The Hong Kong government appears to have prematurely launched its own Smile Campaign on World Smile Day, which is usually observed on the first Friday of October. Yes, it's another government campaign, this time as part of an effort to encourage Hong Kongers, especially service workers, to smile, show hospitality and courtesy to attract tourists. Director-General of the Culture, Sports and Tourism Department Yeung Wan Hung said authorities are coordinating efforts to promote the campaign across the service industry and government departments.
So if we all smile more, tourists will come. Of course, it's important to be welcoming to tourists. And it starts with something as simple as a smile. For example, if you're genuinely happy and smiling and someone asks you for directions, you're unlikely to walk away.
But smiling on its own can be a superficial act – as World Smile Day suggests, making the effort to smile on specific days is a reminder of the importance of spreading happiness, kindness and positivity through simple actions – but therein lies the point – a smile is an expression of true positivity.
If Yang digs below the surface, he may find out why Hong Kong people are in a bad mood. In fact, all it takes is a refresher. Last year, the government only launched the “Happy Hong Kong” campaign, a series of activities to encourage people to go out and spend more after the COVID-19 pandemic. The “normal” that the government probably envisioned has yet to emerge, and it is clear that the city is still struggling with the new normal, with locals fleeing Hong Kong on weekends in search of better deals and services, night markets still languishing, and shops and restaurants closed. It is easy to understand how difficult it is to put on a smile under such circumstances.
A pedestrian stands near a closed store in Hong Kong on February 25. Photo: Bloomberg
And when a Schroders survey last week revealed that the average Hong Konger faces a HK$2.4 million (US$307,298) gap between their expected retirement expenses and the money available in their pension funds, I found it hard to laugh myself.
Nearly three-quarters of 1,000 compulsory provident fund members surveyed believe they will need to continue working past their expected retirement age to make ends meet. Needless to say, my stress levels soared when I saw the shortfall. It seems the rat race has been extended indefinitely. It's one thing to choose to work after retirement age for fulfillment and satisfaction, but quite another to have to work past your prime simply to survive. And with rising public transport and utility costs, it's hard to be optimistic. Many Hong Kongers are in survival mode, and the stress that comes with it is having a serious impact on our mental health, regardless of age. The mental health epidemic facing Hong Kong won't go away just by laughing more.
Passengers stand in front of a fare meter at Kowloon Tong subway station on April 12. Photo by Jerry Tse Happiness comes from within and is also influenced by the environment in which we live. In the World Happiness Report released in March, Hong Kong dropped in the rankings for the third consecutive year, to 86th out of 143 countries and regions surveyed. Finland came in first, while Singapore topped the Asia-Pacific region at 30th. Mainland China was 26 places above Hong Kong. We can't blame Yang for only focusing on tourism, sports and culture. But it's important for the whole government to understand that telling people to smile more or calling on taxi drivers to be more polite doesn't work. We can't continue with superficial campaigns without placing more emphasis on tackling the underlying issues facing Hong Kongers. The same can be said about raising the birth rate. The government must do more to make child care more accessible in order to reverse the decline in the birth rate. Our life expectancy may be one of the longest in the world, but we're nowhere near happy enough to enjoy our days ahead.
Again, there is still a long way to go in terms of increasing the happiness of Hong Kong people.
Alice Wu is a political consultant and former associate director of the UCLA Asia Pacific Media Network.
