Opinion | How contagion from the China coronavirus holds a lesson for colour-coded Hong Kong

Yellow or blue businesses have been all the rage in Hong Kong, as if drawing a circle around ourselves will keep us safe from those we disagree with. But here’s a newsflash: the Wuhan coronavirus doesn’t care which side of the political divide you’re on

Reading Time:3 minutes

People wearing masks pass through exit gates in the arrival hall of West Kowloon railway station on January 22. Photo: Bloomberg

Published: 6:30am, 27 Jan 2020Updated: 6:40am, 27 Jan 2020

On the third day of the Lunar New Year, it is traditionally inadvisable to head out of the house, brave traffic (foot or otherwise), and mingle. It’s the day of the “red mouth”, and belief has it that people are more likely to get into arguments, invite misfortune and ruin the rest of the year.

And so in this city, where physical assault is becoming the new normal, it’s probably best for everyone to stay indoors today. Danger lurks without, and we should be vigilant. Of course, there is another reason to be cautious. The emergence of the coronavirus from Wuhan couldn’t have come at a worse time.

Just a few weeks ago, it was possible to revel in the idea that the taboo against going out on the third day of the new year would provide a reprieve from the weekly violence on the streets of Hong Kong. Surely, the need to assert one’s right to offend would come a poor second to everyone’s obsession with good luck.

Now, the danger of contagion from the new coronavirus – which is known as 2019-nCoV and has been linked to snakes – has severely dampened the festive mood.

Face masks have come back, not to conceal identities but to protect against an enemy that doesn’t care if people are yellow or blue. Communicable diseases do not discriminate. Viruses do not discriminate.

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