Hong Kong netizens gathered on the road in front of the government headquarters on Friday afternoon to protest against the opening of self-drive tours from mainland China to Hong Kong. They displayed signs and banners to passing vehicles, hoping to garner support from drivers who oppose the policy.
The group, calling itself the “Anti-Hong Kong Being Planned Action,” demanded that the Hong Kong government immediately shelve the self-drive tour plan, safeguard traffic safety, and uphold the autonomy of Hong Kong people.
Another online activist group, “Ten Thousand People to Block Mainland Self-Drive Tours to Hong Kong,” has organized a demonstration at Victoria Park in Hong Kong this Sunday to protest the launch of cross-border self-drive tours between China and Hong Kong. The event has garnered responses from over 6,000 netizens. The group pointed out that allowing mainland vehicles into Hong Kong raises safety concerns, as mainland drivers are seen as reckless and prone to causing frequent accidents. Their driving habits and practices are vastly different from those in Hong Kong and pose a threat to local road safety. Moreover, opening up self-drive tours could make it easier for pregnant mainland women to enter Hong Kong to “snap up baby formula” and give birth.
Yesterday, Tik Chi-yuen, vice-chairman of the New People’s Party, stated that he plans to propose two amendments during the ongoing Two Sessions (National People’s Congress and Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference) in Beijing. One suggestion is “one way only” — allowing only Hong Kong vehicles to drive northward while banning vehicles from Guangdong Province from coming south. Alternatively, he proposed restricting mainland vehicles to only parking in the northern New Territories border area after crossing the border, and prohibiting them from entering urban areas.