Letters | Does Hong Kong patriotism mean loving China and the party or just saying you do?

On the “Back Page” of the Sunday Morning Post of February 7, lawmaker Regina Ip Law Suk-yee stressed the importance of patriotism as the defining characteristic for Hong Kong’s chief executive.

It is obviously essential that our chief executive is trusted by the central government, although patriotism alone does not ensure capability. It appears that, as a result of the chaotic events during 2019, there is now the prerequisite of patriotism at all levels of officialdom.

That includes all members of the Election Committee for the chief executive, the Executive Council, the Legislative Council and the district councils (“Hong Kong district councillors face disqualification if probes find them unpatriotic”, February 10). This will be extended to apply to all civil servants, and possibly even to school headmasters and senior teachers.

It seems the revamping of the central government’s liaison office personnel in Hong Kong, with 100 new staff added to the headcount, will enhance the ability of mainland officials to monitor this essential patriotism.

It is impressive how thoroughly liaison office chief Luo Huining has accomplished his mission to stabilise Hong Kong’s political situation, which has exposed the impotence of Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor’s administration and her Executive Council advisers.

However, the difficulty for many ordinary Hongkongers is to know if patriotism to be read as a love of the Chinese Communist Party in addition to love of the country; or not a genuine love of the Chinese system but requiring the unquestioning parroting of correct thinking.