bodyType

customContents

entityId

printArticlePageQuery

filter

article

body

urlAlias

articleSectionsContent

articleSeoArticle

articleSourceHeaderArticle

contentSchemaRenderContent

contentSubHeadlineContent

contentHeadlineContent

mainImagePrintArticleArticle

authorBlockPrintArticleArticle

contentSponsorTagContent

articlePianoPaywallContent

scmpYoutubeContent

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

query printArticlePageQuery(
  $entityId: String!
  $customContents: [CustomContentInput]
  $bodyType: BodyFormatTypeEnum
) {
  article(filter: {entityId: $entityId}) {
    entityId
    body(customContents: $customContents, type: $bodyType) {
      json
    }
    urlAlias
    ...articleSectionsContent
    ...articleSeoArticle_3o8td4
    ...articleSourceHeaderArticle
    ...contentSchemaRenderContent
    ...contentSubHeadlineContent
    ...contentHeadlineContent
    ...mainImagePrintArticleArticle
    ...authorBlockPrintArticleArticle
    ...contentSponsorTagContent
    ...articlePianoPaywallContent
    ...scmpYoutubeContent
    ...hooksTrackPageViewArticle
    id
  }
}

fragment articlePianoPaywallContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...hooksPaywallPromiseContent
}

fragment articleSectionsContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  sections {
    value {
      ...helpersCheckIfNewsSectionInFirstIndexSection
      ...entityLink
      name
      id
    }
  }
}

fragment articleSeoArticle_3o8td4 on Article {
  ...hooksArticleSeoArticle
  ...helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle
  ...helpersGetArticleTypeArticle
  entityId
  publishedDate
  updatedDate
  summary {
    text
  }
  subHeadline {
    text
  }
  body(customContents: $customContents, type: $bodyType) {
    text
  }
  keywords
  sections {
    value {
      name
      id
    }
  }
  topics {
    name
    entityId
    id
  }
  urlAlias
  authors {
    name
    id
  }
  images {
    style(filter: {style: "768x768"}) {
      url
    }
  }
  readingTime
}

fragment articleSourceHeaderArticle on Article {
  urlAlias
  ...entityLink
}

fragment authorBlockPrintArticleArticle on Article {
  ...defaultArticleDateContent
  ...authorNamesArticle
}

fragment authorNameAuthor on Author {
  ...entityLink
  name
  entityUuid
}

fragment authorNamesArticle on Article {
  authorLocations
  authors {
    entityId
    location
    ...authorNameAuthor
    id
  }
}

fragment blockquoteQuoteContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...contentShareWidgetContent
}

fragment checkersCheckContentContainsStarlingImageContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  topics {
    entityId
    id
  }
}

fragment contentHeadlineContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  headline
  socialHeadline
  ...contentHeadlineTagContent
  ...helpersUseContentSponsorContent
}

fragment contentHeadlineTagContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...hooksContentHeadlineTagContent
}

fragment contentNewsletterWidgetContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  topics {
    relatedNewsletters {
      ...helpersMassageToNewsletterItemNewsletter
      id
    }
    id
  }
  sections {
    value {
      relatedNewsletters {
        ...helpersMassageToNewsletterItemNewsletter
        id
      }
      id
    }
  }
  ... on Article {
    relatedNewsletters {
      ...helpersMassageToNewsletterItemNewsletter
      id
    }
  }
}

fragment contentSchemaRenderContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...blockquoteQuoteContent
  ...imageContent
  ...inlineWidgetContent
  ...photoGalleryWidgetContent
  ...scmpYoutubeContent
}

fragment contentShareWidgetContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  entityId
  urlAlias
  shortUrl
  socialHeadline
  headline
}

fragment contentSponsorTagContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...helpersUseContentSponsorContent
}

fragment contentSubHeadlineContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  subHeadline {
    json
  }
  summary {
    json
  }
  ...contentSchemaRenderContent
}

fragment defaultArticleDateContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...hooksArticleDateUtilsContent
}

