Letters | How Hong Kong could help expats feel at home

Readers discuss why more notices in the city should be in English, the lack of clarity on Expats’ unavailability, unread English books, and bringing back in-town check-in

Hong Kong economy

Letters

Published: 11:30am, 30 Jan 2024

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I am writing in response to the letter, “Hong Kong is still attractive to expats – just walk around Happy Valley Racecourse” (January 22).

I totally agree that Hong Kong remains attractive to expats and that the media in general tends to reflect only the negatives.

The government trumpets Hong Kong as “Asia’s World City” and tries hard to attract international talent which the city really needs if it intends to maintain its status as an international financial and commercial hub. If Hong Kong wants to attract expats and retain those who are already here, the government needs to make sure that they feel included, part of the city and able to enjoy all that the city has to offer.

The first thing that needs to be addressed is ensuring that all government department-related notices are bilingual. A good example is a letter from an expat permanent resident who wanted to vote but found that nearly all information about candidates was in Chinese. He felt he belonged enough to want to vote but it seemed like he’s not expected to.

The government must not forget there are also many Hongkongers who were educated abroad and may not be able to read Chinese. The government was disappointed with the low turnout for the district council election, but some might have actually been shut out.

I live in an area where expats have a presence, but I often see notices in the area by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department promoting activities that could be of interest to them in Chinese only. The government puts a lot of effort into organising activities to make life more enjoyable for residents, and these activities help make Hong Kong an attractive place to live, for locals and expats. So please make them known in English too. Hong Kong needs to be bilingual to be a world city; both Chinese and English are dominant languages of the world.

B. Kwan, North Point

Give us the facts on Expats’ unavailability

I refer to the unavailability of the television series Expats on Amazon Prime in Hong Kong. There seems to be a misperception on social media that this is due to censorship by the Hong Kong government.

To ensure the public discourse is grounded in fact, rather than speculation or misinformation about Hong Kong’s freedoms, it is important for the Hong Kong government to clarify whether it influenced Amazon’s decision to not distribute the television series in the city.

Unlike Netflix and Disney, Amazon is not a dominant streaming service in Hong Kong, where most people prefer programmes in Chinese. Expats, with its English content and modest audience score on Rotten Tomatoes, is clearly tailored for a different market. Thus its absence should not be hastily attributed to government intervention.

Given the Hong Kong government’s support for the Expats filming crew, including a quarantine exemption for Nicole Kidman and on-ground assistance, there should be a reasonable expectation of reciprocity. I urge the government to review its partnership with the filming team and ensure future productions assisted by the government are accessible to locals, perhaps through avenues like the Hong Kong Public Libraries, enriching our cultural tapestry.

Simon Wang, Kowloon Tong

A book not read is a book not enjoyed

I refer to the letter, “Why selling old books would be a win-win for libraries and readers” (January 24).

Your correspondent may be as surprised as me to find many English books sitting quietly in libraries, collecting dust.

I used to visit Fanling Public Library, where books on the British royal family were my favourites. I also enjoyed Tom Bower’s depiction of the scandalous private life of Boris Johnson, which had me racing through the pages.

Reading is fruitful, and stories can stay with you for a lifetime. Libraries could excerpt from these neglected books, highlighting the fun bits, to invite people to read and discover the value of these assets. Otherwise, even if old books are replaced with new ones, they will also collect dust.

Edmond Pang, Fanling

Can’t government help bring back in-town check-in?

Why is it that about a year after Hong Kong reopened, the MTR still can’t offer in-town check-in service other than for Cathay Pacific at Hong Kong station, and only until 3pm?

The in-town option marked the efficiency of Hong Kong International Airport, and was great for all users of the airport. It’s not clear why it is that so long after the city’s reopening, this critical component of airport service is still mostly moribund. Since the MTR is largely owned by the government, surely they should explain to us, the taxpayer, why they have been unable to revive the service.

If the hold-up is with the airlines, what are the hurdles for resumption (excessive rent, perhaps?) and what can the government do to help facilitate revival? If we are serious about revitalising Hong Kong as a tourist destination, restoring basic functionality of our transport infrastructure would be a good start.

Lawrence Zhang, Mid-Levels