This article is from the source 'nytimes' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/02/world/asia/for-mainland-tourists-in-hong-kong-standoff-is-both-inconvenience-and-inspiration.html
The article has changed 5 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| Mainlanders in Hong Kong See Standoff as Inconvenience and Inspiration | |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| HONG KONG — For the tens of thousands of mainland Chinese crossing the border into Hong Kong on Wednesday, the first day of China’s weeklong National Day holiday, the pro-democracy demonstrations sweeping this city were an unexpected addition to the itinerary. | HONG KONG — For the tens of thousands of mainland Chinese crossing the border into Hong Kong on Wednesday, the first day of China’s weeklong National Day holiday, the pro-democracy demonstrations sweeping this city were an unexpected addition to the itinerary. |
| Unable to stage such demonstrations on the mainland without fear of being detained or imprisoned, some said confidentially that they saw the student-led protests as an inspiration — something China’s leaders have been at pains to prevent. State censors have suppressed reports of the Hong Kong demonstrations on the mainland, scrubbed mentions from social media and recently blocked the photo-sharing app Instagram. But for many mainland tourists, the widespread sit-ins that have brought some of Hong Kong’s busiest boulevards to a standstill since Saturday were an inconvenience — a logistical challenge to a program of shopping and sightseeing. | Unable to stage such demonstrations on the mainland without fear of being detained or imprisoned, some said confidentially that they saw the student-led protests as an inspiration — something China’s leaders have been at pains to prevent. State censors have suppressed reports of the Hong Kong demonstrations on the mainland, scrubbed mentions from social media and recently blocked the photo-sharing app Instagram. But for many mainland tourists, the widespread sit-ins that have brought some of Hong Kong’s busiest boulevards to a standstill since Saturday were an inconvenience — a logistical challenge to a program of shopping and sightseeing. |
| “I don’t have any opinion about the politics of this,” Zhou Peng, 34, a businessman from the southwestern Chinese city of Chengdu, said on Wednesday as he took photos of protesters camped out on Canton Road, a normally busy three-lane street in the heart of one of Hong Kong’s most popular shopping districts for tourists. | “I don’t have any opinion about the politics of this,” Zhou Peng, 34, a businessman from the southwestern Chinese city of Chengdu, said on Wednesday as he took photos of protesters camped out on Canton Road, a normally busy three-lane street in the heart of one of Hong Kong’s most popular shopping districts for tourists. |
| “I came here over the holiday with my kid to see Hong Kong, but we can’t do that,” Mr. Zhou said, complaining about disruptions due to the demonstrations, which have included suspended bus routes, exceptional traffic gridlock over large parts of the city and even the cancellation of Hong Kong’s annual National Day fireworks display over Victoria Harbor. “This affects our trip,” he said. | “I came here over the holiday with my kid to see Hong Kong, but we can’t do that,” Mr. Zhou said, complaining about disruptions due to the demonstrations, which have included suspended bus routes, exceptional traffic gridlock over large parts of the city and even the cancellation of Hong Kong’s annual National Day fireworks display over Victoria Harbor. “This affects our trip,” he said. |
| Similarly, Lisa Bao, 26, from Zhejiang Province, stopped to take photos of the protesters at Canton Road but said they were spoiling her first trip to Hong Kong. She questioned why Hong Kong people had not staged democracy protests against their former British colonial rulers. | Similarly, Lisa Bao, 26, from Zhejiang Province, stopped to take photos of the protesters at Canton Road but said they were spoiling her first trip to Hong Kong. She questioned why Hong Kong people had not staged democracy protests against their former British colonial rulers. |
| “In the past they had the British choose their leaders, and they weren’t terribly upset,” she said. “Now they’re part of China and under our socialist system, and they choose to stand up. I’ve heard that the United States is influencing this.” | “In the past they had the British choose their leaders, and they weren’t terribly upset,” she said. “Now they’re part of China and under our socialist system, and they choose to stand up. I’ve heard that the United States is influencing this.” |
| “It’s really a pity,” she added. “I just hope that this won’t lead to chaos.” | “It’s really a pity,” she added. “I just hope that this won’t lead to chaos.” |
