In clash of wills over Hong Kong, time to recall words of maestro Mao
C. P. Ho says both leaders and the led should heed call to work together
A few days after the Occupy Central protests began and captured the attention of the world, I called on Hong Kong people to know, understand and respect their own history. That history embraces not only Hong Kong but also the rest of China.
For lest it be forgotten, history is not only a record of the past; it shapes the future.
Now, in the aftermath of the Occupy event, there has been much soul-searching about the role of Hong Kong people in the affairs of Hong Kong itself and in matters of China overall.
And there is an impasse between people who dream practical and possible dreams, and those who dream beautiful but unrealistic dreams.
At stake is the peaceful and effective governance of Hong Kong and its eventual and inevitable integration into the People's Republic of China. There has been much talk about the here and now, and also of the where and how.
For me, the best advice comes from Mao Zedong : learn to play the piano well. It makes for good common sense, and we would do well to think deeply about his words and all they imply.
"In playing the piano," he said, "all 10 fingers are in motion; it won't do to move some fingers only and not others. But if all 10 fingers press down at once, there is no melody. To produce good music, the 10 fingers should move rhythmically and in coordination …
"Wherever there is a problem, we must put our finger on it, and this is a method we must master. Some play the piano well and some badly, and there is a great difference in the melodies they produce."
Mao's words were directed at his lieutenants, spoken at the height of the Communists' struggle to oust the Nationalists for control over China, a battle they won in 1949 with the establishment of the People's Republic.
The years have rolled by but Mao's good sense should not be lost in Hong Kong or Beijing. There has been much bad piano playing between - and paradoxically among - the government and the people in both places, particularly in recent months.
It was not always so. Hong Kong was returned to Chinese sovereignty on July 1, 1997, but not before Deng Xiaoping devised his unique "one country, two systems" principle that would guide the governance of the former British colony.
Against some grave premonitions, the principle worked and is still working in tandem with the Basic Law.
The spanner in the works appears to have more to do with an amalgamation of economic and social factors rather than political issues. They are about people's hopes and aspirations; not grand designs but simple things in life like not having to worry too much about getting a good job and a livelihood, or housing and transport, or getting married and settling down to have a family.
As things stand, schooling, for example, is a big headache for both the rich and poor in Hong Kong. Parents are forever scurrying around for connections and tips on how to get their children into the "right" school.
Such problems persist and grow, leading to the seeming impasse on electoral reform, over which a war of words has erupted.
Mao would have a pointed response to all this.
"You can't solve a problem?" he once asked. "Well, get down and investigate the present facts and past history. When you have investigated the problem thoroughly, you will know how to solve it.
"Conclusions invariably come after investigation, and not before. Only a blockhead cudgels his brains on his own, or together with a group, to 'find a solution' or 'evolve an idea' without making any investigation. It must be stressed that this cannot possibly lead to any effective solution or any good idea."
