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Josh Ye

While Hong Kong is undeniably part of China, arguments differentiating Hong Kong Chinese from mainland Chinese have intensified in recent years.
Dr Chung Kim-wah, a social scientist at Hong Kong Polytechnic University, said both Hongkongers’ and mainlanders’ cultural identities were, first and foremost, deeply connected, given their shared history.
“The cultural identities of mainlanders and Hongkongers are really intertwined,” he said.
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“About one million new mainland immigrants currently live in Hong Kong. And that is not even counting the early waves of immigrants who came over in 1945 and 1947 and those who came when the ‘touch base policy’ was still in place.”
This was a policy implemented by the British colonial government which allowed illegal immigrants reaching the urban areas to stay. It was abolished in 1980.
According to a report to the Legislative Council in November 2015, about 879,000 immigrants from the mainland settled in the city through the one-way permit system since the 1997 handover – equalling 12 per cent of the city’s then population of 7.3 million.
Chung said although most Hongkongers and mainlanders were ethnically the same, both groups identified with different values.
It wasn’t always ‘us versus them’: A look back at Hongkongers’ attitudes towards mainland immigrants
“Mainlanders tend to respect authority given their history of living under an authoritarian regime, which has rewarded them with economic success, whereas Hongkongers are much more individualistic and care deeply about personal rights,” he said.
Chung said the mainland’s recent economic miracle had encouraged its citizens to be “more pragmatic and eyes-on-the-prize”. Meanwhile, Hongkongers, especially the younger generation, had moved beyond pragmatism and become more concerned about individual rights.
But he also pointed out that the current differentiation between Hongkongers and mainlanders did not intensify until recent years as the city was feeling more and more “mainlandised”.
“The worry over so-called mainlandisation is really just worry that the rule of law here could be replaced by the rule of people. The city is fearing that the work culture on the mainland is eroding that of Hong Kong,” he said.
Hong Kong media vilification of mainland Chinese immigrants fails to reflect real attitudes, survey finds
He said two competing senses of superiority also contributed to the problem.
“The sense of superiority really goes both ways. For mainlanders, they feel superior in that they are citizens of a global economic powerhouse and a sovereign state,” he said. “Hongkongers, on the other hand, feel like their city has a more diverse culture and is therefore stronger in soft power.”
Yet he said cultural identities were not as intrinsic as many people made them out to be. People could quickly adapt new cultural identities given different circumstances.
“For example, a mainlander, who is not used to queuing up given his or her upbringing, could quickly adopt a new behavioural norm after he or she has been warned a few times,” he said. “This suggests that cultural identities are very fluid and dynamic. They are subject to social influences.”
He said the recent hostility between being Chinese and a Hongkonger has noticeably increased. But he said the two identities did not have to be mutually exclusive.
“Being a Hongkonger does not mean one has to forfeit the cultural identity of being Chinese,” he said. “And people from the mainland perhaps do not need to overly fret over Hong Kong people becoming increasingly more aware of their local identity.”


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Hong Kong residents, mainland people have similarities – and also big differences

A protester against parallel trading is led away in Sheung Shui. This is an example of tension between Hongkongers and mainland people. Photo: David Wong

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Social scientist says mainland people tend to respect authority, while Hongkongers are more individualistic and care about personal rights


Anti-mainland China sentiments

Hong Kong residents, mainland people have similarities – and also big differences

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Social scientist says mainland people tend to respect authority, while Hongkongers are more individualistic and care about personal rights

Social scientist says mainland people tend to respect authority, while Hongkongers are more individualistic and care about personal rights