Post #0
Une ville français en Chine – Broadcast by Antenne 2, 31 December 1996
Good morning and hello to everyone watching. As France prepares for yet another new year, about 6 and half million of us are preparing not only for a new year, but for a future apart from France. These 6.5 million Frenchmen and women are located 10,000 kilometers from Paris, in a small piece of southern China sill flying the tricolor, the overseas collectivity of Kwangchow Wan (Kouang-Tchéou-Wan).
The Territory of Kwangchow Wan (1910)
Somewhat overshadowed by its more populous cousin Hong Kong and its more scandalous cousin Macau, Guangzhouwan has been French for almost 99 years now. A rich synthesis between the Chinese and French cultures—as well as the many other cultures that today call this little territory home today—has taken shape over that long period. As a result, a very unique and exotic set of traditions, histories, and sensitivities has developed in this French exclave.
Like Hong Kong, its lease is 99 years long, and is slated to be returned to the PRC next year. As such, this unquestionably French territory has to grapple with the fact that in 6 months, it will no longer be a French city, but a Chinese one. Inevitably, this reality has led many to react in different ways.
From a deep sorrow for being wrenched away from France without even a single input (no referendum on retrocession was held, nor would be allowed by Peking), to an endless joy for the inevitable reattachment to the homeland, one can see the full range of emotions by walking down the grand Avenue de Gaulle, perusing through the historic market of the Place des Grues, or ambling along the shores of the Plage de Jade.
La Cathédrale Notre Dame de Fort Bayard, located on the Avenue de Gaulle
But to understand how these emotions have come to be in the first place, one must understand the rich history of the territory. A rich tapestry woven from threads of violence and of opportunity, of colonial tyranny and of equality. Of hardships and boom times, and of repression and hope.
Kwangchow Wan has seen a lot over the years, and we hope that this documentary can help shed a little more insight into the strange, exotic, and underappreciated French Pearl of the Orient. Beginning with the city’s establishment as a French colony in 1898, this documentary will take you through the many stages of Kwangchow Wan’s history. From its reorganization as an independent territory in 1910, to its first golden age between WW1 and WW2. Its gruesome occupation by Japanese forces during WW2, to its role as a city of spies and intrigues during the Chinese Civil War. And through its quarante glorieuses leading to the present day, this documentary will take you half a world away, to the mysterious, yet oddly familiar, city of Kwangchow Wan, a little piece of France located on the shores of Southern China.
Southern China, in Flames – Broadcast by ABC Night News, 2 April 2019
Kwangchow Wan, often called the Paris of the East, with its long and wide Parisian avenues and quaint bistros and cafes, has now been plunged into a sea of protests and violence along with its sister Hong Kong, following the announcement of the Extradition Bill.
This bill would make it possible for suspects to be extradited between the SARs and the mainland. While Beijing has said that the Extradition Bill will make the justice system more efficient, opponents of the law see it as an erosion of Hong Kong and Kwangchow Wan’s justice systems and as a flagrant violation of the 1 Country 2 Systems agreements. They see it as the final straw in a series of detested reforms that have slowly chipped away at the cities’ political and social independence since their handovers in 1997. In both cities, large crowds of protestors have to protest the bill and to demand its withdrawal. But while Hong Kong is seeing a very impressive series of protests, they pale in comparison to those being seen in Kwangchow Wan.
Perhaps stemming from the long honored French tradition of protests and strikes, Kwangchow Wan has been besieged by a level of violence and chaos that would make even the most firebrand Jacobin blush. Millions of Kwangchow Wan’s residents, many bedecked in the yellow vests emblematic of the modern French protest, have taken to the streets against the deeply unpopular extradition bill, which to them represents the growing influence that Beijing has in Kwangchow Wan’s affairs.
Barricades made of ripped up cobblestones and streetlights, “command centers” controlling the large mobs of protestors roaming the streets, a wide array of improvised weapons, and a veritable sea of signs and placards make Kwangchow Wan seem more like a scene frin the play Les Misérables rather than the idyllic tourist city the world has come to know. Perhaps Is Kwangchow Wan Burning? will become the 21st century’s Is Paris Burning?.
A barricade ablaze on the Avenue Lam Tong, with protestors flying the French flag, 30 March
The Poitou and Tong-Ping districts, the industrial heart of the region, have grinded to a halt as workers walked off the assembly lines in a series of wildcat strikes, while the University of Fort-Bayard, the region’s premier institute of higher learning, lies desolate and abandoned. Likewise, all primary and secondary schools have been closed, something not seen since the 2003 SARS outbreak. Containers have piled up in the port, stevedores either staying at home or in the street, with cargo traffic being diverted either to Kaohsiung, Haiphong, or even further afield to Manila.
