National Identity Report – Hong Kong 2015

Abstract

The predominant Hong Kong identity in 2015 was the idea of order. As mentioned in the typology section, “Order” is where the Hong Kong identity is heading towards. It is the identity category which has been consistently mentioned in most categories. In the category of political speeches and mass-elite texts, to be a Hong Konger means to uphold order in society for there to be peace, stability and progress. This stability should exist in the civil society, with a harmonious Hong Kong as an end goal. This defines how a Hong Konger should act, and how it should not as well.

“Order” is an identity category that encapsulates terms of different significance and of different extremes. The political leaders mentioned order, peace and stability in Hong Kong in the speeches analyzed and this helped to encourage citizens by reinforcing the idea of a peaceful and orderly Hong Kong to them, thereby garnering the support and cooperation of Hong Kongers to participate and join them in this discourse.

This discourse was not limited to the political leaders but had higher salience and extreme valences in both mass and elite texts analyzed. Looking more deeply at the context of 2015 as well as the various texts analyzed, the movements in 2014 had caused much disorder and disrupted the peace of citizens. In 2015, a Hong Konger would strive for balance and peace to return and be restored to the country.