| For the protesters, catching the attention of mainland visitors is partly the point. In the early hours of Wednesday, demonstrators expanded their sit-in zone to the Tsim Sha Tsui district in Kowloon, which includes Canton Road and is home to dozens of luxury retailers including Fendi, Coach, Dolce & Gabbana, Prada and Louis Vuitton. | For the protesters, catching the attention of mainland visitors is partly the point. In the early hours of Wednesday, demonstrators expanded their sit-in zone to the Tsim Sha Tsui district in Kowloon, which includes Canton Road and is home to dozens of luxury retailers including Fendi, Coach, Dolce & Gabbana, Prada and Louis Vuitton. |
| “The most important reason for coming here is there are a lot of tourists, a lot of luxury stores and people from mainland China,” said Frankie Chan, 28, a Hong Kong securities broker who joined the occupation of Canton Road on Wednesday. | “The most important reason for coming here is there are a lot of tourists, a lot of luxury stores and people from mainland China,” said Frankie Chan, 28, a Hong Kong securities broker who joined the occupation of Canton Road on Wednesday. |
| “They only have limited sources of information,” he said. “We are not stopping their shopping. We are not against mainland tourists. We want to draw their attention to what Hong Kong is fighting for.” | “They only have limited sources of information,” he said. “We are not stopping their shopping. We are not against mainland tourists. We want to draw their attention to what Hong Kong is fighting for.” |
| Hong Kong, which since its return to Chinese rule in 1997 has continued to enjoy freedoms and legal protections unseen elsewhere in the country, draws more than 40 million visitors from the mainland each year. But the attitude of Hong Kong residents toward people from the mainland has grown increasingly complex. | Hong Kong, which since its return to Chinese rule in 1997 has continued to enjoy freedoms and legal protections unseen elsewhere in the country, draws more than 40 million visitors from the mainland each year. But the attitude of Hong Kong residents toward people from the mainland has grown increasingly complex. |
| Many of the students demonstrating on the streets this week were born in Hong Kong and identify less with the Chinese mainland than their parents or grandparents, who may have been born there. At the same time, some Hong Kong residents curse mainlanders as “locusts,” blaming them for a proliferation of luxury stores that have displaced businesses catering to locals, as well as a surge in housing prices that has made a basic apartment unaffordable for many. | Many of the students demonstrating on the streets this week were born in Hong Kong and identify less with the Chinese mainland than their parents or grandparents, who may have been born there. At the same time, some Hong Kong residents curse mainlanders as “locusts,” blaming them for a proliferation of luxury stores that have displaced businesses catering to locals, as well as a surge in housing prices that has made a basic apartment unaffordable for many. |
| Tony Cong, 24, who arrived from Beijing a month ago to study at Hong Kong Baptist University, has experienced some of this sentiment in Hong Kong but brushes it off, saying most locals he encounters are polite. | Tony Cong, 24, who arrived from Beijing a month ago to study at Hong Kong Baptist University, has experienced some of this sentiment in Hong Kong but brushes it off, saying most locals he encounters are polite. |
| He said he had never seen anything like this week’s protests. “I think I speak for most students from the mainland when I say, ‘Wow,’ ” he said. | He said he had never seen anything like this week’s protests. “I think I speak for most students from the mainland when I say, ‘Wow,’ ” he said. |
| “This kind of protest is totally new. We used to see it in books and documentaries, but this is the real thing,” Mr. Cong said, despite expressing some reservations. “I admire their courage and sense of citizenship, but I am strongly concerned that they might get manipulated by politicians or activists seeking to undermine relations with the mainland.” | “This kind of protest is totally new. We used to see it in books and documentaries, but this is the real thing,” Mr. Cong said, despite expressing some reservations. “I admire their courage and sense of citizenship, but I am strongly concerned that they might get manipulated by politicians or activists seeking to undermine relations with the mainland.” |
| Others were pessimistic over what the protests might ultimately achieve. Kyle Sun, from the northern central province of Hebei, has been studying journalism at Hong Kong Baptist for the past two years. | Others were pessimistic over what the protests might ultimately achieve. Kyle Sun, from the northern central province of Hebei, has been studying journalism at Hong Kong Baptist for the past two years. |
