Revamping the Hong Kong Museum of History: A Shift in Narrative

The Transformation of the Hong Kong Museum of History

The Hong Kong Museum of History has long been a key destination for those seeking to understand the city’s remarkable evolution from a humble fishing village to a vibrant global metropolis. Among its captivating exhibits was a life-size replica of a traditional fishing vessel, as well as a meticulously recreated 19th-century street populated with shops that reflected the local culture of the time.

However, this beloved exhibit, known as “The Hong Kong Story,” is currently undergoing a significant revamp. In its place, visitors have been flocking to a striking new permanent gallery that tells a considerably different and more foreboding narrative about the city. This new exhibit emphasizes the notion that Hong Kong is perpetually vulnerable to subversion by hostile foreign entities. It showcases displays that suggest the presence of spies within the community and features footage of anti-government protests, framing these events as orchestrated by Western influences.

At the launch of this controversial exhibition earlier this month, John Lee, the Beijing-supported leader of Hong Kong, articulated the exhibit’s primary purpose as serving as a cautionary tale for the city’s inhabitants. He stated, “Safeguarding national security is always a continuous effort. There is no completion.” The gallery, overseen by Hong Kong’s principal national security authority, officially opened its doors to the public on August 7.

This exhibit represents a new phase in the Hong Kong government’s campaign to tighten its grip on the narrative surrounding the city following the widespread anti-government protests of 2019, which posed one of the most significant challenges to Beijing’s authority in decades. In the aftermath, the authorities enacted stringent security laws aimed at suppressing dissent, and they are now striving to shape the collective memory of the recent political unrest.

According to the government’s perspective, the protests were not spontaneous demonstrations of the residents’ democratic yearnings, as claimed by the city’s opposition activists. Instead, they are portrayed as components of a broader conspiracy by Western powers intent on destabilizing China. The national security exhibit commences with a brief video that highlights the inequitable treaties of the 19th century, which compelled China to cede Hong Kong to British rule, alongside the Japanese occupation of the city during World War II.

When recounting the events of the 2019 protests, the video contains dramatic footage of protesters engaging in violent acts, such as hurling Molotov cocktails. The narrator ominously states, “Law and order vanished.” It then attributes the restoration of stability to the new national security laws imposed by Beijing, heralding this transition as a shift “from chaos to order.”