Just when you think things cannot get any worse…

It is one thing to pursue a life abroad entirely out of one’s own decision and free will, but completely another to be forced to leave your home. The latter is what most Hong Kong people are facing right now.

Of course there are those who gladly embraces China with open arms, in the spirit of Hong Kong being an open society, though I can never comprehend the logic, I respect their opinion. Just move over to Greater Bay Area already, chop chop…However, most Hong Kongers have been protesting for the past year to preserve Hong Kong under the one country two system for AT LEAST 50 years. (As things progress, police brutality is a seriously huge issue we protest about but let’s keep it simpler for now)

The hottest topics being discussed lately amongst friends and relatives are “UK will be extending rights to BNO holders, hopefully passing the bill in Sep” – HK DHL delivery all packed with people trying to mail out their BNO renewal forms. “3M HKD to buy a house and you can get Portuguese Citizenship in 5 years” “6.5M NTD as investment to migrate to Taiwan, ah but it’s not as easy as it was” This may be familiar to my parents generation as they have been through 1997 when Hong Kong was handed over, but this is entirely new to me. Don’t get me wrong, I have nothing against China, in fact, since Grade 1’s Mandarin class (不到長城非好漢), I’ve been dying to visit the Great Wall, I’m fascinated by Chinese history and myths and stories behind each traditional festival. I love the fact that I’m Chinese, I just downright disagree with the Party and its Chairman (which btw, they can probably just throw me in jail for merely saying that when the security law passes. Better put it out there now than later.)

I’ve always been thankful for my parents’ decision to give up moving to the States and staying in Hong Kong. I grew up witnessing all the beauty of this little fishing town, I mean international financial center, that is so diverse and dynamic. It was competitive growing up but still so god damn wonderful. How can 7M+ people be packed in such a small but vibrant city where there are endless things to do! There were times I hated Hong Kong of course, the pollution, the rude people cutting lines, the traffic, the overly priced pretentious restaurants… but the more I’ve seen and lived in other cities, the more I see the beauty of Hong Kong. Oh no, it’s not another modern international city like Singapore. Hong Kong has CHARACTER. And CHARM. (no, I’m not biased, you can hike in HK, can you in SG?) Truly a harmonious juxtaposition of Western and Eastern cultures. Despite being merely a dot on the map, there is so much history and stories behind each stairs and crooked alley. There is nature, are beaches and mountains within your grasp. Its architecture so rich in elegance yet so rough in texture. The western Kong style food, long before “fusion” is even a thing. I fell in love with my hometown all over again the last time I shown my Mexican friends around.

No city is perfect, but only one would be home. At least that’s what I’ve always assumed…but now home… may become yet another distant, abstract concept we keep in our hearts, like universal suffrage and sovereignty. Step by step, China is restraining our rights as Hong Kong citizens: freedom of press (police attacking journalists, terminating TV shows that discuss politics), freedom of assembly and protest (first time in 30 years we’re not allow to gather for the June 4th memorial), freedom of speech! I know you argue that well China has always been that way, but that’s the thing, humans can only progress and evolve, we cannot go backwards and revert back to the 1800s!

I can foresee further injustice happening in Hong Kong, accompanied by escalating policy brutality, government’s nonchalance and judicial system nonsense. But for now, let’s take some quiet time and mental space to recall the courageous spirits, freedom loving students in 1989 at Tiananmen Square.

May we have the courage to stand up against human rights violation and unite under the love for freedom and truth. To tell right from wrong despite all the fake news and abundance information out there. To have critical thinking and be calm and open minded to discussions. Do not fear for doing the right thing.

Here’s to all those Tiananmen students who never left and were forever students. Here’s to all Hong Kongers who died, who sacrificed, who were arrested, who fled because they love and protected Hong Kong. Covering up or forbidding the mention of something is not going to make it go away because what has happened is carved in time. And the fact is my parents watched it live on TV 1989, June 4th.

