“All animals are equal but some animals are more equal than others”. This maxim appears at the end of George Orwell’s novella Animal Farm, which most students in local secondary schools would have come across. Increasingly, Hong Kong has come to resemble just such a farm. Coincidentally, the most talked about topic in town these days is the fate of the city’s wild boars.
In August, the city was outraged that actress Nicole Kidman and members of the production crew of a television series were granted exemption from the government’s draconian quarantine measures. This month, we heard that JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon, who made a 32-hour visit to the city, was also granted exemption. But some prominent members of the local community have undergone quarantine just like any other Hongkonger.
This brings to mind an episode that occurred during the tenure of Hong Kong’s first chief executive Tung Chee-hwa. Then secretary for justice Elsie Leung Oi-sie did not prosecute the owner of a local newspaper on the grounds that if she were convicted, it would affect the livelihoods of thousands of families.
Now, try to understand the rationale of the government for granting preferential treatment to Kidman and Dimon. Do you think Elsie Leung and Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor are birds of the same feather? Does Lam care about the pressing needs of the man in the street?
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Why Nicole Kidman’s Hong Kong quarantine exemption is unfair
Why Nicole Kidman’s Hong Kong quarantine exemption is unfair
Next, let’s turn our attention to the wild boars. Even if the government has to adopt inhumane measures to handle the problem, shouldn’t we discourage residents from feeding the animals? Maybe we should have imposed stiffer penalties on those who do so in the first place.
Not long ago, l copied the 10 great vows of Samantabhadra. The ninth is to accommodate and benefit all living beings. Wild boars and human beings are stakeholders sharing the same world. Humans are more intelligent but wild boars have a right to exist in this world too. Is killing them the only way to solve the problem?
It is important that we create harmony in our society. Some of the essential elements of harmony are equality, a caring heart and justice. Yes, we live in an imperfect world but we could still do our best to create paradise on Earth.
