Queen Elizabeth II: Hong Kong’s grief sends message to Beijing

Hong Kongers have been lining up for hours this week to pay their respects to the Queen in what has been perhaps the biggest display of affection for the late monarch seen outside the UK.
But the collective outpouring of grief says as much about the present as it does about the past, and comes as Beijing has been tightening its grip.
The long queues, piles of flowers and cards in the city’s Admiralty district contrast with more muted reactions seen in other former British colonies.
Hong Kong returned to Chinese rule under “one country, two systems”, which promised that the city’s way of life – including civil liberties unavailable in the mainland – would be kept for at least 50 years.
But a crackdown on protests, Beijing’s imposition of its national security law and only allowing “patriots” to govern are seen by many as reneging on that promise.
“There is a mix of complex emotions,” said Dr Li Mei Ting, a cultural and religious studies lecturer at the Chinese University of Hong Kong.Outside the British consulate, mourners opened umbrellas to hide from the scorching sun while “God Save the Queen” played softly from a mobile phone.
Parents brought their children along, and one father even wrapped his seven-month-old daughter in a Union Jack flag.
“I don’t remember ever seeing Hong Kongers doing this to any leader who passed away,” Ted Hui, a former Hong Kong MP who now lives in Australia, told the BBC.