Welcome back to HKFP Monitor. This week, we examine how Hong Kong officials' promotional efforts for the legislative elections involve v...
Welcome back to HKFP Monitor. This week, we examine how Hong Kong officials' promotional efforts for the legislative elections involve various government departments and are presented in meticulously planned videos filled with wordplay.
We also examine the recent controversy involving MTR exit signs, following the railway company's criticism for renaming an exit at a Ho Man Tin station to highlight a new luxury high-rise, thereby omitting reference to a long-standing public housing estate.
|HEAD IN THE GAME
What do the words "vote" and "head" share? In Cantonese, they both sound like "tau."
This characteristic has led to a series of pun-laden videos created by officials to promote the Legislative Council (LegCo) election on December 7, as part of a broader government initiative to encourage voter participation following recent elections with only patriotic candidates, which experienced unusually low voter engagement.
The legislative elections mark the second round held since Beijing revised the electoral system in 2021, restricting participation to those considered sufficiently patriotic and decreasing the number of seats that can be elected through democratic means.
Government agency websites – including those of the Health Department and the Government Laboratory – along with their social media accounts, have been filled with election-related advertisements in recent weeks. On certain sites, clicking to dismiss pop-ups that promote the elections can lead to additional election-related ads.
Outdoors, hikers spending a day in Hong Kong's rural areas are not safe. Earlier this month, ahelicopterFlying above Sunset Peak in Lantau featured a message urging people to cast their votes.
Most of the government's online platformsposts are nearly identical photosimages of officials displaying signs that urge individuals to cast their ballots, along with labels stating that participating in elections is a duty of citizenship.
But some are more innovative. On Tuesday, the Hong Kong Police Force shared areelA post on social media shows Police Commissioner Joe Chow and his three deputies at a hair salon. Chow is having his hair colored, while the deputy police commissioners are offering various color suggestions.
In the end, the hair stylist shows that Chow's hair is exactly as it was previously.
The color of your hair isn't important; understanding how to vote is what truly matters," he said, using the reversed pronunciations of "dyeing hair" and "vote." The former is said "piu tau" in Cantonese, while the latter is "tau piu.
It follows a video sharedon the Security Bureau's Facebook page at the end of last month. In the post, a dressed-up Secretary for Security Chris Tang is carefully combing his hair in front of a mirror.
Maintaining one's image through hair styling is significant; however, legislation is even more crucial for ensuring social stability," Tang stated in a voice-over, employing a pun derived from Cantonese homonyms for "hair styling" and "legislation" – "lap fat.
Puns and linguistic elements seem to be central to the government's election campaign videos. On Thursday, Secretary for Civil Service Ingrid Yeung shared avideogovernment officials promoting voter participation on social media using different Chinese dialects such as Hakka, Teochew, and Minnan.
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The MTR Corporation (MTRC) faced criticism following the recent change of Exit A at Ho Man Tin Station from "Ho Man Tin Estate/Oi Man Estate" to "ONMANTIN," the name of a newly opened luxury skyscraper, earlier this month.
ONMANTIN, located above the MTR station, was finished earlier this year. It was developed together by Great Eagle Group and the MTRC, leading to criticism that the railway company was prioritizing its own business interests.
Ho Man Tin Estate and Oi Man Estate combined contain approximately 11,000 units, in contrast to ONMANTIN, which has 990 units. Internet users note that Oi Man Estate, which has been in existence since the 1970s, is a far more recognized landmark than the new luxury skyscraper.
Opposition arose over the weekend, and byTuesday, the MTR Corporation had updated the sign to say “Ho Man Tin Est./Oi Man Est./ONMANTIN.”
The story highlights a broader trend of the MTRC renaming exits as new landmarks or housing developments emerge, sometimes causing frustration among residents who view these changes as removing elements of the past.
Right now, a comparable debate is taking place in Kowloon Bay. The station's Exit B – previously called Amoy Gardens, a major private residential area famous for being the location of a SARS outbreak in 2023 – has been renamed East Kowloon Cultural Centre, which was inaugurated this month.
The change of name took place a year ago, in July 2024, but was recently revealed following the event at Ho Man Tin MTR station.
Lawmaker Michael Tien, who campaigned with the railway company to alter the sign at Ho Man Tin MTR Station, mentioned that he is taking similar actions concerning the Kowloon Bay MTR sign. In a press statementreleaseOn Thursday, the railway company stated that it was examining the exit name and would "arrange suitable measures."
Several years ago, the renaming of Exit B at Mong Kok MTR Station from Fa Yuen Street Municipal Services Building to T.O.P. This is Our Place, a newly opened mall managed by the MTRC, drew significant attention.
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No questions, no debates:Other election updates include the start of candidate forums for LegCo election participants. Historically, leading television news channels such as RTHK, iCable, and NowTV organized their own sets of forums, with journalists acting as moderators and posing questions to the candidates.
However, this year, the government is hosting its own discussions titled "Patriots Work Together for Effective Governance." It has been reported that candidates have been instructed not to participate in those organized by media organizations.
Jeffrey Chan, a representative from the centrist organization PoD Research Institute, is campaigning as an independent candidate,toldThe Collective stated on Wednesday that he had been first invited to a forum organized by a television station. However, he was subsequently told that the event was canceled since other candidates would not be attending.
On the same day, Ming Pao stated that the three broadcasterschose to cancel their debate sessions.
In the meantime, some have noted that the government's forums are more about show than real content. During the first forum on Tuesday, which included five candidates contesting the New Territories South West geographical constituency, a large portion of the time was devoted to chanting slogans and presenting the candidates.
The host presented the contestants on four separate occasions, each time announcing their names and identification numbers while the participants waved and smiled.
There were also no discussions, and the candidates did not pose questions to their rivals – a change from the structure of earlier forums organized by television stations.
Following the candidates' discussion of their political agendas, the moderator offered them the option to either continue with that topic or pose questions to other participants. All of them chose the first option.
Media interviews sparked doubts about the forum's participants and the extent to which they were genuinely engaged. Following the forum, an iCable reporteraskedOne woman, if she could provide the names of the five candidates, but she was unable to mention even one.
Two other forum participants stated to iCable that they were required to attend, including those from a local association.
A woman stated, "We aren't entirely certain... they suddenly asked us to come here and attend this discussion."
The television channel subsequently removed the segment featuring those interviews.
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Three Hong Kong advocates demonstrated against anIsraeli consulate-backed film festivallast Saturday, urging a boycott of the event which the group claimed advanced government-backed propaganda.
They were quickly encircled and outmatched by staff from the Israeli consulate, recognized by their identification badges, along with undercover police officers and mall security.
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BBC: Tens of thousands of Chinese citizens enticed overseas and compelled to work as fraudsters – Beijing is now taking action
Rest of World: My mother and Dr. DeepSeek
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