My Take | Respect and understanding must triumph over hatred and violence
- Britain’s strength and modern identity lie in its diversity. The spirited opposition to the anti-immigrant riots was unexpected, but uplifting
Two years ago, I returned to England, after many years in Hong Kong. At the time, Britain was facing a crisis, amid soaring inflation and fears of a recession. A few weeks later, the queen died. Then, prime minister Liz Truss, during her lamentable 45-day tenure, plunged the markets into turmoil. Welcome back!
Last month’s general election, with its landslide win for the opposition Labour Party, promises change for the better.
But now, the country has been rocked by widespread anti-immigrant riots and is facing a different crisis.
Having lived through Hong Kong’s months of civil unrest in 2019, it is easy to see the parallels. But the circumstances are different and comparisons cannot be taken too far.
The riots, fuelled by far-right influencers on social media, have hit towns and cities over the last two weeks. The unpredictable nature of the disturbances has made them more difficult to combat. Missiles, from bricks to fireworks, have been hurled at the police. There has been much damage to property. Social media platforms, including Telegram, have been used to rally the rioters. One agitator even spoke of a revolution and said: “The time is now.”
The British government’s response will also be familiar to Hong Kong people. It promised offenders would be quickly brought to justice. That is being done. There have been more than 700 arrests and deterrent sentences imposed within days of offences being committed.
But the similarities between what is happening in Britain and the events of 2019 in Hong Kong are mostly due to the way in which civil unrest manifests itself in the social media age. The background is very different.
