Peter G. de Krassel

Opinion | How Hong Kong got its coronavirus response right – by taking care of business

Although the handling of the national anthem and national security laws has been disappointing, Hong Kong has done an admirable job of coping with the economic crisis from the Covid-19 pandemic, as it struggles to contain a political crisis, too

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A restaurant enforces social distancing in Admiralty on March 29. While measures imposed to contain the spread of the coronavirus have hit Hong Kong businesses hard, the government has also offered them relief in the form of grants and subsidies. Photo: Nora Tam

Peter G. de Krassel

Published: 6:30am, 6 Jun 2020Updated: 10:41pm, 8 Jun 2020

The Hong Kong government does take care of business; first and foremost, the business of its billionaire tycoons. But it also deserves credit for what it has done lately for Hongkongers as a whole, notwithstanding the confidence crisis caused by ramrodding the national anthem bill through the Legislative Council and abdicating to Beijing the enactment of a national security law as required by Article 23 of the Basic Law.

Nevertheless, the news on Covid-19 from around the world has me thanking my lucky stars I am a Hongkonger. It helps me come to terms with my disappointment over how the anthem and security laws have been dealt with, which caused renewed street protests.

Hong Kong is dealing with both a political crisis and the Covid-19 pandemic. Schools have opened with most of Hong Kong’s 150,000 senior secondary students back in the classroom. While they observe the mandatory health rules – wearing a mask, undergoing temperature checks, sanitising their hands before entering class – they have also taken part in protests.

But this has not prevented the government from focusing on the economic crisis that the Covid-19 pandemic has caused, which is admirable.

The government is going to distribute HK$10,000 each (US$1,300) to all permanent residents starting in the summer to cover Covid-19-related income loss.