Ian Brownlee

Opinion | It isn’t just Carrie Lam who needs to listen to the people. So does the whole of Hong Kong’s civil service

The civil service needs to listen, not only to the younger generation, but to everyone in Hong Kong who cares enough to march. Officials all too often ignore public input rather than taking notice of what people say they need in their neighbourhoods

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Chief Executive Carrie Lam listens during a news conference in Hong Kong on July 2. Photo: Bloomberg

Ian Brownlee

Published: 6:30am, 3 Jul 2019Updated: 6:39am, 3 Jul 2019

Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor has apologised for seeking to introduce the extradition bill that set off a wave of unprecedented protests and violence. She has said she will reform her administration’s governing style and listen to the people.

But it is not just the chief executive who needs to listen to the public – the whole of the civil service needs a change in attitude. Nor is it just the younger generation whom officials should listen to; rather, they need to listen to all the members of the community who care enough about Hong Kong to march in stifling heat and humidity and in some cases, multiple times.

In the areas of planning, land development and community support where I am involved, the public makes many positive suggestions and proposals for improvement. In almost every case, however, public input is ignored – or, worse, just rejected by the civil service without a good reason.

A repetitive process of so-called “public engagement” lasting two to three years for major policies or projects is seen as a farce by most participants. There are structured consultation events and processes but there is never any real engagement. It’s just a process that needs to be completed.

For town planning, the public has the right to send in written submissions and attend hearings. Town Planning Board members give up their own time to sit for days to hear these submissions. Inevitably, even when there are thousands of representations to be heard, government papers which guide the board recommend “no change be made to meet the representations”.

The deliberations that take place among Town Planning Board members increasingly reflect different views, with many wanting to adopt some of the good points proposed by the public. However, these debates are overridden by the directive from the government, which has taken a position before the public is even heard.