Can a Westernised expat kid ever be a true Hongkonger?
Zahid Mughal reflects on an upbringing that nurtures an attachment to the city yet has kept many in a bubble, largely cut off from local culture and politics - more like a tourist, in fact
As Hongkongers find themselves in the midst of discovering their own identities and starting to ask the question of what it truly means to be a or Hong Kong person, I find myself reflecting on the children of expatriates, many of whom have grown up and lived in Hong Kong all their lives, but who don't have the slightest chance of fitting the stringent criteria to be ascribed that title.
Can these individuals identify themselves as a Hongkonger? There is no denying that they call Hong Kong home, but this is a very different "home" from what the "localist" movements preach.
For most of them, it is a "home" that is not tied to the physical place, but is instead created and maintained within the metaphysical expatriate bubble - an isolated sphere, rarely exited.
Read more: Like it or not, Hong Kong, the 'expat brat' really does exist
I recently visited an old school friend who has returned to Hong Kong to work and, looking down from the balcony of his new studio flat in Sai Ying Pun, we were in agreement that in all our years growing up in the territory, we had never ventured to this area.
It was a far cry from the recreational clubs and tourist attractions that our younger selves had considered to be distinctly "Hong Kong" - an ideal which has become permanently ingrained in our identities and one which we are not afraid to call "home".
For most of them, it is a 'home' that is not tied to the physical place, but is instead created and maintained within the metaphysical expatriate bubble - an isolated sphere, rarely exited
Despite the fact that their attachment barely scratches the surface of what the city has to offer, expatriate children should not be denied the right to call Hong Kong home. After all, their years in the city vastly overshadow the brief holidays or university periods they spend in the countries from where their passports are issued.
Read more: Expat brats: the sad by-products of colonial Hong Kong society