Although there was no image, they heard every gun shot loud and clear. May we never forget what really happened. 毋忘六四. 毋忘721, 毋忘831. Those who survived and lived, own it to those who didn’t.

Tiananmen Square incident | Summary, Details, & Facts | Britannica — credits: https://www.britannica.com/event/Tiananmen-Square-incident

https://edition.cnn.com/2013/09/15/world/asia/tiananmen-square-fast-facts/index.html (last updated May 2020)

Do you hear the people sing? Singing the songs of angry men.

It is with the heaviest heart that I am writing this, after THE largest protest Hong Kong has ever seen since the 1997 handover. I admit in guilt that since the Umbrella movement in 2014, I avoided all political news in Hong Kong on purpose because it was too much to bear. It was made easy when I relocated to Taipei in 2017, out of sight, out of mind right? I took the ostrich approach to spare my heart and brain the trouble; for it is unable to resolve or reconcile these political affairs. But there is a limit to deliberate oblivion. During this business trip to Hong Kong, I happened to be here and even the “usually uninterested group” [the business sector, the elderlies, the C9s (housewives)] expressed their concern; I can no longer stay out of my Hong Kong citizen duties.

Many would say with 1.03M protesters, in other countries, the government would have collapsed already. That is the reason why HK people have been protesting for universal suffrage. BECAUSE 1.03M would mean 1.03M VOTES in a democratic system. However, in our government, it translates into nothing more than noises from the society. If the legislative council gets enough votes from their members, the law will pass anyway. This is why it is imperative for us to express our voices in anyway possible. For those who opt for demonstration, please do so. For the brave young souls who stayed and occupied the roads, I admire your courage. And I thank you for your sacrifice for the greater good of our future generations.

For those who consider themselves moderate/ mild, please also be understanding of one another, it is now the time to unite as one, Hong Kong people. Only together, can we make the loudest sound to be heard. Mrs. Carrie Lam has literally gone mad where she can only see how her arguments make sense and unable to hear mainstream opinion. How do you wake up someone who pretends to be sleeping? I don’t know. But there is no harm in trying.

For the so called 700k signatures that “support” the extradition law. My brothers have tried signing up on their website. Basically, you can type in ANY number for identification and it will be recorded. Simply put, it is a scam. With THAT many signatures “supporting the extradition law”, only 30 showed up to hand over the petition to the government. No one can possible believe in that bullshit right? It was in fact, printed on the front page of one major newspaper in HK…I’d like to quote the recently popular show: Chernobyl

“What is the cost of lies? It’s not that we’ll mistake them for the truth. The real danger is that if we hear enough lies, then we no longer recognize the truth at all.”

After the protest, I took my usual minibus (54) home. The radio was aptly blasting Under the Lion Rock Mountain song from the 80s, I couldn’t help but teared up because the reason why we could prosper like an economic miracle at that time is because everyone had freedom of speech, of basic human rights and trust in the system. Unlike our “Great Nation” /偉大的祖國, where people could be retaliated for something their country did, go vanish, be staged suicide, forced TV confession, you name it, they’e probably done it. For future generations to come, you could all be labelled fugitive if this law go through. This is not just about the 0.0001% criminals, but ALL of us. There is no guarantee in the words of liars. The law removes this firewall between Hong Kong and the notorious judicial system in China. We are all at stake, even the business travelers who transit or the tourists who love shopping in Hong Kong so much.

I feel helpless and powerless after doing my part. After all the education I had, career I’ve been building, what else can I do to contribute? Quoting Denise Ho, from her speech at the Oslo Freedom Forum, we continue to do what we do best. For me it meant writing. For all my international friends to understand and raise awareness amongst people. I am still keeping my hopes up. I hope the next time I return to Hong Kong, it will still be the same safe haven it has always been. I cannot call another place home. God bless Hong Kong. May the odds be ever in the people’s favor.

