SHAPING UP FOR THE 21ST CENTURY
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though there is no denying that a good many people of greater than average ability are leaving Hong Kong. This is a real loss though not all the consequences are adverse. Positions left empty are being filled by people promoted before they had reason to expect it. What these young people lack in experience they make up for by energy and the thrill of unexpected responsibilities. These newly promoted will be much less likely to leave, for they will feel themselves lucky to be where they are. The really able are not leaving because they have too much to lose here. There is still a long way to go before serious damage will be done to the community by the loss of those leaving.
One group of immigrants that will have departed before the end of the decade is the last of the Vietnamese refugees. Although the Vietnam war was so close by, all Hong Kong was to do was provide rest and recreation for forces on the South Vietnamese side. The war's aftermath has been more traumatic. The first of the refugees arrived in May 1975, nearly 4 000 having been picked up at sea by one ship. Those who followed in the late 1970s were the result of a programme of racial persecution of the Chinese who fled in unseaworthy boats. Many were lost at sea. In 1979, over 66 000 arrived in the first seven months of the year. There was world sympathy for these people and resettlement went well. As time passed the numbers arriving declined and so did the rate of resettlement. There was a resurgence of arrivals in 1988 and 1989 when over 50 000 arrived but this time most were people leaving a poverty stricken country to seek a better life. Many came most of the way by bus. It has been a long struggle to gain acceptance of the new nature of this influx which is no different from the pressure of illegal immigration from China. This recognition does seem to be gaining acceptance and as Vietnam moves towards normal relations with the rest of the world the problem will pass. However, Hong Kong will still need to maintain its present vigilance for illegal immigration from the whole region.
The Place We Live In
By the next century the new airport and all its infrastructure will be in place. The present arguments will be history just as are those that preceded the building of the Mass Transit Railway (MTR) and, before that, the first cross-harbour tunnel. And believe me there were furious arguments about those works. The establishment - government and business – was against the tunnel. Let all those people from Kowloon over to the Island on a race day! In any case it would not pay. For a time it looked as if there would only be one tube. Private enterprise, eventually with government support, won the day - thank goodness. The MTR debate was more like the debate about the Chek Lap Kok airport. It was going to be far too expensive, it would be a burden on the tax-payer, it could not be built - how could you dig up the whole of Nathan Road? Well it was built, and fast, and although the MTR is the biggest borrower in Hong Kong, people continue to lend money to it, with confidence.
The exciting challenge for the next century is what happens when airport height restrictions have gone from Kowloon and there is no longer any obstacle to filling in the stinking bay between Hung Hom and Yau Tong, absorbing the old airport. There will then exist an opportunity to double the size of Kowloon and build to the sky.
Population will increase over the 20 years from 1986 by 18 per cent and it will slow down. Doubling the area of Kowloon will produce much more space than that. We often produce statistics to show how prosperous we are but we do not often point out that most of us live in a one room flat. Space is short and the price of accommodation is high. With more space this can be alleviated. The buildings in Kowloon will age. The wit of the