It is often said that while Hong Kong has been reunited with the mainland for 14 years, people's hearts are not yet unified. Our youngsters are still seen by some as not patriotic enough, so much so that the government has finally decided that there is a need to formally teach them in class how to better love our country and appreciate its achievements. A public consultation has been launched to find out what people make of the proposal to make national education a compulsory subject in primary and secondary schools as early as next year.
Elsewhere in the world, countries make efforts to shape a national identity and enhance people's sense of belonging. But political indoctrination delivered in a top-down, authoritarian manner is different from national education. That is why it is disturbing when a cultural chief of the central government's liaison office recently claimed such 'necessary brainwashing' is an international convention. A few years ago, there were already concerns when local television news began with the broadcast of a patriotic video clip and the national anthem. Our kids are also required to gather and watch the national flag-raising before classes begin every day. These fears of brainwashing are well founded because most people in Hong Kong grow up with values and ideologies different from those on the mainland. Although the population is predominantly ethnic Chinese, many residents never had a clear sense of belonging to any particular country under more than 140 years of British colonial rule.
It is therefore not surprising that our leaders are becoming frustrated at the disjunction between rapid economic integration and the slower pace of 'mental reunification'. During the 10th anniversary of Hong Kong's handover in 2007, President Hu Jintao raised the importance of national education for the younger generation. A few months later, Chief Executive Donald Tsang Yam-kuen announced in his policy address that national education should be enhanced. But it is far from the truth to say Hong Kong people are unpatriotic. A survey conducted by the University of Hong Kong in December showed that two in five people chose a mixed identity - either Hong Kong Chinese citizens or Chinese Hong Kong citizens. While many locals still make subtle distinctions between 'being a Hongkonger' and 'being Chinese', they soon unite to cheer and shed tears of joy when Chinese athletes clinch gold medals in the Olympic Games. They watched on with the same sense of satisfaction when the first Chinese astronaut soared into space a few years ago.
But patriotism is more than just rejoicing in progress. People feel shame when Chinese tourists overseas behave badly in public. They are angry when civil liberties and human rights on the mainland are violated. They feel bad only not because they are let down by the country. They feel bad because they love and care about the country; and want to see a better China.
The right approach to national education is to give as much freedom as possible in the classroom for teachers and students to fully explore the issues involved. It is important that preconceived views are not imposed on students. Instead of just glorifying the nation's many achievements, the government should encourage students to think critically about all facets of our country. Rather than teaching them to better appreciate Beijing's perspective, they should allow students to go beyond the 'official' line to make their own judgments. It takes more than a national anthem and textbooks with model answers to nurture patriotism.
