Opinion | If Hong Kong is to find a peaceful path to 2047, reform and reconciliation must begin now

Recent events in Hong Kong have made us all reflect on what gave rise to the mass protests and what to do next. This is not a blame game, but we must understand the past to appreciate the present, and move forward.

I may be wrong, but at the heart of the protests is a defence of Hong Kong’s freedoms under “one country, two systems”, adopted as a 50-year transition period to enable Hong Kong to return to Chinese sovereignty.

There was no need after July 1997. Unplugged from its mainframe, and under “one country, two systems”, the Hong Kong server was plugged to itself — without fully appreciating the burdens of self-autonomy. Successive chief executives protected Hongkongers’ right to protest but failed to resolve the fundamental economic right to home ownership, and the social inequalities.

While Hongkongers spent more time on politics, across the border, Shenzhen became a larger economy, more international and prosperous, and more open to ideas and innovation. Shenzhen out-Hong-Konged Hong Kong in embracing entrepreneurship.