Letters | Linguistic arrogance on display on Cathay Pacific flight must go

Readers discuss linguistic tensions between Hong Kong and the mainland, and staff morale at the city’s flag carrier

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A Cathay Pacific Airways staff member wheels luggage towards an entrance to the company’s headquarters at Chek Lap Kok on May 25. Photo: Sam Tsang

Published: 2:30pm, 30 May 2023

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The recent complaints of discrimination against travellers from the mainland by Cathay Pacific flight attendants sparked heated debate on social media platforms in both Hong Kong and mainland China, underscoring linguistic tensions between people from both sides of the border.

It is the second case this year involving mainlanders extensively criticising Hong Kong’s service industry over language issues. A few months ago, shortly after the border reopened, an online influencer from the mainland posted a video titled “Speaking Mandarin in Hong Kong for a day”, angering many mainlanders over the treatment of Mandarin speakers in Hong Kong.

While Mandarin has gradually permeated Hong Kong society since the handover, Cantonese remains the predominant language in daily life. English is the main working language in universities and professions like finance and law. This linguistic reality has symbolised Hong Kong’s status as a special administrative region of China.

However, many mainlanders, especially younger and patriotic ones, view Cantonese as a regional dialect used for communication within a particular area while they believe Mandarin should act as the only bridge between different communities within China.

These two linguistic perceptions often clash, as they did in the Cathay Pacific cabin. Mainlanders felt staff on a Hong Kong-based airline flying from Chengdu to Hong Kong ought to be able to speak to passengers in Mandarin, yet the cabin crew seemed to consider the route no different from flying overseas.