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Thursday, 14 March, 2013, 4:55pm
SCMP’s Falklands-inspired poll sparks Hong Kong colonial debate
Thousands take to their keyboards to register 'yes' votes. A look behind the numbers
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A screenshot taken on Wednesday, 6pm Hong Kong time.
When Falkland Islanders voted 99.8 per cent to stay a British Overseas Territory, little did they know they would also kick up a fuss all the way around the world in Hong Kong.
A poll on SCMP.com asks readers to vote “yes” or “no” on the following:
Would Hongkongers vote to return to a British overseas territory, given the option?
So far, the answer has been resoundingly affirmative, but the pie chart doesn’t tell the whole story. As of 7pm Hong Kong time on Wednesday, 3,966 readers had voted "yes", while 373 voted "no". It also yielded more than 1,400 Facebook "likes" and 123 tweets.
The poll is unscientific, as many have already noted. SCMP.com posts a different poll question every day to gauge public sentiment on hot topics and encourage reader interaction. The surveys are just for fun: no numbers are published on how many people have voted. The system allows only one vote per IP address, and all polls are outside the metered paywall.
The idea for this particular question started on Twitter.
Falkland Islanders voted over two days on a referendum stating: “Do you wish the Falkland Islands to retain their current political status as an Overseas Territory of the United Kingdom?”
More than 90 per cent of 1,672 eligible voters turned out to vote “yes” - that’s in a population of 2,900, according to BBC News.
When the news broke, Cam MacMurchy of The Nanfang blog tweeted:
What would #HK vote be? MT @bbcbreaking: Falkland Islands residents vote overwhelmingly to remain a British Overseas Territory in referendum
— Cam MacMurchy (@zhongnanhai) March 12, 2013
With that question set in motion, SCMP.com decided to see what others might think and posted a similar question at 12.55pm.
The wording of the question was carefully chosen, which could be important to note, lest some might think that a “yes” submission represents one Hong Kong person’s vote. Therefore it would be incorrect to state, for example, that 80 per cent of Hongkongers want to return to British rule.
By 3pm, the poll was making the rounds on Twitter. SCMP posted it on its Facebook page at about 5.30pm.
Crikey! 70%! RT @george_chen online poll: Would HKers vote to return to British trtry? scmp.com/comment/polls twitter.com/george_chen/st…
— Paul Davies(@PaulJDavies) March 12, 2013
Since the poll was published, voters appear to strongly think that Hongkongers would be in favour of returning to British rule.
On Twitter and Facebook, commenters take into account current nostalgia in Hong Kong as a result of anti-Beijing sentiment, as evidenced by the appearance of the colonial flag at protests.
“Massive nostalgia of better times and a more certain government. I don't think I have ever seen a China flag sported anywhere in HK except on a flag pole,” reads one comment on Facebook.
@thinkmaloney @stanyee @suilee 74% of people who voted, a good portion of which are most likely expats. This poll isn't saying anything
— James Sibley (@James_Sib) March 13, 2013
@zhongnanhai Given the (false?) dichotomy of Chinese vs. British rule, yes, I believe most in HK would feel we’ll fare better under Britain.
— Frank Chung (@chungf) March 13, 2013
On a post about the poll, the Shanghaist blog brings up the tensions between Hong Kong and Beijing and the reasons behind them.
Others thought of a third option to the poll: independence.
@zhongnanhai @suilee @ericfish85 @joshchin I'd wager even more would favour straightforward Singapore-style independence.
— James Griffiths (@jgriffiths) March 13, 2013
About 3pm on Wednesday, Chinese-language web portal House News posted an article about the poll.
There, one person commented: "This outcome must surprise SAR Govt as well as Beijing."
Currently, the poll is the second most popular since the redesigned SCMP site launched on August 31. The most popular question has 8,819 submissions (so far):
Are mainland Chinese people still welcome in Hong Kong? (October 5)
After reading this article, people also read
tjkjloerlej Mar 14th 2013
5:36pm
5:36pm
We miss people knowing how to use the restrooms instead of defecating indiscriminately, we miss people's basic etiquette of talk but not shout, we miss having pure English tv channels but not having consigned a third of air time to Mandarin, we miss having a more peaceful Sunday where people spend more time with family than forming mobs to overturn the Chinese embassy, we miss the time when quality prostitution is contained to a few elite clubs but not quantified exponentially by influx of supply, we miss our children growing up with good English proficiency instead of mediocre bilingual competency, we miss the time when our neighborhood is filled with stores that sell down to earth items but not catered to high-end discerning clienteles, we miss the time when we travel offshore and declare proudly we are from Hong Kong without having an inferiority complex of being called Chinaman, and we miss...Errr.. I would need another million characters of space please!
Last but not least, We terribly missed Christ Patten, that lovely national British anthem that is played at the end of TV broadcast along with her majesty's portrait and that beautiful blue flag that emanates a sense of freedom, indentity and a sense of pride and belongingness.
Last but not least, We terribly missed Christ Patten, that lovely national British anthem that is played at the end of TV broadcast along with her majesty's portrait and that beautiful blue flag that emanates a sense of freedom, indentity and a sense of pride and belongingness.
eamercedes Mar 14th 2013
4:59pm
4:59pm
Hong Kong was established in 1841, well before there was such a country called China. The claimed that Hong Kong was historically a part of China was the biggest lie that 1.3 billion ignorant people kept chanting every day to brainwash the world.
Set Hong Kong free from the reign of China. Let the Hongkongers decide if they want independence and join the Commonwealth, become a British overseas territory, or be a British colony again.
