My Take | At a time of change, it’s instructive to reflect on the past
- A look back at a Post edition from 27 years ago reveals headlines that could be from today. But the difference is a sense of optimism and excitement that has been lost
A row between Britain and China over developments in Hong Kong. Worrying changes at the city’s public broadcaster. Concerns about a lack of affordable housing, a dramatic change in population size, a “terror campaign” and an election.
The headlines could be taken from contemporary news stories. But they are all to be found in a copy of the South China Morning Post published on the day I joined the company, 27 years ago this month.
Hong Kong, then as now, was at a critical point in its history. The return to China was less than three years away. There were many uncertainties and much work to be done.
Today, the city is undergoing another transformation. Hong Kong’s way of life is changing after the passing of a national security law and electoral reforms. Dissent is being stifled. Some have described it as “a second handover”, Beijing’s response to the anti-government civil unrest of 2019. At this time of change it is instructive to reflect a little on the past.
I was hired in London and started work in Hong Kong on September 16, 1994. The Post that day revealed Britain’s then foreign secretary Douglas Hurd had flown in at about the same time. Hurd was in town for crisis talks with Beijing officials. Preparations for the handover had become “bogged down” and London wanted faster progress.