South China Morning Post
February 24, 2008 Sunday
Bureaucracy a hurdle too high
Olympic dreams are being shattered by official inaction and red tape
over eligibility. Vaudine England reports
"I know for a fact that it’s not going to happen for me," says
Jennifer Chang Ren-hui – Hong Kong’s best show jumper in the current
rankings, acknowledging she won’t be riding in the Olympics. Chang
trains every day and dropped her career two years ago to concentrate
on qualifying to represent Hong Kong in the Olympic Games this year.
Instead, she has had to let her dream go because no one in the Hong
Kong administration can confirm whether or not she would be eligible
to compete.
"It’s heartbreaking," says Chang. "I’ve put the last two years of my
life into this dream of going to the Olympics, and it’s been two
years of frustration, of not getting an answer. I have the best
results, the highest rankings. Why am I not out there?"
Chang is not alone. Cases abound in the history of Hong Kong sport
where people of multiple nationalities yet with strong ties to Hong
Kong, their home, have not been allowed to represent Hong Kong.
Prompted by the sports problems, questions are now being raised about
how to define a Hongkonger.
Does getting a Hong Kong SAR/Chinese passport require Chinese
ethnicity? Experts say that in theory it is not racially defined, but
aside from a few high-profile exceptions, in practice it seems to be.
In Chang’s case, her grandfather Chang Hsin-hai was China’s
ambassador to Poland, Portugal and Czechoslovakia in the 1930s and
’40s. He grandmother Chang Siang-mei was a noted professor.
If Hong Kong wants to be an international city, why is it not more
flexible with people of mixed ancestry? Is the seven-year
qualification period to become a permanent resident too long?
Back in 1950 when the International Olympic Committee first allowed
colonies to send teams, it clarified that for Hong Kong that meant,
regardless of ethnicity, athletes had to hold British passports.
Now, after the handover, they must hold Hong Kong passports, which
means they must first achieve seven years’ residency – thus becoming
a permanent resident. The rules for getting a passport state one must
be "a Chinese citizen", which is where it becomes difficult for some
Hong Kong people who may have some Chinese ethnicity, but not full,
or who perhaps are not Chinese at all.
Lawyer and legislator Margaret Ng Ngoi-yee says the law requires
Chinese ethnicity for citizenship, although one or two people have
been naturalised Chinese.
"But if the question is that of representing Hong Kong, then why is
Hong Kong Permanent Resident status not enough?" asks Ms Ng. "That
would be within the spirit of ‘one country, two systems’ and in line
with Hong Kong’s status as a world city. And the international
character of Hong Kong is also important to China."
She says it is hard to characterise the Chinese nationality law as
racist, as international conventions on the issue usually exempt
national identity.
"But it could be seen as deeply unfair," she adds.
Contrast Chang’s case with that of badminton player Zhou Mi. She came
here a year ago under the Quality Migrants Admission Scheme and is
ineligible for Beijing, but the Hong Kong Olympic Committee is making
a case to the IOC for special dispensation.
The key seems to be a lack of clarity on what makes someone eligible,
and the Sports Federation and Olympics Committee of Hong Kong (SFOC)
website offers no clues. Calls and questions to the SFOC, headed by
Timothy Fok Tsun-ting, went unanswered.
"The problem comes from the difficulty of getting a Hong Kong
passport if you are not able to obtain Chinese nationality. It would
perhaps be helpful if these two aspects could be disconnected," says
Edwin McAuley, vice-president of the Hong Kong Equestrian Federation,
who has been helping Hong Kong riders qualify.
Population policy experts see the problems, but take different views.
"The seven-year requirement is longer than in many other countries,"
says Jianfa Shen, a professor in geography and resource management at
Chinese University. But it’s complicated, he adds.
"On the one hand, after seven years, one gets permanent residency
rights in Hong Kong and can return to Hong Kong any time in the
future. This is different from other countries, where one must
acquire nationality to get such rights. On the other hand, talented
people may find it hard to get residency rights in Hong Kong where it
requires seven years," says Professor Shen.
