Hong Kong should help vulnerable mainland immigrants, not denigrate them
Linda To says society should do more to help mainland women who migrate to Hong Kong as they are already socially and financially vulnerable, without having to deal with local prejudice
A recent 12-episode TVB drama titled Shades of Life included a story about a new mainland immigrant who faces ill treatment and discrimination in Hong Kong. On arrival, she was accused of smuggling milk powder. Later in the story, her new neighbours scolded her and her daughter simply for watching TV.
The drama raised heated debate here. The day after it was broadcast, the Office of the Communications Authority received some 1,500 complaints about it. Nasty comments were also posted on social media, saying the show humiliated Hongkongers with its poor portrayal of them.
Many said the problem lay with the mainland Chinese, whom some have disparagingly described as "locusts". Their litany of grouses include that mainland visitors use Hong Kong's resources, and their shopping causes shortages of milk powder, cosmetics, medicines and more; their misbehaviour - such as allowing their children to urinate in public places - is offensive, and they pay no respect to our core values and the local culture, such as queuing to pay for services.
These hostile feelings are increasingly common.
In the past 10 years, some 500,000 people have come to reside in Hong Kong from mainland China via one-way permits. Each year, millions more come here as tourists. Many Hongkongers are finding it very hard to cope with this demographic change. Without a well-planned government strategy to ease the situation, conflict between Hongkongers and mainlanders is becoming more pronounced. It's no wonder that the TV show produced such an outpouring of frustration.
However, we need to learn to see from other perspectives.