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Tammy Tam
SCMP Columnist
City Beat
by Tammy Tam
City Beat
by Tammy Tam

Dangers emerge in Hong Kong over anti-mainland shopping protests

Hong Kong-mainland negotiations could become ever tougher amid rise of anti-China sentiment

The first day of the Year of the Goat in Hong Kong was highlighted by the spectacular annual New Year night parade, as tens of thousands of people - Hongkongers and mainlanders - flocked to Tsim Sha Tsui. To make this year even more special, the Tourism Board gave out 100,000 cake vouchers along the parade route.

The always critical press questioned whether the handouts would lead to possible chaos and clashes, especially between local and mainland tourists amid current tensions. But to everyone's relief, it all went well.

It was great that Hong Kong showed its hospitality to visitors. But that did not mean that the complaints and anger about the influx of mainlanders, especially over parallel trading, had disappeared. Behind the seemingly harmonious atmosphere, the city's tolerance level had reached a "critical point", in the words of some local academics.

As protests became more frequent and radical, and slogans such as "Chinese go back to China" and "Chinese use Chinese goods" became louder, the mainland media started to highlight the anti-China sentiment of the protests and even linked them to a Hong Kong independence campaign. A livelihood issue involving the daily nuisance to locals is being turned into a political hot potato, especially for the Hong Kong government.

Official figures show that more than 40 per cent of parallel traders are actually locals. Meanwhile, the Immigration Department has rejected over 25,000 such entries over the past two years or so.

However, while Hong Kong has been stepping up its campaign against parallel traders, Shenzhen party chief Wang Rong was telling reporters that he did not think the matter could be resolved "in a short while" as it concerned food safety.

This could mean that Wang saw it as natural for mainlanders to obtain safer food from Hong Kong even though it would lead to rampant parallel trading.

While some in Hong Kong suggested it was a "national shame" for mainlanders not to trust their own food, many mainlanders asked why it was wrong for them to come to Hong Kong for safer and cheaper daily items. "Don't forget that Hong Kong relies on the mainland for water and many other daily supplies" was a common refrain from internet users.

While parallel trading is not illegal, both governments can only restrict it through administrative means. The Hong Kong government has to consider the grievances of local people, while at the same time Shenzhen, as suggested by Wang, needs to take into consideration its people's quest for safe food until local food quality improves.

The unpleasant reality for Hong Kong is therefore this: the city will have to face the influx of mainland shoppers for more time, which means that parallel trading will not disappear. This will unavoidably trigger more protests. But it would be highly dangerous if these protests turned into anti-mainland activities with a political intent. That would make negotiations between the Hong Kong and mainland authorities ever more difficult.

This article appeared in the South China Morning Post print edition as: Dangers emerge in shopping protests
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