Who Am I: the Conflict of Hong Kongers' Identification

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Who Am I

 the Conflict of Hong Kongers' Identification

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Shaun Chan

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The sovereignty of Hong Kong has been turned over to the People's Republic of China for 21 years. However, a great deal of residents of Hong Kong have not identified themselves as the real Chinese at all.

In fact, this is a problem which had not yet solved for several decades. It's a grand, interactive historical conflict caused by Chinese and British regime. The long term splitting of the Hong Konger’s identity, such as the ideology struggle between patriotism and local consciousness, the widespread and continuous Redphobia towards Communism, and a variety of cultural barriers: conservatism, the sense of superiority towards Mainland, different notions about social system, etc. In the following sections, I will explain these questions in detail.

  Capitalism and Conservatism

In 1980s, China's Reform and Opening Up policy advocated by Deng Xiaoping makes China become a new strong regime of global capitalism system. I would like to regard it as a mixture of Stalinism and Neoliberalism. Deng made an effort to integrate China with Capitalism constitution. For this reason, they learned from the successful experience from Hong Kong and built up Shenzhen, a bigger-sized Hong Kong. In reality, Chinese Mainland has already entered the age of Capitalism and no longer adhere to socialism.

With the high-speed development of China, Deng Xiaoping put forward the project " One country, two systems". It claims that Hong Kong will maintain Capitalism, and Mainland maintains "socialism". Apparently, Mainland and Hong Kong have both capitalised to varying degrees. Nevertheless, irreconcilable differences between the two still exist.

China constantly claims to establish a "Socialist Market Economy." In practice, it is a kind of Capitalism controlled by both the bureaucracy and the market. Nowadays, we call it Crony Capitalism. Hong Kong has followed the British tradition of free trade. Government pay little attention to economic regulations. However, later Hong Kong British government carried on many welfare improvement policies so far which are known as "Pai Tong"(Reduction in household expenditure ) or public housing. On the contrary, the post-socialist China keeps cutting public welfare. This is the reason why capitalism is seen as " better" than socialism and the source of Hong Kong's sense of superiority.

As advertising slogans say, Hong Kong is a international city with cultural diversity. However, most of its citizens are "Chinese" from top to toe. Chinese traditional clan manner still works on this modern city. The indigenous in New Territory have a serious sense of male superiority, so does the elders in urban district. The middle class living in the concrete jungle have no power to fight against social inequality. They ignore it unless it's about them. In their life dogma, money comes first. Generally speaking, Hong Kong is a city steeped in conservatism.

At the same time, Hong Kong citizens have a serious sense of superiority over the "impoverished mainland". They may have forgotten their origins: most of them come from Mainland, especially Guangdong(Canton). From my observation, this ethos is on the wane among young people.

Thereupon, we can infer the cause splitting Hong Kongers' awareness, they don't believe in the Chinese regime and immersed in the memory of Britain. Logically, they are always afraid of radical Communism that has long been the symbol of China. Looking back to history, the most radical campaign in 1967 is launching by left wing workers whose beliefs are Communism. The left wing activists are also seen in many social movements today. Whatever, Hong Kong need great changes. Conservatism won't work.

The widening gap between the poor and rich

Although HK British government have done a lot of reformation, the essence of Capitalism system will never change. Riding the wave of neoliberalism, local capitalists and other enterprises from all over the world exploit the workers severely. The living standard of the broad masses of workers is gradually declining. Meanwhile, the middle class faces a serious crisis, and as a consequence majority of them would lose their job and get poorer. Small business owners threatened by big corporation may lose their property too. As Karl Marx said, society is increasingly divided into two opposing classes, bourgeois and proletarian.

The poverty of the masses is reflected in many points. A large number of youngsters and even middle-aged people cannot afford to purchase a house at all. It means that they can hardly get married and set up a family. It's due to inadequate Hong Kong's land supply which is forming the most densely packed urban spectacle. Hong Kong labours are used to the living in small houses; the poorest people even live in cage home. Ironically, fat cats enjoy numerous benefits in business，but the poor can't even share a single piece of the pie. This unreasonable distribution system is the origin of social inequality in Hong Kong. Reformation brought us something, but eventually rich men take it back. Society is going from bad to worse, which is the root cause of the social movement.