| “I don’t support the protests, but I’m not against them, either,” he said. “I think the central government won’t step back, because if they give Hong Kong more democracy, then other places like Tibet or Macau may have more problems.” | “I don’t support the protests, but I’m not against them, either,” he said. “I think the central government won’t step back, because if they give Hong Kong more democracy, then other places like Tibet or Macau may have more problems.” |
| “I feel pity for those Hong Kong protesters, because I’ve been to Admiralty many times,” he added, referring to the Hong Kong district that is home to the government headquarters and the site of the largest protests. “The weather is quite hot, and everybody is devoting their time and money to fight for democracy, but I don’t think this makes any difference because the central government will not step back to give real democracy to Hong Kong people.” | “I feel pity for those Hong Kong protesters, because I’ve been to Admiralty many times,” he added, referring to the Hong Kong district that is home to the government headquarters and the site of the largest protests. “The weather is quite hot, and everybody is devoting their time and money to fight for democracy, but I don’t think this makes any difference because the central government will not step back to give real democracy to Hong Kong people.” |
| The protests in Hong Kong have attracted an unknown number of mainland participants, who could face arrest or other official recrimination back home if their support for what the authorities have branded illegal demonstrations became known. Occasionally, they resort to creative euphemisms to describe their intentions. | The protests in Hong Kong have attracted an unknown number of mainland participants, who could face arrest or other official recrimination back home if their support for what the authorities have branded illegal demonstrations became known. Occasionally, they resort to creative euphemisms to describe their intentions. |
| “People are saying, ‘I’m going to buy an iPhone 6,’ ” one businessman from the southwestern Chinese city of Chongqing, who planned to travel to Hong Kong for the protests, had said earlier this week. Official sales of Apple’s newest smartphone have not yet started in mainland China, but the phone is available in Hong Kong, and “going to buy an iPhone 6” has become code among some politically inclined mainlanders for checking out the demonstrations. | “People are saying, ‘I’m going to buy an iPhone 6,’ ” one businessman from the southwestern Chinese city of Chongqing, who planned to travel to Hong Kong for the protests, had said earlier this week. Official sales of Apple’s newest smartphone have not yet started in mainland China, but the phone is available in Hong Kong, and “going to buy an iPhone 6” has become code among some politically inclined mainlanders for checking out the demonstrations. |
| “Most of us are going independently and quietly, as the minute you tell people you’re going or you identify yourself, they may stop you,” said the man, referring to the mainland authorities. “I want to express my support for the people of Hong Kong in their peaceful demands for real elections.” | “Most of us are going independently and quietly, as the minute you tell people you’re going or you identify yourself, they may stop you,” said the man, referring to the mainland authorities. “I want to express my support for the people of Hong Kong in their peaceful demands for real elections.” |
| Still, probably more mainland visitors are like the 30-year-old man from Zhengzhou, in the central province of Henan, who gave only his surname, Xu, and was milling outside the main entrance of the Apple store in the Causeway Bay district of Hong Kong on Tuesday. | Still, probably more mainland visitors are like the 30-year-old man from Zhengzhou, in the central province of Henan, who gave only his surname, Xu, and was milling outside the main entrance of the Apple store in the Causeway Bay district of Hong Kong on Tuesday. |
| Mr. Xu said he had been gambling in casinos in nearby Macau a day earlier, and he and a friend were using their winnings to purchase a pair of gold-colored iPhones from a gray-market vendor who was reselling the popular handsets out of suitcases in front of the Apple store. Less than a block away, several hundred students were occupying Hennessy Road, the main thoroughfare in the district. | Mr. Xu said he had been gambling in casinos in nearby Macau a day earlier, and he and a friend were using their winnings to purchase a pair of gold-colored iPhones from a gray-market vendor who was reselling the popular handsets out of suitcases in front of the Apple store. Less than a block away, several hundred students were occupying Hennessy Road, the main thoroughfare in the district. |
| “I saw the protesters,” he said, “but I’m not really familiar with the situation.” | “I saw the protesters,” he said, “but I’m not really familiar with the situation.” |