The percentage of Hong Kong people identifying as Chinese is at a record low since 1997, according to a regular University of Hong Kong (HKU) survey released on Thursday.
The Public Opinion Programme at the University of Hong Kong (HKUPOP) interviewed 1,015 residents by random telephone survey between June 17 and 20, in the wake of a record ātwo millionā person march calling for a complete withdrawal of the cityās controversial extradition bill. It will be the last time HKUPOP releases such data before it splits from the university in July.
According to the results, the number of people who identify as a āHongkongerā is at its highest since 1997 whilst those feeling proud of becoming a national citizen of China has dropped from over one-third last year to around one-quarter this year.

āAll these indicators are at their record lows since the handover,ā HKUPOP said in a press release. āDirector of HKUPOP Robert Chung feels sorry and helpless at the result.ā
In the survey, 53 per cent of the interviewees identified as Hongkongers, while 11 per cent identified as Chinese. 12 per cent identified as āChinese in Hong Kongā, and 23 per cent identified themselves as āHongkongers in Chinaā.
When asked if they were proud of being a national citizen of China, 71 per cent said ānoā and 27 per cent said āyes.ā 90 per cent in the age group 18-29 answered āno.ā
Senior Data Analyst of HKUPOP Edward Tai said the survey, conducted after two marches against the extradition bill, āclearly reflects the impact of this incident to Hong Kong citizensā ethnic identity recognition and feelings towards the handover of sovereignty.ā

āIf we follow the usual research method of using a dichotomy of āHongkongerā versus āChineseā identity, the proportions of people identifying as āHongkongersā outnumber those of āChineseā both in their narrow and broad senses,ā he wrote. āSimilarly, the proportions of people identifying as āHongkongersā in narrow or broad senses register all-time record high since 1997, whereas the proportions of people identifying as āChineseā in narrow or broad senses register all-time record low since 1997.ā
āIn-depth analyses show that the younger the respondents, the less likely they feel proud of becoming a national citizen of China, and also the more negative they are toward the Central Governmentās policies on Hong Kong,ā he wrote.
The extradition bill would enable the chief executive and local courts to handle case-by-case fugitive transfer requests from jurisdictions with no prior agreements. But critics have raised concerns over the risk of residents being extradited to mainland China, which lacks human rights protections. The bill has been suspended following mass protests, but the government has been reluctant to withdraw it entirely.
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