The people of Hong Kong are today more receptive to the
mainland, a commentator said in an exclusive interview on
Monday.
Hong Kong marks the 10th anniversary of its return to the
motherland on July 1.
Cao Jingxing, a senior analyst with Phoenix Television, said
this is evidenced by the fact that many Hong Kong people are now
learning Putonghua. The city's main languages are English and
Cantonese.
Cao moved to Hong Kong from Shanghai almost 20 years ago and
since then has observed Hong Kong's society as a journalist
would.
He told Phoenix Television that today knowledge of Putonghua had
become a prerequisite to finding a good job in Hong Kong.
Hong Kong universities are also keen to accept more mainland
students. In the early 1990s, an average of 100 students a year
went to Hong Kong to study.
Last year, the University of Hong Kong accepted 270 mainland
students.
Cao describes in his book, Ten Years in Hong Kong, that people
born during the British occupation despised mainland Chinese.
The situation has changed since the return in 1997.
"There is no doubt that some people in Hong Kong still think
themselves as more internationalized and civilized, but most have
changed their way of thinking in the past 10 years," Cao said.
He said it is the mainland's economic benefits to Hong Kong that
has largely changed the mindset.
"After the last British governor Chris Patten left Hong Kong the
city was hit by the Asian financial crisis in 1998. Hong Kong would
have had to endure a much longer and more miserable era, had it not
been for the firm ties between Hong Kong and Beijing," Cao
said.
Even before 1997, the Pearl River Delta was already home to a
large number of Hong Kong's manufacturing enterprises.
The central government has granted Hong Kong many preferential
policies such as tax exemptions for Hong Kong-made goods, easier to
travel to the city, and the signing of Closer Economic Partnership
Arrangement (CEPA).
More recently, lenders were allowed to issue RMB bonds in Hong
Kong.
Cao said of all Asian economies, Hong Kong is the largest
beneficiary of Chinese mainland's development.
Lured by business prospects, Hong Kong people are increasingly
looking to the mainland, he said.
However, some issues still remain.
The middle class, a generation that grew up under British rule,
still lack a sense of belonging to China, Cao said.
They do not know much about Chinese history and culture, and
some do not acknowledge their Chinese identity.
The next generation is also a concern, Cao said.
As more highly qualified people come to Hong Kong, young people
are facing fierce competition. Hong Kong's education system does
not equip the young with enough knowledge, so many of them will
find it difficult finding jobs on graduation.
"But we cannot blame Hong Kong's return for this," Cao said.
"The whole environment has changed."
However, these issues should not eclipse the general success of
Hong Kong in the past 10 years, he said.
Its economy has recovered since mid-2003, and the city is once
again a leading financial hub.
Time Magazine apologized in its latest edition for its sister
publication Forbes' incorrect prediction a decade ago that Hong
Kong would gradually die after its return.
So the question arises: Can cross-Straits relations be settled
by following Hong Kong's pattern?
He suggested the three direct links - trade, mail and
transportation - should be achieved first, and through these links,
the two sides will gradually integrate with each other.
Once economic reunification is realized, a political resolution
will be achieved eventually, Cao said.
(China Daily June 21, 2007)