Opinion | As protests drag on, Hong Kong people keep calm and carry on
- Hongkongers have come to accept that street clashes and tear gas are the new normal. Many believe the city will bounce back, as it has after the 1967 riots, the 1980s industrial crisis, the pre-1997 panic and Sars epidemic
Five months ago, people panicked when waves of protests washed from one neighbourhood to another across Hong Kong, and especially when the MTR and other public transport services stopped abruptly.
Today, clashes between protesters and police are a given. People check protest schedules, MTR and bus schedules, and plan their day accordingly. Protests are the new normal.
When protests began in Mong Kok a few months before, all the shops on Shanghai Street and nearby side streets were closed, the street deserted, and public transport impossible. Now, all the stores on Shanghai Street were open. People calmly came off Nathan Road and entered side-street restaurants, or bought from the food stalls, or headed to Yau Ma Tei MTR station. People around me were looking at their mobile phones, probably looking for public transport options. It was as if nothing was happening a couple of blocks away.
That day, despite having to work around protesters and riot police, I made my lunch appointment in Central on time. People around me were either looking at their phones or stopping to take pictures of the demonstration.