High risks, high stakes for the communists.
Hong Kong is their main conduit for hard currency. They would be in a very different financial situation without Hong Kong as it is today - recognized financially as a “sovereign”, with a freely exchangeable currency.
If Hong Kong loses its political status as Sovereign due to a Communist crackdown, I hope that President Trump accepts tens of thousands of their multi-millionaires as refugees (the Yacht People). That would be a rare opportunity for some World Class human capital (and mountains of actual capital).
My wife’s family is from Hong Kong they have very wealthy relatives still there. Some of her family is already planning on leaving.
What people in the know claim is happening is, the ever-patient CCP has been putting party faithful in place in HK for years and now when they are ready, they have people in control who will do what Bejing says.
There is no doubt that China will win. HK is theirs and withoout doubt the actual truth is that thousands of protesters have already been eliminated, just as the CCP always does. But most westerners fall for the PR they put out and are none the wiser.
They’re going to integrate HK and Shenzhen, which despite it’s growth and tech is nowhere near HK in terms of per capita income.
The scary thing is they are planning to eventually do the same thing with Taiwan.