Don’t put our young people in harm’s way
Chow Pak-chin takes issue with protest leaders who let youngsters do political ‘dirty’ work but keep their own offspring out of the fray
Our children are the future. This view is shared by us all and holds true the world over, transcending race, color and culture. In China, we care deeply about the development of our children and want nothing more than for them to have a good start in life so their futures are secure. This belief permeates Chinese traditional thinking and is clearly demonstrated — from a well-known teaching by Chinese philosopher Mencius which emphasizes “we must raise and care for other’s children the same way we care for our own”. This goes hand-in-hand with the famous closing line “Save the children” in Lu Xun’s A Madman’s Diary, which was published during the New Culture Movement in China in the early 20th century.
The spirit of this principle is to highlight how traditional Chinese teachings always articulate the important role society plays in protecting and educating our children properly.
That brings me back to Hong Kong. When I talk about protection of children, I don’t mean just from the daily exposure to potential harm and dangers, but how we adults must never mislead and put our youths in harm’s way, no matter how great the cause is. They are our future; if we gamble our future away we are effectively throwing our future away.
Many student leaders who took part in the illegal 2014 “Occupy” movement and subsequent Mong Kok riot were convicted and are serving long prison terms. Many of them not only had their political hopes dashed but possibly their future careers ruined.
These youngsters were incited by others such as Benny Tai Yiuting, the associate law professor at the University of Hong Kong who initiated the “Occupy” movement, along with fellow activist and former lawmaker Kenneth Chan Ka-lok and many other leaders of the “pan-democrat” camp to break the law to pursue their so-called ideals.
Some students who were of secondary-school age even boycotted classes at the start of “Occupy Central” in September 2014.
Many of these young people paid a high price in the “Occupy” movement and subsequent protests, losing their freedom and probably their future to a certain extent but what has that achieved? Nothing.
Sadly, I don’t see the children of the “Occupy” instigators risking their personal safety and future by standing alongside these youths during the “Occupy” unrest or other related protests thereafter. I don’t see any of their children being arrested, prosecuted and sentenced as a result of the “Occupy” movement.
It wouldn’t be unfair to say that the instigators of the “Occupy” movement had effectively “outsourced” the so-called revolutionary movement to these young students. More directly put, they have outsourced the “dirty” political work so their children could be spared the undesirable consequences. Do we not detect a sense of hypocrisy or double standards, at best?
These young people have been and are still being exploited for their political naivety, their selflessness and willingness to achieve political ideals. I fear many of them might not have a thorough understanding of the extent of potential severe consequences that might come their way beyond prison terms at the moment.
In that light, I must put forward an important question to the leaders of “Occupy Central”: If they are so determined to push for political change and full democracy for Hong Kong, why didn’t they let their children follow in their footsteps and take part in “Occupy” and subsequent protests?
Young people tend to be more idealistic and in general they make up the most politically active and impulsive part of society. It’s not a bad thing to see our youths having the courage to stand up and demand being given a voice in society to help shape a future for themselves and their families. This is worth supporting as long as their idealistic attitude and energy are not captured for the wrong reason and directed toward end goals that are anything but beneficial to them, their future and the city they call home.
It is encouraging to see our youthful population show an interest in local politics and take initiative in acting on their ideals but we still need to do our best to protect them by finding that balance between safe self-expression and, to put it crudely, keeping them out of a jail cell. Let us invest more time in protecting our children so we can protect their futures.