The bobbing yellow bird floated into the harbor in May and, despite our cynicism, it won us all over. Yes, it was just an adorable bag of air. But combine our inherent need to obsess over stuff with our love of all things kawaii, and the rubber duck was Hongkonger kryptonite—to the extent that people collapsed in tears when it suffered a puncture. A flurry of merchandising, online spoofs, and even mainland knockoffs meant that even though its visit was fleeting, the duck’s status as a bona fide Hong Kong phenomenon was guaranteed.
Photo: Edward Wong/ SCMP
Runner-up: The Kaiju from “Pacific Rim”
When was the last time Hong Kong looked so awesome in film? Immense lizards fighting robots in the middle of Victoria Harbour, using container ships as weapons? Hell yes.
Villain of the Year Anti-Philippine Hongkongers
Our prize this year goes to Hong Kong’s enduringly shitty attitude towards the Philippines. Never mind our ongoing citywide panic at the mere prospect of offering domestic helpers permanent residency—our complex even extends to demanding national apologies. Anti-Philippine animosity really hit its stride in October, when Philippine president Benigno Aquino III declined to issue a formal apology for the 2010 Manila Hostage Crisis, saying that “the act of one individual should not be construed as the act of the entire nation.” Populist lawmakers were quick to jump on the bandwagon, urging economic sanctions against the Philippines and an end to visa-free entry into Hong Kong for Filipinos. As Legco politicians debated and passed a motion for sanctions against the country on November 7, Typhoon Haiyan made landfall in the Philippines, killing 7,000.
(Dis)Honorable Mention: The CY Leung Administration
Our prize ceremony would go all night if we gave out separate awards for each example of the administration’s particular brand of incompetence. Here’s a recap:
SUING A NEWSPAPER! CY Leung sued the Hong Kong Economic Journal for an op-ed that analyzed CY’s possible triad links.
HIRING SHADY CHARACTERS! Exco member Barry Cheung quit the administration after the HKMex exchange was investigated for possible financial irregularities.
STUPID LANDFILL IDEAS! The government suggested expanding the city’s three landfills, without plans in place to reduce waste or to compensate the affected residents. The scheme became so unpopular that even DAB members and the Heung Yee Kuk turned against it. Poor Staff Retention! Five senior civil servants resigned, mostly due to “personal and family reasons.”
DOING NOTHING FOR THE POOR! An official poverty line was set: but with no real help offered to the 100,000 people living in subdivided flats, the line has just further divided rich and poor.
DENYING A TV LICENSE FOR APPARENTLY NO REASON! The decision was made to deny Ricky Wong Wai-kay’s HKTV a free-to-air TV license, while approving licenses for two established competitors, leading to mass protests.
LI KA-SHING'S A HATER! Hong Kong legend and super tycoon Li Ka-shing warned that Hong Kong might be going “down the path of rule of men,” not the rule of law.
GETTING MOONED BY STUDENTS! While CY was officiating a graduation ceremony at the Academy of Performing Arts, a student chose to bow to the audience, pointedly directing his posterior at the CE.
LOSING YOUR SHIT AT AN EGG ATTACK! An egg was thrown at CY at a public forum in North Point. It hit Financial Secretary John Tsang, who, to his credit, quipped that he was lucky not to be wearing his good suit (he was in fact wearing a tracksuit). A po-faced CY vowed to bring those responsible to justice.
Invention of the Year “The Human Recorder”
This cheeky term was invented by netizens to describe the tendency of government officials to parrot the same one-liners over and over again, rather than properly addressing the issue. Can you match the quote to the politician?
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Match the phrase to the repeating robot!
1. “Electoral reform will be in accordance with the Basic Law and the decision of the National People’s Congress Standing Committee”
2. “No comment”
3. “A basket of criteria”
4. “The HKTV decision has followed procedural justice”
5. “[My son is] my wife’s family”
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A. Greg So, Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development
B. CY Leung
C. CY Leung (again)
D. Ray Lau Kong-wah, Undersecretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs
E. Paul Chan Mo-po, Secretary for Development
