Hong Kong Tourism Braces for Blowback From New Security Bill That Threatens Autonomy
Photo Credit: View of Hong Kong from the executive club lounge balcony of the Four Seasons Hotel. Photo credit: Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts / Ken Seet
Skift Take
Any hope that a new security bill will bring back calm to Hong Kong is tempered by the grim reality it will change the very thing that makes China's freest city unique: its independence. Hong Kong is in a tight spot and with it, its travel and tourism industry.
Just as Hong Kong has turned the corner in the coronavirus crisis and tourism players are launching their first recovery steps of getting locals to vacation at home, the city is hit by a fresh round of protests over a new national security law that has far-reaching ramifications.
It's hard to imagine that unrest will stop over the next few months as the bill, approved by China parliament on May 28, goes for drafting and implementation before September. While continued demonstrations will crimp Hong Kong Tourism Board's recovery attempts, it is the long-term effect of the bill on Hong Kong's status as Asia's world city, financial hub and, consequently, travel gateway that is the big worry.
Beijing and Hong Kong authorities assert that the bill is meant to protect the city — by tackling secession, subversion, terrorism and acts that endanger national security — and not to erode the freedoms Hong Kong enjoys under the one country/two systems framework with China. The U.S., embro
