June 4 shows why Hong Kong is not just another city in China
As time goes by, it could be harder for youngsters to share same feelings as previous generations about Tiananmen, but maintaining city’s special status is a shared responsibility for all
On a business trip to Singapore and Malaysia over the last few days, I found taxi drivers often asking me if I was from China, and which part of the country I came from.
“Yes, I’m from Hong Kong,” was my regular answer.
Then the conversation would continue with the drivers saying something along the lines of, “Ah, Hong Kong, a fascinating city. But now we see more mainland Chinese visitors coming, big spenders. Wonder where their money comes from.”
It’s probably no longer a new phenomenon that mainland tourists are seen as “crazy shoppers” – not only in Hong Kong, where they have become part and parcel of the city’s landscape, but also overseas. They are literally everywhere.
And the taxi drivers talking about “rich” Chinese visitors are referring to mainlanders rather than Hongkongers in general. But Hong Kong’s uniqueness is not forgotten yet.