To learn more:

CNN

Oslo Freedom Forum

Christopher Patten’s comment (Final British Governor of HK)

Tonight, Hong Kong has given me one more reason to be proud of being a Hongkonger.

The night is long, but a large crowd of people who care about Hong Kong is still out there under the heat. After all that I have witnessed first hand today, I simply cannot put my brain to rest without emptying all my thoughts into words. I first want to put aside the political side of things. Rumor / Truth, I cannot say for sure myself. Everything from now on is what I have heard with my very own ears and seen with my short-sighted eyes.

The moment I stepped out of Admiralty MTR station, my sight was crowded with tiny dots of heads that seemed to stretch infinitely towards the west and east. As I walked into the crowd, I saw piles of materials: food, umbrellas, water, masks etc. and my heart just warmed. The protestors asked for help: manpower, food, protections; and Hong Kong people answered. I have never seen us being so united and caring. (think of the stares you get when you bumped into someone or when someone stepped on your new shoes accidentally)

As I sat down, I realised the photos I saw on Facebook, the newspapers, the reporters’ interviews are simply insufficient in capturing the atmosphere here at all. Every few minutes, a volunteer will drop by and offer all kinds of materials that you may need; others are collecting trash AND ALSO RECYCLING THE BOTTLES! Everyone was very self disciplined in using the resources, it was about the greater good of the movement, of Hong Kong, and not about personal gain. People with speakers were doing crowd control, diverging the crowd and reminding us of personal safety. Loads and loads of materials kept coming in and cars passing by were honking to support us. I heard an old man walking along the route giving pep talks to the tired crowd while receiving cheers and applauds from them. Although the people were afraid, (yes, who wouldn’t be after what happened the day before), they still came nonetheless, with thin rain coats, masks and goggles as their only protection.

At night, I walked from Central to Causeway Bay, I saw people singing our favourite revolution song, Broad Sea and Sky (I supposed that is the best translation I can come up with) with their smartphones’ flash lights on. I heard people applauding to the motorbikers who were transporting materials back and forth. As I arrived Causeway Bay after running into a few familiar faces, I heard the speech of Joshua Wong, a student leader who was recently released after being captured for an unreasonable duration by the police. He and other leaders have big hopes about this movement, but in my humble opinion, I am very worried as to how this will end. Despite how much I want to believe in the power of people, it takes more than a miracle for our fight of democracy. Then I heard a sharing from a British professor who had been teaching about peaceful protests. He said he had never thought of stepping into one in his trip, but he found this to be an excellent example of a peaceful protest. Then I suddenly realised,in the end, it is not merely about what this movement will lead Hong Kong towards .

At this very moment, we have already showed the world what a city Hong Kong is. With zero vandalism, the buses that were stuck at Admiralty/MK are still perfectly in shape despite of being transformed into the hearse of CY Leung. (Opps.) Shops nearby are not covered in paint and the roads are free of trash! I don’t think you can find any other protests in the world that displayed such high level of self control and discipline. This alone is already a good enough justification to the Occupy Central movement. (which really isn’t JUST about Central, just like how this movement is not just about students anymore.) We are not releasing our resentment in the name of democracy; the high level of self restraint that we have demonstrated only further accentuate our pure will for democracy.

I have had so many reasons to be proud of coming from Hong Kong. Anyone who has ever lived abroad can surely resonate. Thanks to Hong Kong people, in these few days, you have all given me another reason to be proud of being a Hongkonger.

In the elevator back home, a foreign lady asked if I was at the movement. She then told me that she was very inspired, and that we should not lose hope because this is HONG KONG. My eyes were blurred by tears as she exit the lift. Hong Kong is and will always be a very special place.

Enough of me saying, the best way to understand is to see for yourself.

Miss Tofu

My journey in life

Tag: Hong Kong

Just when you think things cannot get any worse…

Do you hear the people sing? Singing the songs of angry men.

Tonight, Hong Kong has given me one more reason to be proud of being a Hongkonger.