fragment entityLink on BaseWithApplicationAndUrlAlias {
  __isBaseWithApplicationAndUrlAlias: __typename
  __typename
  entityId
  entityUuid
  urlAlias
  urlRedirect {
    toUrl
    id
  }
  application {
    entityId
    id
  }
  ... on Section {
    fullSectionPath {
      entityId
      id
    }
    parentSection
  }
  ...helpersAppBarVariantBase
  ...helpersApplicationBase
  ...helpersCheckIsPlusArticle
  ...helpersStyleSectionContent
}

fragment helpersAppBarVariantBase on BaseWithApplicationAndUrlAlias {
  __isBaseWithApplicationAndUrlAlias: __typename
  ...helpersCheckIsLiveArticle
  ...helpersCheckIsPlusPage
  ...helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle
  ...helpersCheckIsPostiesPage
  ...helpersCheckIsPostMagazineArticle
  ...helpersCheckIsStyleArticle
  ...helpersSectionContent
  ...helpersStyleSectionContent
}

fragment helpersApplicationBase on BaseWithApplicationAndUrlAlias {
  __isBaseWithApplicationAndUrlAlias: __typename
  ...helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle
  ...helpersCheckIsPostiesPage
  ...helpersCheckIsPlusPage
}

fragment helpersCheckIfNewsSectionInFirstIndexSection on Section {
  name
}

fragment helpersCheckIsAmpEnabledArticle on Article {
  entityId
  types {
    value {
      entityId
      id
    }
  }
  sections {
    value {
      entityId
      id
    }
  }
  disableOffPlatformContent
  sponsorType
  published
  ...helpersCheckIsPlusArticle
  ...helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle
}

fragment helpersCheckIsLiveArticle on Article {
  flattenTypeIds
  liveArticle {
    status
    id
  }
}

fragment helpersCheckIsMainTopicContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  topics {
    entityId
    id
  }
}

fragment helpersCheckIsPlusArticle on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ... on Article {
    paywallTypes {
      entityUuid
      id
    }
  }
}

fragment helpersCheckIsPlusPage on Page {
  urlAlias
}

fragment helpersCheckIsPostMagazineArticle on Article {
  sections {
    value {
      entityId
      id
    }
  }
}

fragment helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle on Article {
  sections {
    value {
      entityId
      id
    }
  }
}

fragment helpersCheckIsPostiesPage on Page {
  urlAlias
}

fragment helpersCheckIsStyleArticle on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  sections {
    value {
      entityId
      id
    }
  }
}

fragment helpersGetArticleTypeArticle on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ... on Article {
    types {
      value {
        entityId
        id
      }
    }
  }
}

fragment helpersMassageToNewsletterItemNewsletter on Newsletter {
  entityId
  name
  alternativeName
  description {
    text
  }
  summary {
    text
  }
  homepageDescription {
    text
  }
}

fragment helpersSanitizeArticleTypeEntityIdsArticle on Article {
  types {
    value {
      entityId
      id
    }
  }
}

fragment helpersSanitizeAuthorTypesArticle on Article {
  authors {
    types
    id
  }
}

fragment helpersSanitizedAuthorEntityIdsArticle on Article {
  authors {
    entityId
    id
  }
}

fragment helpersSectionContent on Section {
  fullSectionPath {
    entityId
    id
  }
}

fragment helpersStyleSectionContent on Section {
  fullSectionPath {
    entityId
    id
  }
}

fragment helpersUseContentSponsorContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  topics {
    entityId
    sponsor {
      ...sponsorTagSponsor
      name
      type
      id
    }
    id
  }
  ... on Article {
    sponsorType
  }
  ...helpersCheckIsMainTopicContent
}

fragment hooksArticleDateUtilsContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  createdDate
  publishedDate
  updatedDate
}

