Gender Inequality in Hong Kong Essay Sample

Hong Kong- we pride ourselves on being the enlightened city of the East. 1981. The Legislative Council legalised abortion. Mid 1990s, the number of female students enrolled in higher education surpassed that of males. 1995. The Sex Discrimination Ordinance came in effect, prohibiting discrimination based on gender. 2017. Hong Kong elected its first female Chief Executive. 

Despite the facade of advancements, Hong Kong is far from equality. While many feminist movements such as #MeToo or HeFORShe have gained traction across the world, all have failed to make a significant impact on Hong Kong and its citizens. The city remains silent on gender issues, which stalls the progress of equality. 

The major challenge now, however, is no longer ensuring the legal framework includes women and girls. It is to resolve the internalised misogynistic beliefs that unfortunately, remains insurmountable. The older generation is still conservative- perhaps they believe covering up is the optimal solution to avoid sexual harassment. From a young age, girls are told to avoid wearing provocative clothes while boys are not subjected to the same standards imposed on girls. Protective measures, they claim. However, it is exactly these protective measures that teach girls to hide their bodies, that they should be ashamed of their natural figures, that they themselves incite harassment. Starting from a young age, girls are taught to be ashamed of their own identity when the problem does not lie within themselves. Victim-blaming is of course part of the problem, but the underlying issue is the notion of dressing and behaving “appropriately” becomes entrenched in women’s minds. Critising a woman for who she is is a direct attack on her identity, and the fact that the attack is likely from someone of her own sex, who has probably experienced the same, makes women even more vulnerable. Some recognise the rules are unfair but they fear the ostracisation they might face if they speak up. Yet surely and eventually, women learn to navigate through the arbitrary red tapes in their lives and in that process, resign and rationalise the unspoken restrictions imposed on them. Misogyny is subtle, yet deeply entrenched in women’s minds, and it is this subtleness that makes addressing sexism challenging.

The inequality, of course, is not purely internal and self-imposed. When women step into the workplace, males who are not used to the additional competition perceive those young, educated women as a threat to their manhood. A recent study jointly-published by two local universities concluded that among young, university-educated males, “compliance with traditional women’s roles” was rated the most important quality for an ideal female partner, ranking above “independence and abilities”. Equally concerning is that a significant number of participants acknowledged that they would be unwilling to accept a female partner with a higher education level or income, citing “inferiorness” as their rationale. Ironically, men tend to prefer women who are ambitious in their careers. The duality illustrates that even though males might not openly admit to supporting the traditional role of the woman as the meek and submissive housewife, they fear their masculinity would be stripped away by the shifting power dynamics in their personal lives. Strong and independent women are celebrated until they become a direct threat to men. It is not solely men’s fault; we are going against a patriarchal system that constantly pits men against women. The father is the ultimate authority figure in the traditional Chinese family structure as they are expected to be the provider and must bear the financial burden of the family. Now that the female has become more competent, males believe they have been welcoming and open-minded to the newfound equality in the house, or simultaneously, loss of total authority when their subconscious belief in the strong male myth has never been dispelled. 

Hong Kong has been making progress, but it is far too little and too slow. What Hong Kong needs is to address the remains of misogyny from the past. To do that, we need to stop sidelining gender issues. Encourage conversations and discussions on equality.  Eliminate gender stereotypes. We need to raise a generation that is aware of their own prejudices before a paradigm shift of attitudes can occur. We are so firmly entrenched in the belief we have achieved equality, and in that process, we fail to recognise the subtle sexism in our lives. Our challenge is not a single shortcoming, instead, it is the failure to acknowledge the omnipresent underlying misogyny, which ultimately undermines the progress of women’s rights.