I asked Wilson what the people of Hong Kong wanted. He gave a simple answer: “To be left alone.” It was a less ambitious definition of freedom: to be left alone. One country, two systems. “You’re pretty much left to do what you want, say what you want, educate your people in the way you want. You can criticize China in the same way as you can criticize the queen or the prime minister if you’re in Scotland.” Summing it up, he said, “Your separate system and separate identity are respected.” This feeling, he noted, was overwhelming among the youth.
