Hong Kong, one year in

It has been one year since my girlfriend Marlot and I moved to Hong Kong to start our new life as (semi-)expats. Thinking back on the past year, many wonderful experiences come to mind. Life in Hong Kong is, for one thing, very diverse. With one of the highest numbers of millionaires (about one in seven), some 20% of the city’s population lives below the poverty line. Ranked the world’s most liberal economy, Hong Kong has a certain winner-takes-all philosophy: only the very rich can afford the ridiculously expensive real estate, while many working-class families are forced to cramp in tiny apartments. Its surroundings are very mixed, too. From futuristic skyscrapers to deserted islands with clear-water packed with thick jungle − this place really has it all.

Yet most striking to me has been the contrast between the Hong Kong Chinese and those from the Mainland. The former primarily identify themselves as being from Hong Kong instead of China and many, often strongly, distinguish themselves from “Mainlanders”. This is of course most clearly expressed in language. Having a basic command of Mandarin Chinese, I have to admit I find it hard to understand a single word of Cantonese. It uses traditional characters instead of simplified ones, and when the same character is in fact used it is often pronounced completely different. And if you thought four tones were difficult, try using nine. Where Mandarin Chinese is the official language − the primary dialect would be more accurate − of China, Cantonese is considered more flexible and includes a lot of slang. In all, Cantonese is generally not considered one of the many hundreds of Chinese dialects; it is in fact an entirely different language.

In today’s conflict, the Hong Kong Chinese struggle to preserve their territory’s unique status and associated freedoms, while the authorities in Beijing stress the fact that the territory belongs to China.

Another important difference between Hong Kong and the rest of China is political. Quite well-known nowadays due to the relentless protests in the city, Hong Kong enjoys an exclusive status within the People’s Republic of China. As a so-called Special Administrative Region (SAR), the governance of the territory of Hong Kong falls somewhere in between that of a province and a nation-state. Coined the ‘One Country, Two Systems’ by former Chinese leader and reformer Deng Xiaoping, it grants the territory separate executive, legislative and judicial powers. This form of autonomy is limited, however, since Hong Kong does not have its own foreign policy and has to rely on the Mainland’s army for its defence. Although Hong Kong’s governance structure is very different from that of the rest of China (Two Systems), the SAR is not a sovereign state (One Country). In today’s conflict, the Hong Kong Chinese struggle to preserve their territory’s unique status and associated freedoms, while the authorities in Beijing stress the fact that the territory belongs to China. Confusingly, both sides claim the other’s actions risk destroying the arrangement that has been agreed with the British after they took off in 1997. This complex system will remain in place − at least in some form − until 2047.

It is becoming clear that the turmoil that has been going on for more than half a year now, is having a significant impact on my personal view of China. When first living in Xinjiang as a volunteer back in 2009 and 2010, I was intrigued by how politics was intertwined with people’s lives. This is of course the case in every country, but the degree in which the Communist Party of China (CPC) affected everyday life was remarkable − in a positive as well as negative way. Despite the obvious tension between the Han-Chinese and Uyghurs, I could detect a sense of optimism amongst most people. This was particularly prevalent when studying in Shanghai a few years later and travelling around the country during semester breaks. The nation was steadily moving forward and the CPC seemed to allow more moderate voices to be heard, albeit gradually.

The CPC’s propaganda machine is running faster than ever, portraying those who disagree with the Party’s line as separatists, traitors or ‘Black Hands’.

Since then, things have changed dramatically. With the appointment of Xi Jinping as president in 2013, the Party’s tone has hardened. Its rule is more absolute than ever, which is reflected on different fronts. With regard to the situation in Hong Kong there is simply no room for dialogue, let alone concessions. The CPC’s propaganda machine is running faster than ever, portraying those who disagree with the Party’s line as separatists, traitors or ‘Black Hands’. When expressing these observations on one occasion, I was called short-sighted for only focusing on the things that were, in my eyes, questionable about the Party’s views. Has the CPC not done a magnificent job in promoting economic growth and maintaining stability? I was a hypocrite, too, because Western countries had done terrible things in China during colonial times. This is of course true, but that does not relieve China of any potential wrongdoing. Although I may not mention it directly in a conversation or write about it here, I can be just as critical of Western history or some of its current more dubious policies.

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Moving into the new year, Hong Kong will undoubtably remain a very pleasant place to live. As a 鬼佬 (gwái lóu; “Westerner” in Cantonese), this place is absolutely fascinating given its prominent role in global politics. And if things do take a turn for the worse, we will always have a getaway. At the same time, my appreciation of China, and especially its political trajectory, has taken a serious hit. For the first time since my interaction with The Middle Kingdom, I could use some optimism.