EditorialHongkongers should be more accepting of mainland immigrants

Discrimination against outsiders is a global phenomenon. Newcomers who speak, dress or act differently are apt to complain about behaviour towards them by locals no matter where in the world they live.

A Hong Kong survey’s findings that nearly three in five adult mainland immigrants and one in three children complain of everyday prejudice should therefore not be surprising. That the treatment for some continues no matter how long they live in the city or try to assimilate is a sad indictment of society, though.

More than one million people have come to Hong Kong from the mainland to live since 1997 under the one-way permit scheme, which allows up to 150 people a day for family reunions. Mainland authorities get to choose who arrives, with many being the spouses or children of the city’s residents.

The recent study by the Society for Community Organisation interviewed 336 adults and 195 children who were either from the mainland or born to parents who were mainlanders. It revealed a disturbing pattern of being insulted, ignored or treated unfairly by local Hongkongers. Nearly three in five of the adults and almost half of the children said their experiences left them sad and depressed.

Hong Kong’s long separation from the mainland as a result of British colonial occupation ensured the two sides developed differently. A result is that deep-rooted stereotypes have evolved about mainlanders, leading to a lack of understanding of them, their culture and lifestyles.

A common view is that they are not well-educated, and are generally a burden on the welfare system. There may once have been an element of truth in that image but it has gradually been changing, with research between 2001 and 2016 showing a marked improvement in socio-economic status and the proportion with higher education rising from 5.7 per cent to 19.5 per cent.