012

Gage Skidmore (CC BY-SA 2.0)

Jackie Chan spent decades playing the role of a tough guy who says no with his fists, but the Chinese action star recently told reporters he thinks the government should place limits on the right of citizens in his hometown to protest.

Hong Kong is a former British colony that was returned to China in 1997 and now operates under the semiautonomous status of a “special administrative region.” Residents prize their “Western-style civil liberties,” including the freedom to demonstrate, which mainland Chinese do not enjoy.

Hong Kong has played host to an increasing number of protests against its Beijing-backed leader, Leung Chun-ying, a lack of democracy and concerns over Beijing’s mounting influence.

—Posted by Alexander Reed Kelly.

The Guardian:

The action star lamented that Hong Kong, a semi-autonomous region of China, had become a city of protests, where people “scold China, scold the leaders, scold anything, protest against anything”.

“There should be regulations on what can and cannot be protested,” Chan told the Southern People Weekly. He did not say what kinds of protests he thought should be restricted.

… In 2009, Chan sparked outrage among Hong Kong politicians when said he said: “I’m not sure if it’s good to have freedom or not.” He also said he was “beginning to feel that we Chinese need to be controlled”.

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