Defying the Dragon: Hong Kong and the World's Largest Dictatorship [Hardcover]

How a popular protest movement has become an existential crisis, for the people of Hong Kong, the Chinese regime and the world order.Defying the Dragontells a remarkable story of audacity: of how the people of Hong Kong challenged the PRC's authority, just as its president reached the height of his powers. 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 has lived in Hong Kong for over three decades. His book shrewdly unpacks the Hong Kong-China relationship and its wider significance--right up to the astonishing convergence of political turmoil and international crisis with Covid-19 and the 2020-21 crackdown.Vividly describing the uprising from street level, Vines explains how and why it unfolded, and its global repercussions. Now, the international community is reassessing relations with Beijing, just as Hong Kong's rebellion and China's handling of the pandemic have exposed the regime's weakness. In a crisis that has become existential all round, what lies ahead for Hong Kong, China and the world?ForewordChapter One - HubrisChapter Two - Be WaterChapter Three - Revolution of Our TimesChapter Four - From Resist to RevengeChapter Five - An Unhappy Family: Mainland China and Hong KongChapter Six - A Dysfunctional Political SystemChapter Seven - The Chinese Communist Party discovers Marxism in Hong KongChapter Eight - The Birth of a Hong Kong IdentityChapter Nine - The Whole World is WatchingChapter Ten - Follow the MoneyChapter Eleven - The Virus and the Protests: A Dangerous MeldChapter Twelve - The End of Hong Kong?Appendix 1 - Timeline of the Protest MovementAppendix 2 - Who's Who in Hong KongStephen Vines is a Hong Kong-based journalist who hosts current affairs TV show The Pulse. The founding editor of theEastern Express, and author ofHong Kong: China's New ColonyamlCÁ