The Working Group on Population Policy, recently disbanded after
making a slew of recommendations to the govern ment, did not discuss
the seven-year rule because "no one thought it was an issue", says
demographer Paul Yip, associate professor in social work and social
administration at the University of Hong Kong, and a member of the
working group.
It is in sport where the identity and nationality problem appears
most acute.
It is not easy for the government to bend the rules in some cases,
says Dr Yip. He says the Immigration Department "works very
defensively – their approach appears to be to stop people coming".
This is unfortunate, he says, at a time when Hong Kong badly needs to
expand its population and its talent pool to compete internationally
in all fields.
In this context, the Equestrian Federation has been on the front line
in a struggle over the shifting sands of what defines a Hongkonger.
The question is not simply about residency, but the ability to
represent Hong Kong internationally.
The federation first made representations to the SFOC early last
year, seeking an outline of the requirements for individuals who were
not Hong Kong passport holders. No clear answer emerged, leaving many
of those involved critical of the delays and lack of clarity. In some
cases, it has come down to an unwillingness to let go of a foreign
passport in order to get a Chinese passport. In others, applications
for a Chinese passport have been rejected.
In Chang’s case, she misses out on acquiring permanent residency by
the time of the Olympics by just two months.
"My husband is a permanent resident. Hong Kong is home. We’re buying
a house. I got married here. I’ve been representing Hong Kong for
five years. I represented Hong Kong in the Asian Games in Doha, in
December 2006," says Chang. "So I was surprised in April 2007 when
the SFOC said it was considering eligibility on a case-by-case basis
and I would have to go back into the pot and be reconsidered."
When she competed for Hong Kong at Doha, Chang relinquished her
affiliation with the US Equestrian Federation – now in horse-riding
terms, she is stateless.
Since then, nothing has moved on Chang’s case. She applied for
permanent residency and a Hong Kong passport and was rejected. Her
father was born in Shanghai, but that did not help her case. Nor does
the fact that her Chinese grandparents, a diplomat and a professor,
have been honoured for their contributions to China. Born in the US,
with an American mother, is she perhaps not Chinese enough?
The case of Jennifer Lee Ming-hua, ethnically non-Chinese yet a
permanent resident, suggests race alone does not determine
eligibility – although her unwillingness to let go of her American
passport in order to get a Chinese one, if that is possible, leaves
her eligibility in doubt too.
The SFOC applied earlier this year for several exceptions to be made
by the International Olympic Committee, to enable Lee, Chang,
Charlotte Morse and Aram Gregory to ride for Hong Kong.
Gregory has permanent residency, but not nationality, and has
represented Hong Kong in dressage in the past two Asian Games. "My
family origins are Armenian, but as a family we’ve lived in Hong Kong
for the last 80 years, and that is very much home to me. In terms of
Olympic eligibility, I’ve applied for an exemption for the
nationality requirement. This process is ongoing, and so I’m very
hopeful," she says.
But that will be too late for riders such as Chang who do not already
have their horses registered.
The deadline to have the horse approved by the IOC was December 31.
Chang had a horse and sponsor to pay for it lined up – but without
confirmation of her own eligibility had to let the horse go.
"From where I sit, it’s been very bureaucratic. Nobody’s been willing
to push the envelope to find out the actual situation," she says.
Chang is now focused on competing in the World Cup Qualifiers in Las
Vegas in March next year. She is polite compared with other athletes
who have found themselves unable to represent Hong Kong in the
highest international arena.
One mother of another athlete of mixed parentage – half Chinese and
half European – is anguished to this day over the inability of her
child to compete for Hong Kong at a previous Olympics.
"It’s a Mafia! I want to tell other parents, I share their anger,
desperation, the sorrow and regret. I see it as race discrimination,
pure and simple," the mother says.
"My child was international standard, had been in an under-18
Olympics team then was asked to join the Hong Kong team. I was born
in Hong Kong. But he was never allowed to compete for Hong Kong.
"I don’t know why. There is a lot of politics and competition over
money. We were in training and ready to take part, and then just
three months before the Olympics, a phone call in the middle of the
night said: ‘You have to get a Hong Kong passport.’ There was no
time.
"We made so many sacrifices, dropping studies to train, paying all
the bills. But the administration was so incompetent."
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress