Carrie Lam’s top ministers venture online for charm offensive on Hong Kong’s young people following extradition bill protests
- Five officials use blogs to champion government’s new leadership style in what appears to be coordinated campaign
- Government hopes more consultative approach will appease mostly young protesters who have raged against political leaders
Hong Kong’s top officials went online en masse on Sunday to promote the government’s new leadership style and willingness to reach out to young people, on the day another major protest filled city streets.
Five ministers, including the government’s No 2 official, Chief Secretary Matthew Cheung Kin-chung, posted articles on their official blogs, promising the government would be more responsive to public views.
The move came days after Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor pledged to reform the way her government listens to the people, in the wake of a series of anti-government protests, which were mainly led by youngsters and sparked by anger over her administration’s handling of the extradition bill.
But one academic suggested her ministers were using outdated online platforms, meaning they would struggle to connect with their target audience.
In a piece posted on his official blog on Sunday, Cheung emphasised the governing team would “listen more and step up communication with members of the public from all walks of life and with different backgrounds on various policies or social topics” under its new style of governance.