Over the years, the Communist Party of China has been slowly gnawing away at Hong Kong's basic human rights in subtle but concerning ways. I can think of some ways in which Canada might be able to prevent Hong Kong from falling to Communist rule after 2047. Firstly, Canada could make trade with any jurisdiction conditional on that jurisdiction respecting the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. This would mean that while Canada would sign comprehensive trade agreements with Hong Kong, it couldn't do so with the mainland. This would make the mainland dependent on Hong Kong for international trade by maintaining the freedom to sell to Hong Kong for Hong Kong to resell to Canada, and for Hong Kong to buy from Canada to resell to mainland China. By making this freedom conditional on Hong Kong maintaining its basic human rights, Canada could apply tremendous pressure on China to protect Hong Kong's human rights for its own economic interests.
Of course Canada is just one little country population-wise, but should other countries follow suit, then Hong Kong could embark on comprehensive trade deals with the mainland (including Shenzhen) would be gradually shut out from direct international trade except through Hong Kong as the middle man, and even then only as long as Hong Kong maintains its human rights.
Given how interdependent China and the west have become over the decades, we might need to wean ourselves off gradually, but we could gradually, over time, start to raise tariffs against the mainland while opening ever more trade to Hong Kong.
Of course Canada is just one little country population-wise, but should other countries follow suit, then Hong Kong could embark on comprehensive trade deals with the mainland (including Shenzhen) would be gradually shut out from direct international trade except through Hong Kong as the middle man, and even then only as long as Hong Kong maintains its human rights.
Given how interdependent China and the west have become over the decades, we might need to wean ourselves off gradually, but we could gradually, over time, start to raise tariffs against the mainland while opening ever more trade to Hong Kong.