Offices lay empty, with many workers refusing to show up to work and instead heading to the many protests throughout Lachapelle, the business district. Alongside them are the lawyers and judges of the region’s bar association, bedecked in their court robes and undertaking the bar’s biggest strike action in its history. One will find lining the streets a growing pile of garbage bags as the sanitation department has also gone on strike. In fact, outside of the firefighters and ambulance crews, a vast majority of city service workers have gone on strike. Even the region’s police department has reported an absence rate of about 35%, and that’s only the official number!
Many signs and statues glorifying the Communist regime have been torn down, with the most obvious example being the tearing down of an anti-French statue on Liberation Avenue (originally and more recently called the Avenue Foch). A swarm of red-white-and-blue tricolors and red-and-blue ROC flags accompany every mass of protestors throughout the territory. The buildings housing the Legislative and Executive Assemblies have been stormed, like a modern-day Bastille, with pro-democracy slogans being graffitied all over their interiors. Where the French tricolor once adorned the chambers before 1997, they once again adorn them today in 2019. The portraits of Xi Jingping and Andy Chow, the region’s premier, lie scattered and trampled on throughout the region.
With military forces being restricted from being stationed within the Kwangchow Wan SAR, the CCP has been forced to send in “ordinary” police forces (though many note that these police officers have been militarized to an extent that American police forces would recognize) to try and restore calm. Some have even accused the CCP of calling with favors with the organized mafia—the triads—to repress protestors, pointing to the mysterious group of men who assaulted an entire subway train at the Ping-Cheou station earlier this week.
Whatever the case, these reinforcements have been thrust into the fire, as pitched street battles between protestors and police have erupted all over the territory. Forceful water jets, tear gas canisters, and baton charges were just enough to stop massed formations of protestors marching towards police strong points on the island of Tan-Hai. On the Avenue Miterrand, an attempted police advance towards the old Resident-General building was thwarted by an overwhelming volume of airborne objects, mainly bricks and bottles. At the Executive Assembly, the police were only half successful with expelling protestors who had occupied the building, with a small, tenacious contingent still reportedly holding onto the central meeting hall. Throughout the region, any police officers arresting a protestor would have to contend with a swarm of protestors bearing down to free the detainee, who more often than not succeeded at this.
Police breaking up protestors marching towards police checkpoints using tear gas, 1 April
The police have closed off the northern border crossings except for government vehicles, effectively cutting off Kwangchow Wan from the north. They also attempted to do the same with the southern crossings from ROC-held territory but were prevented from doing so by massive barricades and masses of determined protestors. As such, crucial supplies for the protest movement stream in exclusively from the south.
These protests have set off a series of tense international reactions. Long-simmering tensions between Beijing and Kaohsiung have boiled over, with both sides accusing the other of stoking the flames of revolt in Kwangchow Wan. Both sides have been observed ramping up troop and armor concentrations along the Leichou DMZ and their respective borders with Kwangchow Wan. Airbases along the peninsula are seeing an increase in traffic, and the local naval ports all seem to be gearing up for an armed confrontation. Beijing has announced the resumption of missile tests within a series of 8 sea regions, surrounding Taiwan and Hainan, and have also announced the mobilization of the Guangzhou and Nanjing military districts. In response, Kaohsiung has announced the limited mobilization of their reservist forces and the general standing up of all of its professional forces.
France and Britain have announced the joint deployment of two of their latest ships to the South China Sea as a show of force, while Beijing has accused them of collaborating with Kaohsiung to undermine the its sovereignty. The French ambassador in particular has been summoned to Beijing and is expected to be declared persona non grata within the day. Communist incursions into Taiwanese and Hainanese airspace have almost tripled in the last week, and PLAAN ships are being observed being much more aggressive, with Philippine and Japan Coast Guard ships reporting a deluge of incursions into their EEZs. Accordingly, the US has raised its DEFCON alert system to level 3.
President Trump has called for calm on all sides, but Beijing has refused these calls, saying that any foreign interventions into an “internal, Chinese affair” would be seen as an act of aggression and would be dealt with accordingly. In a speech aired two days ago, Xi Jinping has vowed to defeat these “anti-Chinese” rebels, whose funds come from “foreign actors” and whose goal is the sundering of the two SARs from the motherland. He warned these foreign actors from further interference, lest he be forced to stop their interference through force.
French President Fillon and British Prime Minister May, in a joint press conference from London, have voiced their sympathies with the protestors and have called on Beijing to tone down its repression of the protests and to withdraw the bill from consideration.
Andy Chow, the premier of the territory, has pleaded with the protestors to stand down, promising the suspension of the controversial extradition bill. However, even this measure is not enough for the protestors, who demand the complete withdrawal of the bill, a reworking of the electoral system, an independent inquiry committee on police conduct, and increased political independence. On the other hand, some in Beijing warn that if Kwangchow Wan’s leadership cannot restore order, then Beijing will be forced to restore order through more forceful means than those used so far.
