The city’s future lies in discarding the prejudice that has clouded its judgment to embrace mainland success and align with the national trajectory
3-MIN READ3-MINDong LeiDong Lei is an independent observer of Chinese politics and history, with a particular interest in China’s evolving role in global affairs. Published: 5:30am, 23 Aug 2026After many years in Hong Kong, with some sadness, I left the city for greener pastures, though my link with it remains an emotional one.
At the crossing, the tone of the officials was almost playful: “Are they kitties or doggies?” Once it was clear the dogs had been mine for years and that their vaccinations were valid, there was no problem at all.
By contrast, Hong Kong’s Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department, which must endorse the papers prepared by private vets, while helpful, also seemed rigid. While waiting there, I overheard another applicant say she had no confidence in Chinese bureaucracy, insisting Hong Kong’s was better. That assumption, in my experience, was simply not true.
Too many in Hong Kong still cling to an outdated picture of mainland China, assuming superiority while ignoring its rapid improvements. China’s central and local governments have invested heavily in improving the country, and the results have been acknowledged, even by sceptics.
09:07How can Hong Kong’s service sector win residents back from the mainland?I often think of Diwu Lun, a minister in the Eastern Han dynasty who had a reputation for impartiality. He said he once rejected a man who offered an excellent horse as a bribe in return for a recommendation but couldn’t stop thinking about it. He also said that when his nephew was ill, he visited the boy 10 times in a night but could sleep soundly afterwards, yet when his own son took ill, he slept not a wink. How, he asked, can one be truly impartial?
