Right. (My wife is from China and her Dad is a CTO in a mid-sized company there, so I get to ask from time to time.)

I agree about threat. If a company or org represents a threat they will smack it HARD. e.g. Falun Gong or Jack Ma. But I don't think it is a change. Jack Ma said on TV that the old ways of gov control of industry needed to change. (seriously WTF is he thinking?!?)

So I am not sure this is a change really.

Still I would say that the treatment of Hong Kong really has been changing over the years. They are really clamping down... maybe the honeymoon is over after the take over, or maybe it is a shift.

But anyway, it seems to me the Chinese DNA is let freedom reign... unless it threatens the party. then LIGHTS OUT! (bigger issue for China is the level of corruption that still exists.... this might be the only thing that saves American bacon from getting run over by the Chinese freight train in the 21st century!)