Good morning and hello to everyone watching. As France prepares for yet another new year, about 6 and half million of us are preparing not only for a new year, but for a future apart from France. These 6.5 million Frenchmen and women are located 10,000 kilometers from Paris, in a small piece of southern China sill flying the tricolor, the overseas collectivity of Kwangchow Wan (Kouang-Tchéou-Wan).
The Territory of Kwangchow Wan (1910)
Somewhat overshadowed by its more populous cousin Hong Kong and its more scandalous cousin Macau, Guangzhouwan has been French for almost 99 years now. A rich synthesis between the Chinese and French cultures—as well as the many other cultures that today call this little territory home today—has taken shape over that long period. As a result, a very unique and exotic set of traditions, histories, and sensitivities has developed in this French exclave.
Like Hong Kong, its lease is 99 years long, and is slated to be returned to the PRC next year. As such, this unquestionably French territory has to grapple with the fact that in 6 months, it will no longer be a French city, but a Chinese one. Inevitably, this reality has led many to react in different ways.
From a deep sorrow for being wrenched away from France without even a single input (no referendum on retrocession was held, nor would be allowed by Peking), to an endless joy for the inevitable reattachment to the homeland, one can see the full range of emotions by walking down the grand Avenue de Gaulle, perusing through the historic market of the Place des Grues, or ambling along the shores of the Plage de Jade.
La Cathédrale Notre Dame de Fort Bayard, located on the Avenue de Gaulle
But to understand how these emotions have come to be in the first place, one must understand the rich history of the territory. A rich tapestry woven from threads of violence and of opportunity, of colonial tyranny and of equality. Of hardships and boom times, and of repression and hope.
Kwangchow Wan has seen a lot over the years, and we hope that this documentary can help shed a little more insight into the strange, exotic, and underappreciated French Pearl of the Orient. Beginning with the city’s establishment as a French colony in 1898, this documentary will take you through the many stages of Kwangchow Wan’s history. From its reorganization as an independent territory in 1910, to its first golden age between WW1 and WW2. Its gruesome occupation by Japanese forces during WW2, to its role as a city of spies and intrigues during the Chinese Civil War. And through its quarante glorieuses leading to the present day, this documentary will take you half a world away, to the mysterious, yet oddly familiar, city of Kwangchow Wan, a little piece of France located on the shores of Southern China.
Southern China, in Flames – Broadcast by ABC Night News, 2 April 2019
Kwangchow Wan, often called the Paris of the East, with its long and wide Parisian avenues and quaint bistros and cafes, has now been plunged into a sea of protests and violence along with its sister Hong Kong, following the announcement of the Extradition Bill.
This bill would make it possible for suspects to be extradited between the SARs and the mainland. While Beijing has said that the Extradition Bill will make the justice system more efficient, opponents of the law see it as an erosion of Hong Kong and Kwangchow Wan’s justice systems and as a flagrant violation of the 1 Country 2 Systems agreements. They see it as the final straw in a series of detested reforms that have slowly chipped away at the cities’ political and social independence since their handovers in 1997. In both cities, large crowds of protestors have to protest the bill and to demand its withdrawal. But while Hong Kong is seeing a very impressive series of protests, they pale in comparison to those being seen in Kwangchow Wan.
Perhaps stemming from the long honored French tradition of protests and strikes, Kwangchow Wan has been besieged by a level of violence and chaos that would make even the most firebrand Jacobin blush. Millions of Kwangchow Wan’s residents, many bedecked in the yellow vests emblematic of the modern French protest, have taken to the streets against the deeply unpopular extradition bill, which to them represents the growing influence that Beijing has in Kwangchow Wan’s affairs.
Barricades made of ripped up cobblestones and streetlights, “command centers” controlling the large mobs of protestors roaming the streets, a wide array of improvised weapons, and a veritable sea of signs and placards make Kwangchow Wan seem more like a scene frin the play Les Misérables rather than the idyllic tourist city the world has come to know. Perhaps Is Kwangchow Wan Burning? will become the 21st century’s Is Paris Burning?.
A barricade ablaze on the Avenue Lam Tong, with protestors flying the French flag, 30 March
The Poitou and Tong-Ping districts, the industrial heart of the region, have grinded to a halt as workers walked off the assembly lines in a series of wildcat strikes, while the University of Fort-Bayard, the region’s premier institute of higher learning, lies desolate and abandoned. Likewise, all primary and secondary schools have been closed, something not seen since the 2003 SARS outbreak. Containers have piled up in the port, stevedores either staying at home or in the street, with cargo traffic being diverted either to Kaohsiung, Haiphong, or even further afield to Manila.
Offices lay empty, with many workers refusing to show up to work and instead heading to the many protests throughout Lachapelle, the business district. Alongside them are the lawyers and judges of the region’s bar association, bedecked in their court robes and undertaking the bar’s biggest strike action in its history. One will find lining the streets a growing pile of garbage bags as the sanitation department has also gone on strike. In fact, outside of the firefighters and ambulance crews, a vast majority of city service workers have gone on strike. Even the region’s police department has reported an absence rate of about 35%, and that’s only the official number!
Many signs and statues glorifying the Communist regime have been torn down, with the most obvious example being the tearing down of an anti-French statue on Liberation Avenue (originally and more recently called the Avenue Foch). A swarm of red-white-and-blue tricolors and red-and-blue ROC flags accompany every mass of protestors throughout the territory. The buildings housing the Legislative and Executive Assemblies have been stormed, like a modern-day Bastille, with pro-democracy slogans being graffitied all over their interiors. Where the French tricolor once adorned the chambers before 1997, they once again adorn them today in 2019. The portraits of Xi Jingping and Andy Chow, the region’s premier, lie scattered and trampled on throughout the region.
With military forces being restricted from being stationed within the Kwangchow Wan SAR, the CCP has been forced to send in “ordinary” police forces (though many note that these police officers have been militarized to an extent that American police forces would recognize) to try and restore calm. Some have even accused the CCP of calling with favors with the organized mafia—the triads—to repress protestors, pointing to the mysterious group of men who assaulted an entire subway train at the Ping-Cheou station earlier this week.
Whatever the case, these reinforcements have been thrust into the fire, as pitched street battles between protestors and police have erupted all over the territory. Forceful water jets, tear gas canisters, and baton charges were just enough to stop massed formations of protestors marching towards police strong points on the island of Tan-Hai. On the Avenue Miterrand, an attempted police advance towards the old Resident-General building was thwarted by an overwhelming volume of airborne objects, mainly bricks and bottles. At the Executive Assembly, the police were only half successful with expelling protestors who had occupied the building, with a small, tenacious contingent still reportedly holding onto the central meeting hall. Throughout the region, any police officers arresting a protestor would have to contend with a swarm of protestors bearing down to free the detainee, who more often than not succeeded at this.
Police breaking up protestors marching towards police checkpoints using tear gas, 1 April
The police have closed off the northern border crossings except for government vehicles, effectively cutting off Kwangchow Wan from the north. They also attempted to do the same with the southern crossings from ROC-held territory but were prevented from doing so by massive barricades and masses of determined protestors. As such, crucial supplies for the protest movement stream in exclusively from the south.
These protests have set off a series of tense international reactions. Long-simmering tensions between Beijing and Kaohsiung have boiled over, with both sides accusing the other of stoking the flames of revolt in Kwangchow Wan. Both sides have been observed ramping up troop and armor concentrations along the Leichou DMZ and their respective borders with Kwangchow Wan. Airbases along the peninsula are seeing an increase in traffic, and the local naval ports all seem to be gearing up for an armed confrontation. Beijing has announced the resumption of missile tests within a series of 8 sea regions, surrounding Taiwan and Hainan, and have also announced the mobilization of the Guangzhou and Nanjing military districts. In response, Kaohsiung has announced the limited mobilization of their reservist forces and the general standing up of all of its professional forces.
France and Britain have announced the joint deployment of two of their latest ships to the South China Sea as a show of force, while Beijing has accused them of collaborating with Kaohsiung to undermine the its sovereignty. The French ambassador in particular has been summoned to Beijing and is expected to be declared persona non grata within the day. Communist incursions into Taiwanese and Hainanese airspace have almost tripled in the last week, and PLAAN ships are being observed being much more aggressive, with Philippine and Japan Coast Guard ships reporting a deluge of incursions into their EEZs. Accordingly, the US has raised its DEFCON alert system to level 3.
President Trump has called for calm on all sides, but Beijing has refused these calls, saying that any foreign interventions into an “internal, Chinese affair” would be seen as an act of aggression and would be dealt with accordingly. In a speech aired two days ago, Xi Jinping has vowed to defeat these “anti-Chinese” rebels, whose funds come from “foreign actors” and whose goal is the sundering of the two SARs from the motherland. He warned these foreign actors from further interference, lest he be forced to stop their interference through force.
French President Fillon and British Prime Minister May, in a joint press conference from London, have voiced their sympathies with the protestors and have called on Beijing to tone down its repression of the protests and to withdraw the bill from consideration.
Andy Chow, the premier of the territory, has pleaded with the protestors to stand down, promising the suspension of the controversial extradition bill. However, even this measure is not enough for the protestors, who demand the complete withdrawal of the bill, a reworking of the electoral system, an independent inquiry committee on police conduct, and increased political independence. On the other hand, some in Beijing warn that if Kwangchow Wan’s leadership cannot restore order, then Beijing will be forced to restore order through more forceful means than those used so far.
