For a country opposed to interfering in the internal affairs of others, it was a rare move when a senior official at the Chinese embassy in London wrote a letter to London's mayor expressing concern about controversial plans to redevelop an East Asian-themed shopping centre.
Consulate counsellor Jiang Yuansong wrote to Ken Livingstone on January 8, saying he was 'deeply concerned' and had 'great sympathy' for the tenants affected by the GBP200 million (HK$3.1 billion) redevelopment of Oriental City.
'I would like to express my deep concern about the plan which has a negative impact on so many Chinese families. I also have great sympathy for the tenants, whose businesses will be affected if the proposed development goes ahead without modification,' Mr Jiang said in the letter, which was released to the media by campaign leaders hoping to stop the redevelopment in its present form.
Tenants, who will have to relocate while the new centre is being built, are unhappy with the relocation assistance offered by the developer, Development Securities. Many business owners and shoppers also see the redevelopment as a ploy to cash in on a valuable plot of land.
'May I call your kind attention to the requests of the Chinese community to work out a win-win programme and take the effects on the tenants into consideration when you put your finishing touches to the plan,' Mr Jiang said.
It's unusual for Chinese government officials to get involved in local affairs in foreign countries. The consul-general wrote the letter after he met Liu Yip-fei, head of the Oriental City Tenants' Association, and Jabez Lam, a social rights activist helping the association campaign against the shopping centre's redevelopment.