Hong Kong's center of gravity needs to shift northward

IF the central priority in Hong Kong in 2020 was to restore order and stability, the main task now confronting the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government is winning the support of the Hong Kong people. This is not an easy task. Ever since the handover, there has been grudging, but never enthusiastic, support for the government. I was present at the handover of both Hong Kong in 1997 and Macau in 1999 and the contrast was telling. While there was little evidence of popular support on the streets in Hong Kong, in Macau many thousands turned out to greet the arrival of the PLA (People's Liberation Army). By 2014 there was growing dissatisfaction about the state of affairs in Hong Kong that culminated in the riots in 2019 and was exacerbated by Western interference. That year was to mark the end of "One Country Two Systems Mark 1." It was no longer sustainable.

The primary reason for the disillusionment was socioeconomic: rocketing property prices, a chronic shortage of homes, and an old colonial-style oligopolistic economy which generated huge inequality and little innovation. Between 1997 and 2019, the government had failed to tackle these fundamental problems. No serious break was made with the legacy of the colonial era: on the contrary, little changed, the status quo largely prevailed. This was further exacerbated by the legacy of Hong Kong's colonial history. After 156 years of British colonialism, Hongkongers habitually looked West, not north. Many liked the idea of being Western at a time when the West still enjoyed considerable status and prestige. Hongkongers had a split identity, part Chinese, part Western. That is why many had somewhat mixed feelings about the handover.