Opinion | In 2020, will Carrie Lam and the protesters see the cold, hard truth about what Hong Kong has become?

Hong Kong has said goodbye to 2019, but not protest anger. Things are unlikely to change in the city, until Hongkongers confront some facts about what the government and the protest movement have become

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A person dressed as anime character Doraemon attends an anti-government rally in Hong Kong on New Year’s Day. Photo: Reuters

Published: 9:00am, 6 Jan 2020Updated: 9:00am, 6 Jan 2020

Hong Kong ushered in 2020 without much fanfare because, well, the whole tradition of letting bygones be bygones and starting afresh? Out with the old, in with the new? Not a Hong Kong thing. We hold on to our grudges like grim death here in this city.

In this light, the chief executive’s New Year’s Eve video was pathetic and her message, hollow: “I believe we can once again overcome our current challenges and rebuild Hong Kong. Let’s start 2020 with a new resolution to restore order and harmony in society. So we can begin again, together.”

It was the kind of message that succeeded in bringing out the pyromaniacs and their petrol bombs. The fire of resentment is fierce in Hong Kong and it isn’t about to burn itself out, whatever the government wishes.

In two weeks’ time, expect to see headlines like “Hong Kong protesters plan major Lunar New Year rallies”. Count on the protesters to make similarly disruptive plans for every major holiday. Wait for Easter egg hunts, Buddhist celebrations and dragon boat races to, once again, “give way to defiant anti-government protests”. Count on some protesters to be defiant every month, on the 21st and then the 31st.

Just last week, the convenor of the Executive Council, Bernard Chan, lamented the absurdity of people still believing the conspiracy theories and fake news being circulated in Hong Kong: how could anyone have perished at Prince Edward MTR station on August 31, without anyone coming forward to report missing family members or friends? He wrote: “The idea that several people could have been killed in Hong Kong without anyone speaking out is crazy.”

Well, I’m glad Chan is catching up on what has been happening in this city, months after the fact. The rest of us who have been suffering in this city for months know what it’s like, though. We know people choose to believe whatever confirms their existing beliefs, as crazy as that might sound.

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