Stephen Vines and Emily Wai-hing Lau look at how Hong Kong has become one of the key battles for democracy.

It is where the people have been challenging the authority of the People’s Republic of China. But is Xi’s China as unshakeable as it seems? What are China’s real interests in Hong Kong? Why are Beijing’s time-honoured means of control no longer working there? And where does this leave Hongkongers themselves?

Is Xi’s China as unshakeable as it seems? What are its real interests in Hong Kong? Why are Beijing’s time-honoured means of control no longer working there? And where does this leave Hongkongers themselves?

Stephen Vines, author of Defying the Dragon: Hong Kong and the World's Largest Dictatorship, has lived in Hong Kong for over three decades. He looks at the uprising from street level, how and why it unfolded, and its global repercussions. He is in discussion with Emily Wai-hing Lau, a former member of the Hong Kong Legislative Council and Chairperson of the Democratic Party.

Stephen Vines’ Defying the Dragon: Hong Kong and the World’s Largest Dictatorship is published by Hurst. Buy a copy from Waterstones, our bookselling partners.

This event is in association with Arts Council England and English PEN.

Please note: this is a pre-recorded event.

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Festival of Ideas: Stephen Vines and Emily Wai-hing Lau, Is the Battle for Democracy in Hong Kong Lost?