'Help educate mainlanders in good manners', minister urges after 'urinating' row

Commerce secretary Gregory So Kam-leung today urged Hongkongers to help educate mainlanders in good manners rather than pointing accusatory fingers at them, in the wake of the 'urinating in public' incident that led to heated debate on social media last week.

So said he was not asking the city's residents to ‘turn a blind eye’ to tourists misbehaviour in the city, but to show respect and help educate them in good manners.

In an article carried by six Chinese-language newspapers today, So clarified remarks he made last week that urged Hongkongers to "make allowances" for ill-informed actions.

“I want to point out that people should be ‘understanding’. Certainly I do not agree to… urinating in the streets,” So said.

 “It is not that we turn a blind eye to what is wrong, but that we must deal with it in a rational way.”

On Thursday, So appealed for understanding after a video showing a mainland couple allowing their toddler to urinate in a busy Mong Kok street was posted online, creating heated debate both in Hong Kong and across the border.

His remarks quickly attracted condemnation from critics, who accused the minister of allowing bad habits to flourish.