Letters | If Hong Kong could find consensus after 1967 riots, it can do the same again

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Students collect stones to be thrown at police near the Pillar of Shame, a sculpture at the University of Hong Kong, on November 12. Photo: AP

Published: 8:00am, 13 Nov 2019Updated: 8:00am, 13 Nov 2019

Half a century ago, in the wake of the 1967 riots, the Hong Kong administration faced challenges very similar to those facing the current government: a much divided public in terms of political allegiance. It would be less than 30 years before the handover and the territory was badly shaken not just by social unrest, but also a sudden devaluation of the pound sterling, which had wiped out a substantial portion of Hong Kong’s much needed reserves.

But the comparisons stop here. Back then, the apolitical administration maintained a consistent laissez faire economic policy and the divided Hong Kong public finally found a consensus on doing first-rate business in an apolitical way.

It is time to find such a consensus again, and I believe it is not too late to do so.

Not many people still remember John Leighton Stuart (1876-1962), a great educationist with a chequered career. He is less remembered as an American diplomat during the Chinese civil war than as president of the once prominent Yenching University – and a brave but lonely explorer of an apolitical academic haven for Chinese students.

History repeats itself. Now, this daunting task has fallen to the management of the eight universities in Hong Kong. How will they ensure that university students continue with their vigorous academic pursuits in the midst of the current social upheaval in the territory?

Khaw Wei Kang, Shenzhen