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Joe Kwong * loves Hong Kong. But you know you have to go.
A college-educated construction worker in his 30s, he’s just one of many Hong Kongers who have uprooted their lives in recent months, or now plan to do so, due to fears about the rapid demise of the rule of law and civil liberties. . Hong Kong’s descent into effective Chinese control has been rapid and was consolidated in June with the introduction of the national security law, which prohibits acts of secession, subversion, terrorism and collusion with foreign forces.
Hong Kong is China now. There are secret police around, ”he said, a few days before his departure. “They can lock up whoever they want.”
“I just can’t stay here any longer, I must go while there is still a chance to go.”
In the three months since the law was enacted, 25 people have been arrested on national security charges, including inciting secession and collusion with foreign powers. The law is Beijing’s response to a wave of pro-democracy protests that swept through the city last year, in which more than 10,000 people were arrested.
As a protest participant who has been detained by the police once, Kwong fears that he too will be implicated under the new law at some point. Fearing arrest, he is taking the opportunity to travel to Britain on his British Overseas Passport (BNO), a document issued to those born before Hong Kong’s 1997 handover to the Chinese government. He hopes to be granted permission to stay before the official date in January, when the UK has said, in light of national security law, that it will allow BNO passport holders to live and work there as a path towards the citizenship.
The national security law that China imposed on Hong Kong in June 2020 has brought about profound changes in the region of more than 7 million people.
From who is actually running Hong Kong now to the fate of the pro-democracy movement and how the world’s top companies are grappling with the implications of the new law, our reporters in China, Hong Kong, London, the US, and Australia have investigated how the unprecedented crackdown affects not just Hong Kong, but the world.
In addition to charting the new restrictions on civil liberties and liberties, the series looks for voices of hope and acts of resistance, asking what’s next for Hong Kong, which is at a crossroads in its history.
Kwong is not alone. Statistics on recent arrivals from Hong Kong to the UK are not available, but dozens of Facebook pages dedicated to emigration have proliferated in recent months. Many have been created by Hong Kong residents who have come to Britain and are sharing tips on how to settle and buy property. Hong Kongers also renewed or applied for BNO passports in record numbers in 2019, nearly an eight-fold increase from the previous year, according to the South China Morning Post.
According to a survey by the Chinese University of Hong Kong in September 2019, amid last year’s protest movement, 42.3% of Hong Kong adults were found to emigrate if given the opportunity, compared to the 34% from the previous year. Among this group, 23% had already planned to move, compared to 16% the previous year.
Among those inclined to emigrate, three of the top four reasons for leaving were political: 27.9% said there were “too many political disputes and discord,” 21.5% blamed a lack of democracy, and 19.5% he was not satisfied with the Chinese government.
Ken Chung *, a journalist in his 30s, is also desperate to leave. He said he felt unsafe after the media was attacked under the new law. The raid on the opposition newspaper Apple Daily and the arrest of its founder, Jimmy Lai, in August was the final straw.
Under national security law, even “inciting hatred” against the government is a crime. This has especially intimidated writers, journalists and political commentators.
“Before, I could criticize the government in my writing and I didn’t have to worry, but now, I would worry about my personal safety,” says Chung, who plans to move to the UK early next year.
He feels there is little prospect for him in Hong Kong, as most of the mainstream media have already been co-opted by China and the independent media are increasingly under attack.
“Hong Kong used to be a great place where we could do whatever we wanted. Now I see no hope. I’d rather look for hope elsewhere, ”he said.
In addition to young people and singles, many middle-class Hong Kongers, particularly parents, are also making plans to emigrate.
They say the authorities’ harsh treatment of young people has made them nervous about how their children would survive in a society where rights and freedoms are suppressed. Official statistics show that around 40% of those arrested in anti-government protests were students.
Eva Lai * and her husband, both IT professionals, will be moving to the UK with their three-year-old son on their BNO passports in a few weeks.
Lai says he has lost faith in the political system and worries that his son will be indoctrinated into the educational system that officials have promised to reform under the national security law.
It is also concerned about the attitude of the police towards young people and children. In September, images of the police throwing a 12-year-old girl to the ground shocked the entire community.
“I don’t want my son to grow up in this environment,” he said. “Hong Kong is not what it used to be. People say that I am brave, but I don’t know if it is those who leave or those who stay who are brave.
Lai admitted that it may be difficult for her to find a job and settle in the UK, but her priority was living in a country with the rule of law.
“The weather in the UK may not be good, but at least they don’t arrest you for unknown reasons,” he said.
Even those who do not have BNO passports or the money to leave permanently say they plan to send their children abroad to study. Marie Tsang *, a former accountant in her 30s, said her husband was reluctant to give up his career to start over in a new country, but that they will send their six-year-old son abroad when he grows up.
Lau Chi-keung *, a driver in his 50s, said that since his teenage son had once been detained by police in a protest, although he cannot afford to emigrate, he hopes to send him abroad to study.
In response to the Guardian’s request for comment, a Hong Kong government spokesperson said in a statement that while several people may have decided to move due to protests last year, the introduction of the national security law has restored the order and safety in Hong Kong and should not be a cause for concern.
“Activities that advocate for Hong Kong’s independence and threaten national security have been reduced,” the statement said. “Almost all countries have their own national security laws … the international community should not adopt double standards.”
‘I feel like a dropout’
For those who have already left Hong Kong, the turmoil has been painful.
Peter Tang *, who moved to Britain in recent months, says being away has made his heart ache for Hong Kong. Having seen many of his friends arrested for participating in protests, he was concerned about being next and left without telling his friends and family.
Constantly tortured by his guilt over leaving his friends behind, he has struggled to feel at home in the UK.
“I think of Hong Kong in every waking moment, I just can’t forget that a lot of my friends are in prison,” he said. “But if they arrest you, you can’t do anything. We can only fight when we have a life. “
“Last year, we all swore to protect Hong Kong and now I feel like a defector.”
“In my dreams, I am still in Hong Kong. Some are nightmares, of course, ”he said. “I felt suicidal when I first arrived. I didn’t want to hear about Hong Kong, but then I didn’t know what to think and I didn’t know what the future holds. “
Now he hopes to help raise awareness of the Hong Kong crisis while abroad, but his acute nostalgia endures.
Tang said: “Now I am so far from everything I have been familiar with: the Star Ferry, Victoria Harbor, the beef noodles, the ‘Char Siu’ (roast pork).
“Under national security law, you can be arrested for shouting slogans, protesting and other speech offenses; I can’t accept living like this.”
All those interviewed declined to give their real names, saying they fear they will be prevented from leaving if authorities learn of their plans.
Some are hopeful that they can sustain the resistance while preserving the values and culture of Hong Kong and the Cantonese language, all of which are threatened under China’s clenched fist, while living abroad.
Kenneth Chan, a political scientist at Hong Kong Baptist University, says that “people vote with their feet” during a crisis of confidence, but “we are far from seeing the death of the opposition in Hong Kong.”
He said that no matter how many times regimes have declared “the death of the opposition” in movements like the Hungarian revolution of 1956, the Prague Spring of 1968 and the Solidarity movement of 1981 in Poland, “we are witnessing a seemingly endless cycle of opposition. -oppression -restoration of order again and again ”.
“The new generations of protesters come to the fore and the resistance refuses to go,” Chan said.
* Names have been changed to protect the identity of the interviewees.
