2016-01-12   Hello from Africa

Maybe today's column should be called "Australian in Africa" since I am presently in Kenya and Uganda, visiting families of African inmates in Hong Kong prisons.

Most people in this part of the world are unaware that Hong Kong is not an ordinary part of China, that Hong Kong has its own laws, its own currency, with basic human freedoms not found on the Mainland.

I had to smile a few days ago when a lady who knew I was from Hong Kong said to me "but you don't look Chinese"! I also smiled when a local English teacher told me vehicles are free here ("Africa" = "A free car").

Africa today reminds me of China thirty years ago: most people struggling to make a living, trying to lift themselves out of poverty. May the example of China's successful economic development be an inspiration to the nations of Africa.