The Shandong aircraft carrier strike group’s visit to the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region left a lasting image in the hearts of the city’s residents.
The visit is widely seen as a great success in terms of publicity, both locally and globally. There was widespread media coverage of the warm reception given to the visiting crews prior to and throughout their stay in the city by different sectors of the community. Reservations for the public tours of the aircraft carrier and two other naval vessels were snapped up in seconds when tickets were released. More than 30,000 visitors from all walks of life toured the carrier and the other two ships from July 3 to 7.
Besides the official grand welcome and farewell ceremonies accorded to the fleet, thousands of ordinary residents flocked to vantage points for a glimpse of the carrier and its escort ships during their stay. Many students waved national flags to welcome and bid farewell to the fleet. Photography lovers brought sophisticated equipment to capture the best images of the vessels.
READ MORE: Hong Kong bids farewell to naval fleet led by aircraft carrier Shandong
The warm interactions between crew members and visitors to the carrier’s deck, as well as the display of advanced weaponry on board, also became headline stories over the past week. Visitors participated in the interactive displays when People’s Liberation Army Navy personnel demonstrated various weapon systems and navigational equipment. The visitors also sang along with crew members and took photos of the advanced aircraft on board, including the J-15 and J-15T fighter jets. All were amazed by the advanced weaponry.
The Shandong’s visit was more than a showcase of the nation’s naval strength; it also served to stir a strong sense of patriotism in Hong Kong residents, especially the younger generation. The visit was one of many publicity activities in recent years held to foster patriotism and a sense of national pride in the nation’s growing military strength amid a complicated and fragile geopolitical situation.
Hong Kong is the nation’s window and bridge to the world. However, it is also a vulnerable point for negative foreign influence because of its historical background. Having been separated from the motherland for more than 150 years and only being returned 28 years ago, the lack of proper teaching of Chinese history during British rule had deprived many Hong Kong residents of a clear sense of national identity and pride, making the HKSAR easy prey for foreign subversive activities, which climaxed in the 2019-20 social unrest.
Although this was not the first time that the nation’s aircraft carrier formation has visited the SAR, there were special reasons for arranging this visit. The event coincided with the 28th anniversary of the HKSAR, and 28 years of the PLA’s presence in the city. It was also the fifth anniversary of the Hong Kong SAR National Security Law (NSL) enacted on June 30, 2020 to curb the “color revolution” of 2019 that almost toppled the city. The West always uses this as a pretext to claim that the NSL is quashing the HKSAR’s freedom of speech, disregarding the fact that it is more lenient than similar laws in the West. Their fallacious logic is very simple: They can have very strict national security laws themselves, but Hong Kong cannot have more lenient ones because they will prevent them from interfering in Hong Kong’s affairs. What a double standard!
No one will deny that military forces play a pivotal role in nation-building, creating a shared cultural language that encourages unity and dedication to the nation. Actually, when the Shandong docked in Hong Kong last Thursday morning, more than 700 naval officers and sailors, dressed in white uniforms on the flight deck, formed the Chinese characters Guo An Jia Hao, meaning “safe country, sound families”, conveying warm and friendly greetings to Hong Kong residents. This spells out a clear message: The central government always looks after the HKSAR to ensure the city’s stability and prosperity.
For years, from the days counting down to 1997 and ever since, the HKSAR’s reputation has been blackened by the Western media, which have tried to portray it as a dying city. Such predictions or “curses” never come to pass. A recent survey — Asian Cities Internationality Index, which was conducted by the Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce with 11 major cities in the region participating — reveals that Hong Kong tops the list as the “most international city in Asia”.
READ MORE: Naval fleet led by Shandong aircraft carrier visit wins praise in HK
The Shandong is China’s first domestically built aircraft carrier, while the nation’s first carrier, the Liaoning, was built from the partially-completed Soviet Kuznetsov-class aircraft carrier Varyag. The Liaoning visited the HKSAR eight years ago. Both the Liaoning and the Shandong are equipped with a ski-jump take-off; however, the Shandong features some notable enhancements, such as a smaller island providing larger deck space, a more advanced radar system and a slightly larger air wing, accommodating an additional eight aircraft.
The Liaoning and the Shandong are the nation’s only two carriers currently in operation, but a third one, the Fujian, which is much larger and equipped with an advanced launch system powered by an electromagnetic system similar to that of the US Navy’s Gerald R Ford-class carriers, is undergoing sea trials. Hong Kong is the first city in the country to have hosted two active national aircraft carriers, indicating the care that the central government has for the HKSAR.
The overall military strength of China is growing, and so is the patriotism and national pride of Hong Kong compatriots. As a peace-loving race, the Chinese believe that only if you have sufficient military strength can you then engage in “being benevolent and living in friendship with neighbors”, and building a global community with a shared future.
The author is a Hong Kong-based freelance writer and an adviser to the Hong Kong Association of Media Veterans.
The views do not necessarily reflect those of China Daily.
