Hong Kong’s rural strongmen plot PR makeover to rebuild their tarnished public image
Village leaders to get lessons in handling the media and how to justify their privileged position on land policy
Rural leaders castigated for blocking development are seeking professional help to rebuild their tarnished public image and better handle the media.
A consultancy firm will be hired to draw up a publicity campaign that could cover issues from how rural leaders should talk to the media, to convincing “outsiders” why they should be allowed privileges in rural land policy.
Although their traditional rights are guaranteed under the Basic Law, the city’s mini-constitution does not give specific details. Rural leaders say the list should include hillside burials, the right to build small houses and exemption from government rent. While there is no official figure on the number of indigenous residents in the city – those who can trace their male ancestry back to residents of the New Territories in 1898 – some rural leaders estimate there are at least 300,000.
A vocal critic of rural affairs, legislator-elect Eddie Chu Hoi-dick, even claimed collusion involving triad forces.