【英语中国】香港报纸称英国在港间谍众多

Hong Kong might not be a British colony anymore, but James Bond's compatriots are still roaming its streets.

That's according to pro-Beijing newspapers Wen Wei Po and Ta Kung Pao, which this week accused the U.K. of harboring British intelligence agents installed (in Chinese) across the city's government, judiciary, chambers of commerce and the media, headquartered at the local British consulate-general.

'Not only did the activities of the British intelligence agency not stop after the handover, on the controversy, they increased,' Ta Kung Pao's report ran.

While the British government still produces a report to Parliament every six months on political developments in its former colony, it has otherwise taken a hands-off approach to the city, even going so far as to remove advertisements with British flags last year out of fear they might offend local sensibilities.

Last week, though, British Minister of State Hugo Swire wrote a commentary urging support for universal suffrage in Hong Kong, adding that the U.K. 'stands ready to support in any way we can.' That statement touched a nerve, with icy rejoinders swiftly coming down from both Hong Kong and Beijing assuring the U.K. that Hong Kong can handle its own affairs. It was also cited as an example in Wen Wei Po Tuesday as an instance of British 'interference.'

Wen Wei Po and Ta Kung Pao's claims come as debate over Hong Kong's democratization continues to intensify, with central authorities beginning to lay out an idea of what democracy will look like in 2017, the earliest that Beijing has said the special administrative region can begin electing its leader.

'The political discussion right now in Hong Kong is getting very heated, and the central government is naturally concerned,' said City University political scientist Linda Li, adding that the reports might be intended to serve as a warning to foreign governments like the U.S. and U.K. not to interfere with local politics.

The reports this week noted that the architect of the British consulate-general building in Hong Kong also designed the M16 headquarters in London. Ta Kung Pao's story--which was accompanied, naturally, by a photo of 'Skyfall' actor Daniel Craig--also said that multiple active and retired members of M16 are still working in Hong Kong.

A spokesman for the British consulate-general on Wednesday said it doesn't comment on intelligence matters.

'This kind of Cold War mentality sometimes re-emerges from time to time in different countries,' said Ms. Li of this week's reports. 'We should put things in context and not overreact.'

Associated Press《大公报》刊登的文章配了一张丹尼尔•克雷格的剧照，文章称英国军情六处的间谍遍布香港。
虽说香港已不再是英国殖民地，但詹姆斯·邦德(James Bond)的伙伴们仍活跃在这里的大街小巷。

这是亲北京的报纸《文汇报》和《大公报》的说法。这两份报纸本周指责英国在香港的政府、司法机关、商会及媒体安插情报人员，而英国情报机构在香港的总部就位于英国驻香港总领事馆之内。

《大公报》的报道说，回归之后，这种情况并未改变，相反随着大国政治的需要，间谍活动日趋增加。

虽然英国政府目前仍然每半年向议会提交一份有关香港政治发展情况的报告，但除此之外他们对香港采取了不干涉的方针，去年甚至还撤掉了有英国国旗的广告，原因是担心这些广告可能伤害当地人的情感。

然而上周，英国英国外交及联邦事务部国务大臣斯怀尔(Hugo Swire)撰写评论文章，要求支持香港普选，还说英国时刻准备着以任何可能的方式给予支持。这样的评论触到了痛处，香港和北京很快都做出了冷漠的反驳，向英国保证香港能够处理自身事务。《文汇报》周二还将此事作为英国干涉香港事务的例子。

《文汇报》和《大公报》的说法正值有关香港民主化的争论持续升温之际，中央当局开始提出2017年民主政治的构想，2017年是北京承诺香港特别行政区可以开始选举其领导人的最早年份。

香港城市大学(City University)政治学教授李芝兰(Linda Li)说，目前香港的政治讨论非常激烈，中央政府当然十分关注。她还说，这些报道可能是有意为之，目的是警告英美等外国政府不要干预香港政治。

本周这些报道强调，英国驻香港总领事馆大楼的设计者也是伦敦军情六处总部大楼的设计者。《大公报》的报道还说，仍有众多现役和退役的军情六处特工在香港行动。这篇报道很自然地配了一张《007大破天幕杀机》(Skyfall)的主演丹尼尔·克雷格(Daniel Craig)的剧照。

英国总领事馆发言人周三说，领馆方面对情报事务不予置评。

李芝兰说，这种冷战思维有时会在不同国家不时地重现，我们应当全面地看待，不要过度反应。