https://www.scmp.com/rss/502399/feed Chris Lonsdale is a psychologist, linguist, educator, entrepreneur, dialogue facilitator and corporate adviser with over 30 years’ experience doing business in Asia  He is the creator of the Kungfu English mobile self-learning system, author of "The Third Ear" and "How to Learn Any Language in 6 Months" (in Chinese), and his TEDx talk on Language Learning is one of the top 10 TEDx videos of all time. en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com As we come out of a long, hot, violent summer, Hong Kong definitely looks very much the worse for wear. How did we get to this point? In a previous column, I talked about the importance of identity. I believe that calls for “Hong Kong independence” are really driven by a very strong sense of a unique Hong Kong identity, which is seen by many in the city to be under real threat. When people in Hong Kong say “we’re not Chinese, we’re Hongkongers”, they are referring to this sense of a special... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3036666/hong-kong-protests-are-fight-citys-identity-edge-between-chinese?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3036666/hong-kong-protests-are-fight-citys-identity-edge-between-chinese?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 08 Nov 2019 04:00:15 +0000 I have written a lot about the situation in Hong Kong, and have unreservedly lambasted people who are damaging transport infrastructure and businesses in the city, or attacking people who hold different views. As with any conflict, of course, there is always another side. Let’s take a look. A major claim coming from the “protest camp” is that Hong Kong no longer has any autonomy, and that the Hong Kong government is just following instructions from Beijing. Unfortunately, I think the situation... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3035138/hong-kong-no-longer-colony-officials-still-await-instructions-high?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3035138/hong-kong-no-longer-colony-officials-still-await-instructions-high?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 28 Oct 2019 22:30:13 +0000 Hong Kong is descending into violence, from which return is difficult. To get out of our current quagmire, we need to better understand its origins. I want to address what I believe are the core drivers behind the present tensions in Hong Kong. I’m talking about the drivers that bring millions of people, young and old, from all walks of life, onto the streets. Ultimately, it’s not “the economy” or the US State Department. The core issue can be summed up by two words: “fear” and “identity”. Let’s... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3031840/hong-kongs-protests-are-rooted-something-deeper-economy-or-foreign?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3031840/hong-kongs-protests-are-rooted-something-deeper-economy-or-foreign?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 08 Oct 2019 03:00:10 +0000