受國際化影響 香港本土文化日漸式微

Kennedy Town is among the few remaining districts on Hong Kong island where hole-in-the-wall noodle joints and traditional tea houses outnumber clothing stores and US coffee shops.

在堅尼地城(Kennedy Town)，不起眼的麪店和傳統茶館要多於服裝店和美式咖啡館，香港島上這樣的街區已經不多見了。

The town, named after Hong Kong’s seventh British governor Arthur Edward Kennedy, was for many years inhabited by a working-class community. Low-rise apartment blocks and industrial buildings dating back to the 1950s have yet to be knocked down despite planned redevelopment.

堅尼地城是以英國派駐香港的第七任總督堅尼地(Arthur Edward Kennedy)的名字命名的，多年來一直是工薪階層的聚居區。這裏的低層公寓樓和工業建築最早建於20世紀50年代，雖然有重新開發的計劃，但至今那些老建築仍未被推倒。

To the relief of many locals, few mainland Chinese tourists venture into this part of town. No high-end retail stores are here to sate their appetite for luxury goods. As the last stop on the tram line, Kennedy Town has developed far more slowly than other areas on the island.

令許多當地人安心的是，還沒有多少中國內地遊客闖進這片區域。這裏沒有高端零售店，滿足不了內地遊客對奢侈品的慾望。作爲有軌電車的終點站，堅尼地城的發展速度遠遠落後於香港其他片區。

However, this appears to be changing. A new subway station connecting Kennedy Town to central Hong Kong has opened, while western-themed restaurants and bars are replacing local diners. Developers are determined to revitalise the area to serve a growing number of wealthier residents, which means rents and property prices will rise. The remaining working-class community is starting to shift to the New Territories north of Hong Kong island.

然而，這一現狀似乎正在改變。一個新地鐵站已經開通，將堅尼地城與市中心連接起來。西式餐館和酒吧正逐漸取代本地小飯館。開發商決心要恢復這個片區的活力，以服務日益增多的富裕居民，這意味着租金和樓價都會上漲。剩下的工薪階層開始陸續搬往香港島以北的新界。

For many locals, these changes are yet another sign that Hong Kong’s local culture is eroding. At street level, there is a sense that the city is becoming less “Hong Kong” and more mainland Chinese in character and that the lines between both are blurring.

在許多本地人看來，上述變化是香港本土文化日漸式微的又一跡象。從街道外觀上，這座城市給人感覺正變得越來越不“香港”，越來越像中國內地，而兩地間的界線在不斷模糊。

In Causeway Bay, a crowded district on Hong Kong island, rising rents — buoyed by an influx of mainland Chinese property buyers — have forced traditional clothing stores to shut down. Only a handful of high-margin businesses, such as luxury European retailers or pharmacies selling milk powder to mainland Chinese mums, are able to afford the rents. Louis Vuitton, the French luxury retailer, has two stores in Causeway Bay and more stores across all of Hong Kong than in London.

銅鑼灣是香港的一個繁華地區，由於中國內地購房者涌入擡高了這裏的租金，傳統服裝店被迫關門。只有少數高利潤的商店能付得起租金，如歐洲奢侈品零售商或賣奶粉給中國內地媽媽的藥店。法國奢侈品零售商路易威登(Louis Vuitton)在銅鑼灣有兩家門店，全香港的路易威登店比倫敦的還多。

“Imagine 10 shops on one street, of which eight are watch and jewellery shops or pharmacy stores selling milk powder,” says Ho Chun Sing, a self-employed resident of Hong Kong who recently moved out of Causeway Bay in search of a quieter neighbourhood.

香港自由職業者何振聲（音譯）說：“試想一條街上有10家店，8家都是鐘錶店、珠寶店，或者是賣奶粉的藥店。”爲了尋找一個安靜的社區，他最近搬出了銅鑼灣。

“Do the people of Hong Kong really need that many? How do large shopping centres and entertainment complexes that cater to mainland Chinese people benefit Hong Kong residents?” What angers locals, he adds, is that the government does not seem interested in improving the lives of ordinary Hong Kong people.

“難道香港人真的需要這麼多這種店？大型購物中心和娛樂中心都是滿足中國內地人的，香港居民怎麼會受益呢？”他說，本地人感到惱火的是，香港政府對改善普通市民生活似乎並不感興趣。

Mr Ho is one of an increasing number of younger residents who believe their prospects under Chinese rule have deteriorated. Rising inequality is a key issue. Hong Kong’s property market has seen average prices more than double in the past decade, according to Centaline, a property agent.

越來越多像他這樣的香港年輕人相信，在中國統治下，他們的日子會越來越難過。日益嚴重的不平等是個關鍵問題。根據中原地產代理公司(Centaline)的數據，近十年來香港房地產市場平均價格已經翻了一倍以上。

The city’s gini coefficient, a measure of income inequality, is up 25 per cent from the 1970s and higher than in many developed countries including Singapore. Ordinary locals are frustrated with what they view as China’s rising influence in all aspects of their lives from everyday business to politics and culture.

基尼係數是一個衡量收入不平等程度的指標，香港的基尼係數從20世紀70年代以來已上升了25%，高出許多發達國家，其中包括新加坡。香港的普通市民認爲，從日常事務到政治和文化，中國越來越多地影響着他們生活的方方面面，他們對此感到不滿。

“All decisions by the government seem oriented towards serving mainland Chinese tourists,” says Pamela Low, who moved back to Hong Kong after the handover.

香港主權移交後搬回香港的Pamela Low說：“香港政府的所有決定似乎都以服務中國內地遊客爲導向。”

The frustrations of the island’s inhabitants are manifested by the increasingly common sight of a local deriding mainland Chinese visitors for behaviours such as spitting, jumping the queue or eating on the subway.

有一種現象就體現出了香港市民的不滿情緒，他們越來越經常嘲笑內地遊客隨地吐痰、插隊、在地鐵上吃東西等行爲。

The Chinese government recently introduced measures encouraging tourists to improve their etiquette when travelling abroad. Yet young Hong Kongers such as Adrian Li, who works at a law firm, remain sceptical: “The quality of mainland visitors will probably not improve in the short-run. Many Hong Kong locals would rather lose their business than have them here.”

中國政府最近出臺措施，勸告遊客在境外旅行時注意禮儀。然而像Adrian Li這樣的香港年輕人仍持懷疑態度。在律所工作的Adrian Li說：“內地遊客的素質短期內大概不會提高。許多香港本地人寧願丟掉生意，也不願內地遊客來這兒。”

Mainland shoppers made up a third of Hong Kong’s retail receipts and 10 per cent of GDP in 2013, notes Capital Economics, underscoring the city’s increasingly reliance on Chinese demand.

凱投宏觀(Capital Economics)指出，2013年香港有三分之一的零售收入和10%的本地生產總值(GDP)都是內地消費者貢獻的，凸顯了這座城市日益依賴於來自中國內地的需求。

Therein lies the challenge for the city. Until recently, Hong Kong served as shining example of capitalism that worked. As long as most locals benefited, it was acceptable to erect an 80-storey building beside a “wet market” selling fruit and vegetables. Hong Kongers managed to adapt.

這也正是香港所面臨的挑戰。不久前，香港還被當做成功推行資本主義的光輝榜樣。只要大多數本地人能受益，人們就可以接受將一座80層高的大樓建在賣水果蔬菜的“溼貨市場”旁邊。香港人設法適應了這種現實。

Today’s image of the island is more complicated. It evolves but with a sense that it is leaving many locals behind.

今日香港在世人心目中的形象比較複雜。它在前進，但感覺上它將許多港人甩在了後面。