Deserve to be mentioned, in early British ruling time, foreign governors did few things. The whole society changed critically in 1960s, workers’ campaigns urged Britons to devote more energy to improving the well-being of society. The same is true of the movement's goals in recent years, but the political position of movement has changed completely.

Local consciousness growing

Anyone with a little bit of common knowledge knows that Hong Kong is an immigrant city. Literal indigenous is small in proportion. In other words, every local has an inseparable relation with Mainland. Although waves of leaving Hong Kong came and went, many people continuously bring supplies to poor relatives in mainland. During the incredible student movement in 1989, the citizens in Hong Kong generously donated money to help the student occupying Tian'anmen Square. People still retain their rustic feeling or patriotism.

Things are changing. The central government of China is to speed up the unification. They enforce the Mandarin course and civil education which were accused of "brain washing". In 2010s, the local consciousness started and became ever more widespreaded at an alarming rate. Occupying Central put this idea on the stage, the most radical of them seeking Hong Kong Independence. This is a thorough break with Chinese identity for the younger generation in Hong Kong.

Obviously, they are reactions to greater China doctrine. These youths are opposed to nationalism and patriotism based on unification and dictatorship. To be honest, local consciousness can deal with nothing but expend hormone. How could they succeed? To say the least, if succeed, what sort of regime do they set up? Will they become new Chauvinism? If they don't solve these problems, they can't achieve their goals.

As far as I am concerned, these young locals are limited by their horizon. They place little concern over the entire society. The independence of a small region means nothing. After independence, making your guarantee to people come true is the point. All political ideas are utopian if social justice cannot be maintained.

That being said, I can't deny how powerful the local awareness is. At present, voters are tired of the quarrelling between Pro Establishment Camp and Pan-democrats. Parties who show slogan for " Hong Kong first" are new choices in election. But, with the rise of the right wing across the globe, we are at risk of a fascist regime in Hong Kong if the local ethos is absorbed by far right.

Call for new identity

Through more than a hundred years of British colonial rule, British concept and system have deeply influenced the people of Hong Kong. Therefore, some people still want to return to British governance. The patriots are on the contrast. Frankly, they should ask themselves, do they like the country or money?

Yet this argument can be turned around to Special Administrative Region Government, they are literally running dogs of imperialism, which used to serve the British empire and now for new empire of Chinese capital totalitarianism. The power of capital is so formidable that anyone have to yield to it.

In Hong Kong and international markets, the monopoly groups headed by Li Ka-shing are like ducks in the water. National political forces have been escorting them. Meanwhile, state-owned capital act in collusion with them. With gratitude to Beijing, the local rich man try to help national capitalists to drain excess capacity. The administration who controls Hong Kong finance misusing public money on "White Elephant Construction" all the time. This is conducive to the export of state capital and gather resource from Hong Kong so as to assist in getting China through economic crisis. The policy of the last decade of British rule in Hong Kong was similar to this. British governor tried their best to construct new public facilities in order to recoup funds into the wallet of Downing Street.

Now, it's not hard to understand the cause of continual arguing between two parties in the parliament, Pro Establishment Camp and pan-democrats. They represent different large capital groups; some people even consider them as puppets of Beijing's manipulation. These senators who keep declaring to represent people didn't do people any good in the end. So multitude are growing more and more frustration with Parliament, they attempt at street protest. In recent years, campaigns reappear, the protester put local interests first. Out of question, it's not enough. Hong Konger is connected with labours in other places, we should fight for the interest of majority and the vulnerable groups.

 I always keep one faith, the Hong Konger identity is swifting. We belonged to the British empire once, and now we are under the autocratic governance of China’s imperialism like the wretched of the Earth. The new identity seems ready to come out at people's call. It will come in the storm of street fighting.

红棉锦于树

翻起浪潮

2018.04.23