Making mountains out of molehills -- an adding to the mountain of resentment already felt by many people -- in Hong Kong

Flying on Cathay Pacific is not something 

many people are wont to do any more!

 

A few months ago, I flew on a plane for the first time since October 2019.  Like in 2019, I opted to take Cathay Pacific flights.  Something I noticed on both my flights this year: the level of English proficiency of the cabin staff appeared to have gone down.  So it came across to me as rather ironic that in recent days, reports have cropped up about a Cathay Pacific cabin crew member having made fun of a passenger's lack of English fluency (to two colleagues) after the passenger asked for a carpet (instead of a blanket).      

 

As it so happens, the passenger in question was from Mainland China (and probably didn't know (much) Cantonese either).  And probably because of that, the Cathay Pacific management felt obliged to take quick and dramatic action.  As chronicled by Aaron Busch over on Twitter: 9.59pm, May 22: Cathay Pacific says they are aware of a complaint aboard CX987, apologises[;] 2.28pm, May 23: CX says they have suspended the flight attendants involved for three days, pending an internal investigation[;] 9.43pm, May 23: Three flight attendants fired"!  As in not just the cabin crew member who did the mocking was fired but also the two of her colleagues who had listened to her! 

 

As if this wasn't already quite the reaction, the arline's CEO, Ronald Lam, also has said that he will personally lead a taskforce to conduct a review into the company's code of conduct.  But even that does not appear enough to satisfy angry Mainland Chinese social media users and Hong Kong's Chief Executive!  

 

Wading in to give his two cents on the matter, John Lee proclaimed that "The words and deeds of the flight attendants hurt the feelings of compatriots in Hong Kong and the mainland and destroyed Hong Kong's traditional culture and values of respect and courtesy".  And we also have Secretary for Transport and Logistics, Lam Sai-hung, weighing in to express "his deep concern to Cathay and [demand] that [the] management immediately improve the company's services. "I am very distressed by the inappropriate comments made by some of the Cathay Pacific cabin crew members," he said in a statement. "The incident is a serious breach of Hong Kong's reputation for service excellence, long-standing values, and ethical standards"!

 

Talk about making a mountain out of a molehill!  But that, alas, appears to be the norm as far as the Hong Kong government is concerned these days.  In recent days, John Lee also has "condemned an unusual rise in the number of requests to withdraw from the city's organ donation system, saying Tuesday that police would investigate suspicious cases.  According to the government, the city's centralized organ donation registration system received nearly 5,800 withdrawal applications in the five months since December, when the government raised the possibility of establishing an organ transplant mutual assistance program with mainland China"; a number that is significantly higher than normal.

 

Obviously, what is getting the goat of the government is that the withdrawals can be seen as "a form of subtle protest against proposals to establish deeper medical ties with mainland China".  As The Guardian article about this noted: "Many Hongkongers are mistrustful of the health system in mainland China. Fears about organs harvested from prisoners are especially common.

 

But since organ donation is a voluntary thing in Hong Kong, people surely have a right to decide to change their mind about donating their organs just as they have a right to decide whether to take part in the organ donation scheme or not in the first place?  In which case, it would again be making a mountain out of a molehill to ask the police to investigate the withdrawals.  As is getting the police (and lawyers?) to determine if laws were broken in the process?

If nothing else, this is just going to result in even more resentment along with derision at the authorities on the part of Hong Kongers.  Already, someone has been moved to post the following on the LIHKG discussion forum: "We have nothing for you to take away, you took it away, and now you even want to take our organs, right?"

 

And over on Twitter, Australian professor Kevin Carrico was moved to note the following: "[Hong Kong] in 1997- the city will maintain its way of life for 50 years without changes [versus Hong Kong] today- if you choose to no longer donate your organs we will be opening a national security investigation on you".  What a joke, right?

Speaking of jokes: I'm not sure how long it will stay on Youtube but check out this video in which American comedian Paul Ogata pokes fun at the Hong Kong Tourism Board's "Hello Hong Kong" campaign (and slogan).   As the saying goes, sometimes you have to laugh; otherwise you'll cry.  Sadly, that's a feeling I've come to know too well as a resident of national security law-era Hong Kong. :S