Opinion | Protests expose the gulf between Hong Kong and mainland China. But could they also be a bridge to better understanding?
- Anecdotal accounts tell us that many mainlanders cannot appreciate the reasons for Hongkongers’ anger, much less some of the ways it is expressed, while Hongkongers largely do not share the sense of pride at the nation’s achievements
- The protests have, however, aroused curiosity among mainlanders, and that could spur attempts to better understand
When I travel around the world, people like to guess when I am from. “Hong Kong?” “The mainland,” I like to correct them, and add: “We are all Chinese.”
Ethnically, we are all Chinese. But mainlanders’ reaction to the Hong Kong protests tells me that there’s a deep divide between the two – a geopolitical one.
There’s no poll on the carefully censored topic on the mainland. From measuring the pulse on the internet and talking to friends, I sense that there’s indifference, confusion, anger, fascination, and even admiration. Overall, I would say that most are not sympathetic to the protests.
A lot of ordinary Chinese simply don’t understand why millions of Hongkongers would take to the street over the extradition law. “They already enjoy a lot more freedom and rights than us. What’s the fuss?” asked my brother-in-law, a small-business owner from Nanjing.