My Take | Deeply fractured Hong Kong cannot solve own problems
- The central government is the ultimate Hobbesian guarantor of security, stability and prosperity of the city, without which we face the dangers of Balkanisation, civil war and foreign intervention
A family friend belongs to a close-knit dog-walking group. They often take long walks together in country parks. Their canine babies are their primary concern; they dominate their lives, interests and conversations. There is a good deal of camaraderie among them.
And they avoid political discussions because there are “yellows” and “blues” among them, almost in equal proportion. Occasionally, though, politics intrudes. When that happens, one side may go off on a tangent while the other, to avoid arguments, just switches off until the bad mood blows over. They can do that because what truly interests and concerns them are their four-legged beloved ones. The friends have something far more important to share beyond their coloured politics. Unfortunately, that’s not the case for many Hong Kong people.
The yellow and blue sides can’t communicate across the political divide. For them, there isn’t one “Hong Kong” but two or possibly more. Each side has its own versions and visions of the city. They are diametrically opposite and incompatible.
When people can’t agree on whether a police anti-riot operation at Prince Edward MTR station resulted in many deaths or none in late August last year, you have a serious problem.
Not only does one camp distrust the police and the government, but the two sides don’t even share the same “facts”. There is no consensus, reconciliation or a common narrative to be achieved between them. For example, the national security law for one camp helps restore social order and stability. For the other, it ends long-enjoyed basic freedoms, thus rendering it as no different from any other mainland Chinese city.
Foreign actions against the city, especially by the United States, are either interference bent on undermining Hong Kong and the rest of the country; or the West coming to the rescue of freedom-loving Hongkongers.
Facts and circumstances matter much less than your commitment to one side or the other; and the absolute rights and wrongs of a conflict come with taking up a position, without any self-doubt, of having only an absolute belief in the stupidity, ignorance and/or wickedness of the other side.
