If you could have a conversation with Hong Kong, what would you say to her?
The ultimate Brain Game winner will win Apple AirPods
Every Wednesday we ask our Brain Game contestants one interesting, thought-provoking or just plain quirky question. Their answers will be published anonymously in Young Post. Then readers vote for their FAVOURITE answer. We will eliminate the contestant with the LEAST votes every week until we have a winner. The ultimate Brain Game winner will win Apple AirPods.
Voting closes at midnight on Sunday.
The contestants
Contestant 1
Dear Hong Kong,
You are the Pearl of the East, the Hollywood of the East, and one of the four dragons of Asia. You are incredibly unique and possess the unbreakable power to charm anyone with a single glance.
In the past 20 years, you have faced a lot of challenges. People doubt whether you are the same Hong Kong anymore. But I believe that you never change. I trust you will fight until your last breath to safeguard your core values, which are freedom of speech, judicial independence, zero tolerance for corruption, and diversity.
When people look at Hong Kong and see the citizens born after 1990, they see a flourishing economy. Locals travel globally in style, go to exotic places in different parts of the world, and enjoy an extravagant lifestyle. This has led people to see Hongkongers as spoiled children who only care about food and travel.
That is not true. The things you cherish the most are your principles. You can live in a flat that can barely fit a bed. You can work 18 hours a day. You can line up for hours for an appointment in public hospital. You can work 10 times harder than your previous generations. You can sacrifice your good life. But you can never sacrifice your core values. These make who you are and they will continue to shape who you want to be.
In light of the recent protests over the extradition bill, it reminds us of your good qualities again. You are brave enough to stand up as a community and voice your demands. At the same time, the demonstrations were organised in an orderly and peaceful way without a leader or figure head. The protesters gave way to ambulances, cleaned up the streets, shared first aid kits and water, and offered each other resources and assistance.
You showed the magical spirit of Hong Kong! Never give up, my dear Hong Kong!
Thank you!
Contestant 2
Hello, Hong Kong! First of all, I’m very proud of your people for standing up for what they believe in – 2 million people joined a recent protest against the extradition bill. That is no joke! Also, your egg tarts and waffles are unbeatable, so I’ll give you a point for that, too.
Unfortunately, even though you’ve got an astonishing skyline and beautiful mountain peaks, a lot of your people put their heads down and stare at a smartphone screen for most of the day. They are really missing out on the wonderful things that you have to offer, so why not tell them to put their phones down and admire the things around them for a while? Besides, who wouldn’t want to go to a place like Ocean Park? C’mon, it has adorable pandas! Surely they wouldn’t want to miss that!
I’ve also heard that your health has been getting worse lately.
You’re “Asia’s World City”, no doubt, but your people need to start taking action and making big improvements to the environment that they live in. We have incredibly bad traffic and an extremely high pollution index. The smog can really get in the way of a bright summer’s day that would otherwise be the perfect opportunity to visit Ocean Park (as I said earlier)! I would imagine that you’re suffocating from all the dust and debris that’s blocking your view – maybe that explains all the typhoons in recent years, you must be really angry!
The people of Hong Kong can really do anything if they put their minds to it, so I’m sure that the environmental problems will be solved in the near future. Your handover birthday is coming up in a few days as well, so save me a few egg tarts from the party!
Keep up the good work, Hong Kong, and hopefully you’ll be feeling better soon! Happy early birthday to you!
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