fragment hooksArticleSeoArticle on Article {
  ...helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle
  ...helpersCheckIsPostMagazineArticle
  ...helpersCheckIsStyleArticle
  ...hooksContentHeadlineTagContent
  ...helpersCheckIsAmpEnabledArticle
  entityId
  headline
  socialHeadline
  types {
    value {
      entityId
      id
    }
  }
  authors {
    entityId
    id
  }
  images {
    generic_og: style(filter: {style: "og_image_scmp_generic"}) {
      url
    }
    styles(filter: {styles: ["og_image_posties_article", "og_postmag", "og_image_style", "og_image_scmp_analysis", "og_image_scmp_explainer", "og_image_scmp_editorial", "og_image_scmp_fact_check", "og_image_scmp_debate", "og_image_scmp_live", "og_image_scmp_obituary", "og_image_scmp_opinion", "og_image_scmp_review", "og_image_scmp_series", "og_image_scmp_generic"]}) {
      url
      style
    }
    type
  }
  urlAlias
}

fragment hooksContentHeadlineTagContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  __typename
  ... on Article {
    types {
      value {
        name
        entityId
        description {
          text
        }
        id
      }
    }
    ...helpersCheckIsStyleArticle
  }
  flag
  sections {
    value {
      name
      id
    }
  }
  ...hooksContentHelperContent
}

fragment hooksContentHelperContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...helpersSanitizeArticleTypeEntityIdsArticle
  ...helpersSanitizeAuthorTypesArticle
  ...helpersSanitizedAuthorEntityIdsArticle
  flag
}

fragment hooksPaywallPromiseContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  entityId
  ...helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle
}

fragment hooksTrackPageViewArticle on Article {
  entityId
  publishedDate
  headline
  sections {
    value {
      name
      id
    }
  }
  urlAlias
  authors {
    name
    id
  }
  entityUuid
}

fragment imageContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  headline
  ...checkersCheckContentContainsStarlingImageContent
}

fragment inlineWidgetContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...contentNewsletterWidgetContent
}

fragment mainImagePrintArticleArticle on Article {
  images {
    title
    url
    isSlideshow
    size_652x446: style(filter: {style: "652x446"}) {
      url
    }
  }
}

fragment photoGalleryDialogContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  __typename
  ...contentShareWidgetContent
}

fragment photoGalleryWidgetContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...photoGalleryDialogContent
}

fragment scmpYoutubeContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  entityId
  urlAlias
  publishedDate
}

fragment sponsorTagSponsor on Sponsor {
  name
  type
  images {
    url
  }
}


sections

types

disableOffPlatformContent

sponsorType

published

headline

socialHeadline

authors

images

publishedDate

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

keywords

topics

readingTime

authorLocations

entityUuid

Jason Wordie

British economist John Maynard Keynes’ characteristically honest reflection upon his own thought processes – “When the facts change, I change my mind; what do you do, Sir?” – and those facts’ seemingly contradictory nature when observed by others over time, remains instructive.
But when historical facts don’t change – what happened in the past did actually happen – no authentic choice remains; one must stand by those earlier conclusions.
In these febrile times, truth’s inevitable mutability into falsehood inexorably follows when cold, hard facts are deliberately rendered malleable, official statements around certain well-documented events are wilfully distorted, multiple eyewitnesses are serially gaslighted and honest critics are forcibly silenced.
Steadfast insistence on transparency in public life, then, becomes more vitally important than ever.
‘Historical nihilists’ know that the truth ultimately seeps through
On a recent Middle East trade mission, Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu proclaimed to the world that Hong Kong had “no restrictions whatsoever” in terms of Covid-19-related controls.
Despite an ongoing public mask mandate, no clear timetable for discontinuation and, meanwhile, a HK$5,000 (US$635) fine for non-compliance, this flagrant eye-opener was still confidently uttered.
Whether one truly believes Lee was sincerely mistaken, or otherwise – on this and other well-documented occasions – remains a matter for individual judgment. Either way, overall optics in support of verifiable factual accuracy are, unquestionably, suboptimal.
Such unfortunate lapses only make the (already challenging) task of wanting to support our current brace of leaders even more difficult for genuine well-wishers who are otherwise only too willing to help tell “good Hong Kong stories” to the world.
Widespread public dissatisfaction with the government that ruled over them erupted in mid-2019 across Hong Kong, and swiftly metastasised into what is now euphemistically described as “social unrest”.

