National anthem blunders: correct Google search results for Hong Kong have improved after optimisation effort, technology minister says

Websites showing correct information linking the Chinese national anthem and Hong Kong have climbed Google’s search rankings after authorities optimised web pages in a bid to prevent further blunders, according to the city’s technology minister.

Secretary for Innovation, Technology and Industry Sun Dong on Sunday said official web pages with the Chinese national anthem correctly listed for searches about Hong Kong had risen in Google rankings after modifications were made to government websites.

“Our colleagues at the Office of the Government Chief Information Officer have done a lot of work recently on search engine optimisation. The ranking of websites that reflect the correct information has been greatly improved,” Sun said.

A song linked to the 2019 protests, “Glory to Hong Kong”, has been played instead of the Chinese national anthem, “March of the Volunteers”, at several sports events overseas. The latest incident took place at the Ice Hockey World Championships Division III last month after the city’s team won a match held in Bosnia-Herzegovina.

A Google search by the Post on Sunday with the phrase “Hong Kong national anthem” still found the protest song listed as the top three entries, followed by the webpage of the Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Bureau introducing the Chinese national flag, emblem and anthem “March of the Volunteers”.

When the Post searched for “Hong Kong national anthem” in Chinese on Google, the protest song still occupied the top three positions, while the web pages of the Education Bureau and Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Bureau were placed eighth and ninth, respectively.

Sun expressed regret that Google, as an internationally renowned internet search provider, had still failed to rectify the problem.