Advertisement
Opinion | Hong Kong’s Gen X has a duty to help the city and its youth forge a better future
- The generation that spans Hong Kong’s colonial past and post-2047 future has a duty to help the city’s angry, disenfranchised youth out of the crisis so they can see a way to a better future. Hong Kong’s fate depends on it
Reading Time:3 minutes
Why you can trust SCMP
I was born in Queen Mary Hospital in Pok Fu Lam 42 years ago, a third-generation member of an immigrant family from Singapore. I was raised and educated in Hong Kong. This is where I built my career, where my children were born and are raised. Hong Kong is my home and where my heart is.
Advertisement
Hongkongers of my generation have experienced phenomenal changes: we grew up under colonial rule, experienced the handover, and witnessed China’s rise. The entire 50-year span of “one country, two systems” will occur in our lifetime. We acknowledge that our generation bears the heaviest impact compared to those before us, and is also responsible for Hong Kong’s future.
Over the past year, a deep political crisis has engulfed and divided our city. Violence has become routine. The youth feel alienated, their mood the most negative in decades. They say: “If we burn, you burn with us.” This new generation grew up knowing no other system and face a seismic shift in circumstances for the first time.
Fear of change brought protest and violence to our streets. Yet, I ask our young people to step back, take a breath and realistically assess the situation.
National security legislation promises to help restore stability so daily life, education, investment and commerce can resume. It will make Hong Kong safe again for the public, tourists, investors and institutions. Hong Kong will be able to resume its important role in the Greater Bay Area, and its place as Asia’s World City.
02:23
Beijing remains ‘very firm’ on national security law for Hong Kong, says city’s leader Carrie Lam
Beijing remains ‘very firm’ on national security law for Hong Kong, says city’s leader Carrie Lam
All major countries and cities are governed by national security laws. This has not prevented them from pursuing justice and upholding fairness in the community and the marketplace. Hong Kong can do the same. I have confidence that the law will be implemented carefully and thoughtfully, and carry the city beyond 2047 with stability and predictability.
Advertisement