Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying attended Youth Summit 2016 yesterday, in which he talked about urban planning and the role of youth in social affairs. His words were sincere which were quite welcomed by the audience. However, at the question and answer session, a couple of young people accused the government of suppressing Occupy Central with tear gas two years ago, and even hurled abuses at the CE. In the end they were expelled out. Their behaviour was really disgusting.
This is of course some individuals' behaviour. But it exactly shows the "special quality" of some young people today. That is, they just stubbornly stick to their own views, completely refusing to listen to any different voice let alone accepting any criticism. They know nothing about courtesy and respect, so that whenever they hear of something disagreeable they immediately rebut with sarcastic remarks, refusing to communicate. Whenever there is something wrong, it is always others' fault and the government is held responsible. They never examine themselves to see whether they are responsible or make mistakes. From rude words at the forum to the law-breaking Occupy Central and the recent "oath-taking" farce staged by Sixtus Baggio Leung Chung-hang and Yau Wai-ching, all point to the same problem. Behind such "out-of-place" words and deeds are being ignorant of history and reality, irrespective of laws, regulations, duties and responsibilities. With their noses in the air, they give the reins to their passion, unaware that they get into big trouble until they break laws or cross a "bottom line".
Right now, what is perplexing and worrying social personages is the coming into being and spread of the "Hong Kong independence" idea among young students. The coming into being of the issue of "independence for Hong Kong" and its possible consequences exactly epitomise the youth problem in the current SAR and show the nature of this problem.
On this, some people think "Hong Kong independence" can go nowhere at all, therefore there is no need to "go to war" against it. This is a "layman's" talking who do not understand the youth problem at all.
As a matter of fact, for some "Hong Kong independence" activists" such as Ray Wong Toi-yeung, Edward Leung Tin-kei, and, recently, Leung Chung-hang and Yau Wai-ching, whether "independence for Hong Kong" could be succeeded is out of their consideration. They want to pursue "democratic self-determination" and "our city being up to us", to "get back Hong Kong's autonomy" with "independence for Hong Kong" as an alternative, simply because they "dislike the communist party" and "we were not consulted about Hong Kong's return to China's sovereignty in 1997".
For this "post-handover" generation who are completely ignorant of history and reality, the nation's history and sufferings belong to the previous generations, nothing to do with them. Hence there is no need for them to make any commitment, but on the contrary, people in power "have no power" to stop them from "putting their ideals into practice"...
Therefore, facts are before our eyes. The coming into being of the "Hong Kong independence" problem shows that education including national education and patriotic education since the handover have not achieved due effects, failing to positively inspire and guide young students. Officials of the education authority have put priority on "curriculum reforms", "cutting" education into teaching hours and scores in examination papers and distributing them as "commodities". As a result, Chinese history is not made a subject and traditional literature is removed from the Chinese language subject, Apple Daily becomes the "teaching text" of general studies and loving the national and Hong Kong is replaced by resisting China and making rouble in Hong Kong. Students are "brain-washed" in the true sense of the term.
This is the case for secondary schools. Universities are even worse. At graduation ceremonies, some students could have turned their back to the presiding vice-chancellor and the chancellor and "bowed three times", without being given any punishment. How is it possible that the evil trend would not run rampant, that such university graduates as Leung and Yau would not take pleasure in talking about "Shina" and "Fxxking" China?
28 November 2016
