More than 40 per cent of Hongkongers want to emigrate amid ongoing protests, survey finds
- According to Chinese University survey, 42.3 per cent of respondents want to move abroad permanently, compared with 34 per cent in December last year
- Most people want to move to Canada, Australia or Taiwan citing factors such as ‘political disputes’ and ‘lack of democracy’
More than 40 per cent of Hongkongers want to emigrate amid the ongoing social unrest, according to a recent survey by Chinese University, compared with around a third of respondents who gave the same answer in December last year.
The Hong Kong Institute of Asia-Pacific Studies at the university interviewed 707 individuals by phone between September 20 and 26, with 42.3 per cent indicating they would emigrate if they had a chance. In December 2018, 34 per cent of respondents had given a similar response.
Of those who would like to move abroad, 23 per cent had already started planning for emigration.
Releasing the survey results on Thursday, the university said the top two push factors for respondents planning to move abroad were “too much political dispute or social cleavage” (27.9 per cent) and “no democracy in Hong Kong” (21.5 per cent).
About one-fifth of the respondents showed no confidence in Beijing and the city’s overcrowded living conditions.