Various completely preventable factors – then – tragically contributed to “everything that came afterwards”. In particular, accurate third-party identification of individual Hong Kong Police officers – at a time when near-daily allegations of police brutality towards demonstrators were widely believed in Hong Kong and overseas – became almost impossible.
Genuine public trust in law-and-order bodies is earned over time by action and example, not mandated from above; overall civic confidence, painstakingly established over decades, is easily squandered.
Over a few weeks, the hitherto stellar reputation of the Hong Kong Police catastrophically plummeted; from highly respected to widely reviled within months, the force’s reputation has never recovered. But what awful misjudgments enabled this disaster in the first place?
Unthinkable, and then it happens. Again. Hong Kong in 2021
In December 2019, in this column, certain observations were made about well-documented happenings that June; just enough time for current events to merge into the recent past.
“Individual police in full ‘raptor’ gear, including face masks, respirators, body armour and Darth Vader-style helmets, could not possibly be identified in a line-up. Identification numbers, visibly positioned and which, in calm circumstances, can be indicated upon request, would help to re-establish shattered public trust in what was not so long ago a highly respected institution,” I wrote back then.
“Not unnaturally, their absence has fuelled conspiracy theories about ‘black cops’, including the now-commonplace belief in systematic police-gangster collusion.

“When grilled about this deficiency, at a Legislative Council security panel meeting in June, Hong Kong’s Secretary for Security, John Lee Ka-chiu, sat, swivel-eyed, gibbering nonsense about there being no space on the uniforms due to ‘a design change’.
“A moderately intelligent six-year-old could have come up with a more plausible denial. But, alas, as Hong Kong’s protests have trudged on, there has been no improvement in this senior official’s ‘clarifications’.”
As those famous opening lines in The Go-Between, L.P. Hartley’s 1953 novel, make clear: “The past is a foreign country; they do things differently there.” So – would one choose to write those same words today?
Tempting, it is, to immediately reply in the affirmative; after all, the underlying facts remain unchanged. But what uncertain fates might candid frankness also tempt, in these strange times?


Transparency is the only way to regain lost public trust and turn things around in Hong Kong

John Lee (left), Hong Kong’s chief executive, during a visit to Abu Dhabi. On his trip to the Middle East in February, Lee told his hosts Hong Kong had “no restrictions whatsoever” in terms of Covid-19-related controls despite an ongoing public mask mandate with a fine for non-compliance. Photo: Handout via Xinhua

A police officer holds a rifle amid a second day of clashes in November 2019 between anti-government protesters and riot police on Nathan Road, Tsim Sha Tsui. Photo: Winson Wong

The then secretary for security, John Lee Ka-chiu, speaks to the media after a Legislative Council meeting on June 19, 2019 during which he told lawmakers there was no space on the uniforms of Special Tactical Squad police officers to display their numbers. Photo: Nora Tam

Magazines

PostMag

Short Reads

Lifestyle

Truths become mutable when facts are made malleable, official statements around well-documented events are distorted and honest critics forcibly silenced
In such circumstances, steadfast insistence on transparency in public life becomes more vitally important than ever


‘When the facts change, I change my mind,’ wrote British economist John Maynard Keynes. But if historical facts haven’t changed, what then?


Old Hong Kong

Hong Kong extradition bill

Hong Kong police

Expresses the views, ideas and conclusions of the author. (Eg. Enough of Crazy Rich Asians, think of crazy poor Hongkongers.)


Column

Then & Now

Then & Now | Transparency is the only way to regain lost public trust and turn things around in Hong Kong

Truths become mutable when facts are made malleable, official statements around well-documented events are distorted and honest critics forcibly silenced In such circumstances, steadfast insistence on transparency in public life becomes more vitally important than ever

Truths become mutable when facts are made malleable, official statements around well-documented events are distorted and honest critics forcibly silenced

In such circumstances, steadfast insistence on transparency in public life becomes more vitally important than ever