>> ASIAONE / NEWS / THE STRAITS TIMES / STORY

HK's democrats spoof Beijing's Olympics song
Fri, Jan 11, 2008 The Straits Times
HONG KONG - HONG KONG'S pro-democracy camp has spoofed the official Beijing Olympics one-year countdown song, We Are Ready, with lyrics that campaign for direct elections and have posted a video of the song on YouTube. The song, renamed 2012 We Are Ready, referring to the opposition's target date for direct elections for all political offices in Hong Kong, was uploaded on Wednesday. The video, which has recorded more than 600 hits, was not immediately blocked in China, although the mainland frequently censors politically sensitive content on foreign websites. The new lyrics were penned by Mr Lam Tze Kin, a central committee member of Hong Kong's Democratic Party. He did not immediately return a call seeking comment yesterday.

'If people rewrite my song to make fun of me, there isn't an issue of whether I mind or not because that's their freedom,' Mr Kam said in a telephone interview.

'From the point of view of creative talent, people only choose our work to change because it has influence. We are happy about that,' Mr Chan said.

In the song for the Aug 8-24 Games and recorded by Jackie Chan and separately by other stars, the Chinese-language lyrics say:

'We've opened the tracks for dreams to take off/Let the attention of the world fall on our embrace/We are ready.'

The lyrics in the spoofed version were changed to:

'We can ... move towards a new direction, embrace our belief and achieve our goals/2012, we hope direct elections start on this day.'

China ruled against the 2012 date last month, saying the territory can choose its leader through a direct election in 2017, and all its lawmakers after that, with 2020 the earliest date.

Former British colony Hong Kong returned to Chinese rule in 1997, but the two sides maintain separate political and economic systems.

Hong Kong's current leader is chosen by an 800-member committee loyal to Beijing and only half of the territory's 60 legislators are elected, with the rest chosen by interest groups.

The re-made music video shows footage of key milestones in Hong Kong's political history - such as meetings between former British prime minister Margaret Thatcher and Chinese leaders about the future of Hong Kong.

Also included is footage of the Chinese military's crackdown on pro-democracy protesters in Beijing's Tiananmen Square in 1989.

ASSOCIATED PRESS