By Hugo Novales, FCC In-House Journalist

Han Shih Toh, a native Singaporean who’s been based in Hong Kong for the past few decades, has paved an uncommon career path. He has a PhD in theoretical physics from Oxford University, works as a full-time consultant for Headland Intelligence, and freelances as a  business and economics reporter for various news outlets.

If that’s not enough, he’s now written not just one, but two books.

Following up on the question posed in his previous book Is China An Empire? (2016) in which he described China as a “semi-empire” for its economic and military strength, Toh’s new book Is China a Menacing Empire? (2024) examines China’s relationship with the rest of the world to determine if it’s a benign or malevolent superpower.

In short, Toh finds that China’s actions cause unintended disruptions in other countries, making it a “risky” semi-empire — just like the United States.

At an FCC Club Lunch, Toh sat alongside William Zheng, a Senior Reporter for SCMP and a Correspondent Board Governor of the Club, for a detailed discussion about his latest book.

His reasoning for not describing China as a full-blown empire is due to its choice to not invade other countries that fall behind on repaying Chinese loans, which contrasts with how other superpowers have historically handled debt. He cited the British invasion and occupation of Egypt in 1882 and British-French takeover of the Suez Canal in 1956 as clear traits of “menacing empires” and how other superpowers, primarily the United States, perceived these events negatively.

“China doesn’t invade other countries, but they should make sure their economic influence doesn’t affect other countries so much that you see cartoons of Chinese octopuses in other countries’ newspapers,” Toh said, referencing political cartoons that depicted the UK as an octopus for its previous colonial actions.

Toh’s added description of China as a “risky” semi-empire is linked to the country’s expansive economy that has the potential to create unplanned challenges for its trading partners in property, investments, and more.

“China can unintentionally create problems for other countries… not so menacing, but a risk. China is a risky, semi-empire,” he said.

Toh further explained this concept during the audience Q&A session. The primary risk is the public opinion of China in countries that may perceive its actions as a threat to the local economy or political landscape. While China may be seeking a deal, it may also cause political tension, and even backlash leading to a change in government, in the countries it wishes to do trade with.

“China inadvertently can create social instability in other countries, even though it doesn’t plan to. And China has a dilemma because China’s foreign policy is not to interfere with other countries, but they do business with some corrupt dictators in other countries. That creates a lot of resentment among the local people, and these corrupt dictators lose power,” Toh said.

To watch the full discussion, please visit the FCC’s YouTube channel:

By Hugo Novales, FCC In-House Journalist

David Webb first arrived in Hong Kong in 1991 as a young investment banker, unaware that his new, two-year assignment would turn into a lifetime. He got married, had children, and founded Webb-site.com — a free online site that offers stock market news and data while advocating for better corporate and economic governance.

Five years ago, Webb was diagnosed with metastatic prostate cancer, a disease for which there is no cure. As he approached the half-decade mark of battling this type of cancer, Webb announced in February that he would shut down Webb-site.com and release the database for public download, making this his final contribution to Hong Kong.

But before his time comes, he bade farewell to the city that has become his home. 

On May 12, Webb spoke at his final Club Lunch at The Foreign Correspondents’ Club, Hong Kong, where he had given several public talks over the past few decades. Over 230 FCC members and their guests – along with a heavy media presence – packed into the Club to hear his final words that he shared alongside Philip Bowring, a longtime associate of Webb and veteran journalist who’s also a member of the Club’s Professional Committee.

Bowring’s first question to Webb: “Why did you do it?”

“I wanted to use the platform to advance corporate governance [and] reforms in Hong Kong,” Webb said, adding later that, “I’ve always been a bit of an activist. Probably if I stayed in the UK, I might have ended up in politics.”

Bowring then mentioned the local media’s initial description of David Webb as the “Long Hair of finance,” a reference to Hong Kong politician and social activist Leung Kwok-hung. Webb pointed out his choice of a much shorter hairstyle as a surface-level difference between him and Long Hair, but that he is “certainly not a Marxist.”

Directing their focus back on Hong Kong, Bowring then asked how Webb would rate the city’s performance over the past few decades.

Webb was critical. He noted that the “laissez-faire” economy that the city was once known for was gradually being replaced with a “central planning” system that mirrors Mainland China, except that there is less disclosure on this side of the border. Webb believes this is contrary to previous economic policies that allowed Hong Kong to thrive, particularly from the 1970s to the 1990s.

“What made Hong Kong special was differentiation… It was doing our own thing best and not trying to sign up for some economic planning. Instead what we’re doing is pumping hundreds of billions of Hong Kong Dollars into ‘white elephants’ near the border,” he said, referring to the HKSAR government’s infrastructure projects along the Hong Kong-Shenzhen border that aim to increase technology investments and collaboration between both cities.

During the audience Q&A session, Webb was asked if he had any parting thoughts for Hong Kong’s journalism community, as well as any advice he could give to anyone living under difficult circumstances. He reflected on his own past membership of the Hong Kong Journalists Association and expressed optimism for the future of the city and its media.

“I believe – in the long run – that China and Hong Kong will be less autocratic, more democratic, and will move away from the authoritarian system. There’s no way to maintain economic growth through central planning. It’s much better to let the free markets work to produce growth,” he said.

Webb added that these conditions will ultimately lead to a better media environment in Hong Kong, which he believes will open up having reached “peak authoritarianism.”

“Speaking truth to power and holding people to account and transparency is all good for the economy and the people,” he said.

To conclude their talk, Bowring thanked Webb for his contributions to Hong Kong and expressed his sincere gratitude for all the work he has done. Webb smiled, and finished his talk with hope and confidence — hope that he’ll live long enough to see his 60th birthday on August 29, and confidence that he lived a meaningful life.

“I will die confident that I did my best, and Hong Kong is my home,” Webb concluded.

As he walked off the stage, the audience gave David Webb a continuous standing ovation and rushed to take photos with him before he departed the FCC for the final time alongside his wife Karen and Philip Bowring.

This Club Lunch is available on the FCC’s podcast The Correspondent: https://open.spotify.com/episode/5RvTjoXDeFwgNBZFBx0JuK?si=0JqY38VxQri5WLYth14_fA

To watch the full discussion, please visit the FCC’s YouTube channel: