11月29日反高鐵 停撥款大遊行

Any form of protest or demonstration in Singapore is definitely a no-no but the case is totally different in Hong Kong. On weekends, you often see groups walking on the streets, holding banners, showing their discontent with certain government's decision. To most Hong Kong-er, they are so used to it and one local told me that the largest demonstration will be held on July 1st every year.

11月29日反高鐵 停撥款大遊行 is held to protest against the government's decision to build a high speed rail network from kowloon west to guangzhou. This project has gained lots of controversy since it was launched. People opposed to this for many reasons. Firstly, the project cost $65 billion dollars Hong Kong Dollars which is considered an astronomical sum. Furthermore, these $65B comes from the tax payers money. Many people do not see the need for this rail link as there are already many connections to mainland China. Secondly group of protestors are mainly the residents who will be forced to relocate due to the construction. Villagers of Choi Yuen Village, who have been living there for many years and had a sense of attachment to the place, had been told to move away. They were blaming the government for the insufficient consultation with them over moving and compensation issues. Another group are the enviromentalist who fear for the environmental damage the railroad will bring to the natural habitat in New Territorities.

CU student union is one of the organisers involved and thus all of us got an email notifying us about this event. Since I had never took part in something like this, and I may probably not get a chance to do so, I went down on sunday to take a look. I joined the demonstration and got the chance to talk to a few locals. Of course, they were very curious about Singapore's system and I similarily wanted to find out more about their view on this matter. Though most of them did feel that such protest is not going to help, they just want the government to know their thoughts. We walked down the street, held banners, holding leaves (which signify the green nature farmland which will be destroyed).

I did not stay through the whole thing as I was super hungry, so a few of us went off halfway. I read on the news the next day that a group had actually gathered in front of the legislative building and there was some form of clashes between them and the government. It seems like a few of them, perhaps the residents, really did not want their home to be destroyed and they held on till the end.

Well, many people asked why I joined since it is none of my business. Well, I went down mainly to take a look out of curiosity. I also knew a bit about the whole controversy behind this rail link and through different views, I got to see the whole picture. I feel in the short term this project may not work but in the long term, it may be beneficial as the whole of China is developing a high speed rail network. As for the villagers, development is inevitable and someday, one has to relocate. I am not in any position to say whether this project is right or wrong but I am offering this little insight. I am trying not to turn this blog post into an academic one, which i would rather save the effort for my essay.

Well, it was just a little eye-opener for me this time round.