C.Y. Leung's challenge of convincing Hongkongers he's on their side

The Chinese flag has flown over the city for the past 15 years, but there's little sign that Hongkongers' struggle between their Chinese and Hong Kong identities will be resolved soon.

The sight of the British colonial flag at a series of recent protests is perhaps the most visible sign of what political observers and lawmakers see as a growing anti-mainland sentiment during Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying's first 100 days in office.

They suspect the negative feeling towards Beijing may make life more difficult for the government. They say Leung and the central government must share the blame and work together to change the negative perception - or risk seeing Hong Kong's progress jeopardised.

One of the triggers for the public's unease is Leung's ties with Beijing, which go back three decades. Some voters suspect the central leadership has handed him political "missions" to accomplish during his tenure in Hong Kong. The other spark for the surge in anti-mainland sentiment has been the government's ill-fated attempt to introduce national education classes in schools.

Within days of Leung taking office, it emerged that government-funded teaching materials produced by two Beijing loyalist educational groups presented a biased picture of the central government. The literature claimed multiparty politics could "victimise" people.