Set Hong Kong free from the reign of China. Let the Hongkongers decide if they want independence and join the Commonwealth, become a British overseas territory, or be a British colony again.
caractacus Mar 13th 2013
9:37pm
9:37pm
It would indeed be interesting if the poll were repeated in a Chinese language newspaper that isn't under the thumb of Beijing apparatchiks. The result, however, may be taken as strong discontent among better educated readers at the poor quality and unaccountability of Governance, corruption and the hegemony of the tycoons that has crept in since 1997.
jackblack323 Mar 15th 2013
10:40am
10:40am
Many things have changed in Hong Kong since 1997, though not all are related to the shift from colony to SAR.
One crucial difference: the level of English fluency. After the handover, there was a push for "mother tongue teaching," which led to HK mothers crying openly because their children were denied education in English. Beijing's response? Reversal of policy.
Unfortunately, English fluency continues to decline, as young HKers cling to that cultural identifier: Cantonese (was that the "mother tongue" desired by Beijing?). This is important, as regardless of ideology, English is the international business language. For HKers to succeed professionally on an international stage, they must communicate in English. This British legacy has benefitted the USA, Australia, and even the Falklands.
Recently, Beijing decided that "national education" would be mandated in Hong Kong. This time, the mothers weren't weeping, but standing at schools wearing black armbands and keeping their children OUT of these classes.
Beijing's response? Reversal of policy.
One crucial difference: the level of English fluency. After the handover, there was a push for "mother tongue teaching," which led to HK mothers crying openly because their children were denied education in English. Beijing's response? Reversal of policy.
Unfortunately, English fluency continues to decline, as young HKers cling to that cultural identifier: Cantonese (was that the "mother tongue" desired by Beijing?). This is important, as regardless of ideology, English is the international business language. For HKers to succeed professionally on an international stage, they must communicate in English. This British legacy has benefitted the USA, Australia, and even the Falklands.
Recently, Beijing decided that "national education" would be mandated in Hong Kong. This time, the mothers weren't weeping, but standing at schools wearing black armbands and keeping their children OUT of these classes.
Beijing's response? Reversal of policy.
wrath of God ! Mar 13th 2013
10:44pm
10:44pm
if the same poll is carried out in Ming Pao or Shun Pao (Hong Kong Economic Journal), the result, I assume,will be more or less the same-----most being asked that question:if you have got an option, would you choose to remain a resident/citizen of the British Overseas Territority or be a SAR administration citizen ? While travelling overseas, when asked where we come from, most of us will answer,' Hong Kong !' just as what my wife and I answered at a brand name outlet near the Osaka International Airport,Japan during the last Chinese New Year !
asynsis Mar 13th 2013
8:01pm
8:01pm
Nice to be still popular after all these years; happy for Britain, sad for Beijing.
Seems a middle path might be the best way forward, as in "one country - two systems" operating
indefinitely, since Hong Kong is manifestly, because of its unique history, a different society with substantially different values from the mainland. This is our version of the "verdict of history".
Since that very phrase is used to justify indefinite mainland one-party rule without significant dissent being tolerated, then logically, it is perfectly consistent for it to be also invoked to indefinitely preserve and evolve the pluralistic, precedent-based system of the Basic Law, which is in any event, subject to formal treaty between Britain and China, just as Hong Kong being "ceded in perpetuity" also was subject to a formal treaty, albeit under iniquitous terms and much duress, hence the irony of this poll result. Would be interesting to see the results of a similar one in a HK Chinese newspaper for comparison.
Seems a middle path might be the best way forward, as in "one country - two systems" operating
indefinitely, since Hong Kong is manifestly, because of its unique history, a different society with substantially different values from the mainland. This is our version of the "verdict of history".
Since that very phrase is used to justify indefinite mainland one-party rule without significant dissent being tolerated, then logically, it is perfectly consistent for it to be also invoked to indefinitely preserve and evolve the pluralistic, precedent-based system of the Basic Law, which is in any event, subject to formal treaty between Britain and China, just as Hong Kong being "ceded in perpetuity" also was subject to a formal treaty, albeit under iniquitous terms and much duress, hence the irony of this poll result. Would be interesting to see the results of a similar one in a HK Chinese newspaper for comparison.
wrath of God ! Mar 19th 2013
8:40pm
8:40pm
it is a pity that so many Hongkongers who are surveyed here choose to become British Overseas Territories citizens instead of being a Hong Kong SAR administration resident (Chinese citizen).One just cannot understand why nearly 16 years after the Handover in 1997, there are so much dissatisfaction against the SAR administration and its leaders appointed by Beijing authorities.Now the radical loyalists here in this comment column have started to curse those not so patriotic Hong Kong Chinese as Brits dogs and urged them to go to Britain to lick the **** holes of their British parents ! How indecent and vomitting their remarks are !
ejmciii Mar 16th 2013
6:59pm
6:59pm
Perhaps the more thorough explanation is that HK people want to be allowed to be a bit different as they have a different culture in ways from our friends on the mainland. Around and after the handover, HK people seemed focused on re-discovering being Chinese as opposed to be being ruled by another nation half a world away. What seems to have happened in the last year or so is that we are not so excited about being ruled by another "nation" that is across the "border" half an hour away. I would be surprised if the majority want to be a colony of Britain again but perhaps we want a little bit more acknowledgement that we are different from the Mainland. All one needs to do is travel a bit in China to note how much more multicultural, multilingual and multiethnic HK is from most of China. We have maintained local attributes of the mixed cultures, rather than just becoming another indistinguishable part of the mainland. Unfortunately, our unique culture gets little more than lip service from across the "border" and we are pushed by the them and our "own government" to obey the Big 6. Perhaps what we'd like is a system where our mixed interests and culture, not just the right to make money, buy BMWs and have 5 flats, are respected by the powers that be.
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