Phil C. W. ChanandPaul Serfaty

Opinion | For its 70th National Day, a strong China can afford to grant Hong Kong protesters’ wishes

Are flag-waving, anthem-singing patriots or underperforming officials what China needs? Beijing should consider fostering genuine patriotism in Hong Kong under ‘one country, two systems’, by responding to Hongkongers’ needs

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Phil C. W. ChanandPaul Serfaty

Published: 9:00am, 21 Sep 2019Updated: 12:26pm, 26 Sep 2019

Beijing had warned that its tolerance of protests in Hong Kong, now entering their 16th week, should not be taken as weakness. Thanks to Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor, Beijing’s hand has been revealed and Hongkongers – and the world – know Beijing cares, quite rightly, about its international reputation too much to intervene by force.

Instead, large contingents of mainland visitors have come in recent days to Hong Kong to sing the Chinese national anthem in shopping malls, with Chinese national flags occasionally used literally as weapons in brawls with protesters and residents. Some of these visitors came with post-dated receipts for medical treatment. In turn, Hongkongers have embraced every opportunity to sing Glory to Hong Kong .

Putting aside the question of whether something as solemn as the Chinese national anthem or flag should be used in this manner, singing duels are unlikely to resolve the crisis engulfing this city. An international financial hub is not a kindergarten playground.

Encouraging vocal and physical duels with compatriots is beneath a superpower. Furthermore, such unseemly displays of patriotism exacerbate tensions between Hong Kong and Beijing, in a way that adds credence to the narrative that Hong Kong is merely a colony of China, rather than part of one country sharing the fruits of its rejuvenation.

Pro-Beijing demonstrators display a large Chinese flag as they gather to sing and chant slogans in a shopping mall in the Tai Kok Tsui district on September 13. Photo: AFP

In a spirit of festivity ahead of China’s 70th National Day on October 1, we suggest some solutions that hopefully could help end Hong Kong’s worst catastrophe since the second world war. First, Lam must go. Her lingering at Government House is a gangrene that infects the body politic. Hong Kong society cannot begin to heal with her in office. The “unforgivable havoc” she has admitted to having wreaked in Hong Kong is sufficient cause for dismissal.