Gareth Nicholson

Opinion | The Hong Kong we all love is a gateway between East and West, and protesters are fighting to keep it that way

Most protesters are not motivated by a hatred of China or mainlanders, but encroachments on ‘one country, two systems’. Beijing’s increasing authoritarianism is at odds with liberal Hongkongers who refuse to surrender their rights

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Protesters call for their five demands to be met during the anti-government rally in Hong Kong on December 8. Photo: Kyodo

Gareth Nicholson

Published: 6:30am, 12 Dec 2019Updated: 6:30am, 12 Dec 2019

Shuli Ren, in a Bloomberg article titled “Losing the Hong Kong that I love”, said she has “grown alarmed and disillusioned by the anti-Chinese rhetoric some locals have taken up as they battle for greater democratic freedoms. Many of us moved here precisely so we could enjoy similar liberties.”

But there is another side to this story. I, too, feel like I am losing the Hong Kong I love, as do other Western expatriates who moved here to observe the spectacular rise of China – a country that has dragged millions of people out of poverty.

I arrived in Hong Kong in 2003 to help cover the deadly epidemic of severe acute respiratory syndrome. But I soon became immersed in China’s economic story, fascinated by how a nation of a billion people was gradually opening up and becoming a new global growth driver – with Hong Kong as its window on the world.

Hong Kong lived up to its reputation as Asia’s world city – a unique blend of Eastern and Western culture. I could also sense that, while most Hongkongers were glad to be sheared of the colonial era, many retained an affinity for all things British – even the road signs remained the same.

Protesters wave the Union flag outside the British Consulate in Admiralty on November 29 in support of Simon Cheng, a British Consulate employee who was detained on the mainland. Photo: Jonathan Wong

Hong Kong’s greatest advantage, though – apart from its geographical location – was that society was governed by the rule of law with an independent judiciary.