THE irate people gathered in a Hong Kong hotel last night had several things in common. They were well heeled, British (mostly), had been in Hong Kong for years, and were united by a blazing grievance: that the international media had got the Hong Kong story wrong, and that the coming takeover by communist China did not mean the territory was going down the tubes.
The meeting was called to launch Advance Hong Kong, a voluntary body to project a better image of the territory's future as a Special Administrative Region of China after June 30th. It brought into the open a simmering row between those in Hong Kong who fear for the future under Chinese sovereignty and those who sac that spreading doom and gloom is bad for business.
It also focused on bitter divisions within the media which surfaced last week when Mr Jonathan Fenby, editor of the city's dominant English language newspaper, the South China Morning Post, accused the foreign press of being "malevolent and contemptuous of reality" in their reporting of Hong Kong.
Foreign correspondents crowded into the meeting to hear stories of how the their reporting had poisoned world opinion, though they were not allowed to speak. Mr Ted Thomas, the publicist and driving force behind Advance Hong Kong, said only those who agreed with him could voice an opinion, and at the end he asked the media to report the "unanimous view" that they had got the Hong Kong story wrong.
As evidence of the "universal view" that Hong Kong was doomed, Mr Thomas cited recent remarks made to him by taxi drivers in Berlin and London.
"There is no problem in Hong Kong and will be no problem in Hong Kong," said a burly businessman of 44 years residence, who feared bad publicity would hit tourism and retailers by frightening visitors away. "The blame lies with those who write a lot of claptrap, and people round the world are reading it and believing it."
Much anger was directed at British and American newspapers which dwelt on political rows, particularly over China's desire to scale back reforms introduced by Governor Chris Patten. Beijing's proposals have generated international criticism and due warnings of future repression from local Chinese Democrats led by the lawyer, Mr Martin Lee.
Not all at the meeting were completely happy defending China's intentions as it takes over Asia's most successful city. Mr Edward Oliver Plunkett, a Dublin born retired colonial police officer, said he had no fear for the future but if demonstrations were curtailed they would find themselves with "fetters round their ankles and a chain between our legs".
When Mr Thomas tried to interrupt, the octogenarian Mr Plunkett chided him saying: "You are a blighter - I haven't finished."
An Indian businessman alleged there was a "western conspiracy to prove Hong Kong cannot succeed except under their patronage" and a travel agent said bookings for July had dried up and that "the press has successfully killed the golden goose".
The hero of the 100 strong gathering was Mr Fenby, who said last week that "for Britons and Americans, the Hong Kong storyline is simple: the place is going down the tube after July 1st".
However, Mr Fenby has become the whipping boy of those in Hong Kong, including officials close to Mr Patten, who believe that in contrast to the vigorous reporting abroad, there is a massive Munich type appeasement of China going on in Hong Kong They allege that self censorship is now common and that coverage of China has been "soft" in the Post since it was acquired by Mr Robert Kwok, a Malaysian tycoon who sits on the board of the Beijing appointed hand over body. They cite the fact that a cartoonist who satirised Chinese leaders was dropped and Sir Percy Craddock, a former UK ambassador to China and bitter critic of Mr Patten's reforms, was taken on to the board.
Concern about the independence of the media increased when it was learned last week that the Post had acquired a consultant, Mr Feng Xiliang, the founder editor of China's official English language newspaper, the China Daily, with an office next to Mr Fenby's.
"He's doing various things for the paper, and one of those things has to do with editorial." the editor told a reporter, while denying that any vetting was going on. A source on the paper said the move followed a request to Beijing by
Post executives for some way of getting more access to communist officials, arguing that this would, be good for both the newspaper and China's leadership at a time when the world's press was in Hong Kong.