Chandran Nair

Opinion | Ten steps to end Hong Kong’s crisis and avert the next one

Hong Kong needs a way out of its firestorm of protests and violence – and it starts with the government admitting that, by any reasonable definition, it has failed. Another suggestion? Allow Beijing to help

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Why you can trust SCMP

Chandran Nair

Published: 8:15am, 3 Aug 2019Updated: 8:23am, 3 Aug 2019

The protests in Hong Kong have caught us all with our pants down. The sight of tear gas, riot police and violence on the streets where many of us live, work and shop should shock much of Hong Kong’s society out of its complacency.

Many in the civil service, political parties and business elite had assumed that they could continue with what worked well in the past. It is clear that these do not work now, and perhaps never truly worked well.

It is time for the government, civil service, and influential groups to be a lot more radical in thinking about how to govern Hong Kong rather than simply administer.

What follows are 10 firm actions to end Hong Kong’s immediate crisis, reveal what went wrong and prevent it from happening again, and to root out the causes of people’s frustration.

Step 1: Admit failure

By any reasonable definition, the Hong Kong government has failed, and that does not mean its detractors have succeeded. The reality is that there are no winners. All is not lost, but there is much to repair. The government has to admit this failure and make specific pledges to change. This would be a demonstration of true leadership and is a necessary step on the long path towards rebuilding trust.