Opinion | Hong Kong must stop protecting the unvaccinated and punishing everyone else

Even if the mainland chooses to stick to its zero-Covid policy, Hong Kong should be free to pursue a different strategy to preserve its status as a travel hub

Hong Kong needs to rethink its policy, which can be summed up as: protect the unvaccinated, punish the vaccinated, and if in doubt sacrifice the children

Reading Time:4 minutes

A woman walks past a banner announcing the temporary closure of a venue in Hong Kong’s Causeway Bay area on January 8, after the Omicron variant was detected in the city. Photo: AFP

Published: 10:45am, 31 Jan 2022

China is the only major economy applying a zero-Covid policy. So far, it has been sustained reasonably well, with damage to the economy kept at manageable levels.

But even the best policies need to be reviewed from time to time in the light of changing circumstances. This can result in fine-tuning or even a complete reversal.

Obviously, Beijing is not going to change its policy before the conclusion of the Winter Olympics, but once the athletes have gone home, an opportunity arises for a national debate. As a core member of the Chinese family, Hong Kong is entitled to join the conversation.

The national leaders will be balancing the overall interests of the whole country. It is possible the review will conclude that the existing policy should be retained for the time being, even if some cities and provinces might be hard hit.

The next trigger for review might be when mainland pharmaceutical companies manage to master mRNA technologies, or there is a decision to import them from elsewhere to boost protection levels.

Even if the mainland opts for the status quo, it is still possible for Hong Kong, as a separate customs entity, to pursue a different policy. Our circumstances are not the same. How can we be an international transport hub when demand for inbound passenger flights has virtually collapsed?

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