Dear Editor,
I am writing to express my opinion about the growing number of disorderly and irrational protests in Hong Kong. These kinds of unpeaceful protests are unacceptable and should not be welcomed by Hongkongers.
In recent years, Hong Kong is regarded as a “city of complaints”. Many Hongkongers would like to organize or join protests and demonstrations to express their discontent towards government policies or the extreme inequality in society. This type of protests used to be taken in a peaceful and non-violent way in the past. However, in recent months, many of them have gone irrational. For instance, the recent demonstration on Canton Road against Mainlanders was carried out in a disorderly way. Protesters used lots of offensive words, such as ‘Shina’ and ‘locust’, to shout at the mainlanders, showing no respect towards them. Some of them even hurled objects to the mainlanders. Our fine tradition of peaceful protest is being eroded by the uncivilized action of the radical activists. I believe that such kind of protest would actually bring more harm than good to our society.
First, such protests will undermine the social harmony and can adversely affect he stability of Hong Kong. As the protesters take violent action like hurling objects to even government officials just for venting their anger, it cannot resolve the problem but make the situation get nasty and chaotic. Dialogue and communication between the parties involved become impossible and such sentiments will even polarize the society, disrupting social order and undermining social harmony.
Besides, unpleasant marches would bring influences on teenagers’ behavior as well as their moral judgment. As everyone knows, teenagers are at as impressionable age and are easily affected by the surroundings. When many Hongkongers always take their anger to the streets and organize many irrational protests, a wrong message will be inculcated into youngsters’ minds. They will think that it is acceptable for them to behave impolitely or unpeacefully during the protest. I am afraid the minds of our future generation are already warped and the bright future of Hong Kong will be tarnished by those radical protesters. Shouldn’t there be a better way out rather than taking to the street?
Moreover, Hong Kong’s tourist-friendly reputation will be badly affected by the disrespectful demonstrations. Hong Kong has long been famous for its peaceful and rational demonstrations, if any, and it is actually one of our fine traditions and cultures. However, our fine tradition is fading out with the increasing number of unpeaceful protests in the city. These protests are deviated from the city’s core value, which has been maintained for long. No on would like to go on a holiday in a place with continuous protests and marches, right? Unpleasant protests could help nothing but drive our tourists away, hitting hard our touris and economic development in the long run.
I urge those people involved in a protest should stop expressing their opinions through violent means. Instead, the protesters should think twice before taking their grievance to the streets and protest in a peaceful and lawful way. Only by peaceful demonstrations can a brighter future be seen and Hong Kong be made a more livable place to live. It is also high time our government looked into the root of the problem causing such a widespread discontent among the locals.
Yours faithfully,
Pat Li
Pat Li