The Rape of Hong Kong

Terms such as intangible heritage and collective memory are being bandied about in an effort to get the Hong Kong government to wake from its perennially destructive doze.

But these ideals are meaningless in the face of an economic system predicated upon property development. The government's maxim is simple: the older the building, the quicker it should be knocked down in favour of another skyscraper.

After all, billions of dollars are at stake.

So much of this wonderful city's history has been razed there's little left to save, which is why people went berserk when the Star Ferry pier in Central was pulled apart. The government claimed it held a public consultation, but I never heard about it; I was just as surprised as most of the population when the announcement was made of the pier's impending demise.

And now it's gone.

The public can make long lists of places and traditions it holds dear, but when developers are determined to make noise, such petitions fall on deaf ears. The powers that be are not only deaf, but blind as well; Hell-bent on pouring more concrete, they can't see the inevitable results of their own lunatic plans: a Hong Kong transformed into a sterile wasteland of shopping malls jammed full of identical stores.

People used to come here as a destination, now most treat Hong Kong as a stopover on the way to somewhere else. Visitors don't want to see cosmetics shops and Western fast-food joints, they want a taste of old Hong Kong. They want to experience the city where East meets West, where the modern clashes with a bygone era that's visible on every corner; a place where somehow, the discord works.

A place that's magical.

Phrases such as "intangible heritage" can't protect that magic. Only when people stand up, fight, and quit allowing the government to whittle away at their way of life will the magic be preserved.

If they wish to be heard, platitudes must go out the window. It's time to be blunt.

The Rape of Hong Kong must end.

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