As Hong Kong’s pro-establishment camp struggles to make its voice heard on the streets above the din of its more energetic pro-democratic rivals, a new Facebook page has taken it upon itself to make things difficult for the self-described “silent majority” in the social media-sphere as well.
Since 2013, the “Silent Majority for HK” Facebook page has served as a clearinghouse for pro-establishment sentiments, purporting to “support what is best for Hong Kong and object to those who stir up trouble.” Since July 1, however, a new page called “Sing Majority for HK” — an apparent reference to the protest song “Sing Hallelujah to the Lord” — has been trolling the establishmentarians with a pitch-perfect parody of the latter’s, shall we say, stodgy tone.
The strategy seems to be resonating with Hong Kong’s internet-savvy youth, with “Sing Majority” racking up almost 49,000 “likes” in just four days.
Amid the raft of press garnered by recent anti-extradition protests, Silent Majority has positioned itself as a rare voice of criticism for pro-democracy activists and politicians, with posts often dangling Beijing-leaning red meat in front of its conservative base and soliciting shows of support for government policies and Hong Kong’s embattled police force.
One such post from June 12, the day of a chaotic anti-extradition protest in Admiralty, asked pro-dem lawmaker Alvin Yeung just who the hell he thought he was to question police’s right to conduct random searches.
https://www.facebook.com/silentmajorityhk/photos/a.500993386656439/2322799374475822/?type=3&permPage=1
“Pro-democracy councillor Alvin Yeung challenged why the police can search the citizens,” the post read. “Police: We are working, don’t interfere.”
“LIKE if you agree ‘[that] serves him right!’”
Another post last month championed Beijing’s increased sales of US Treasury bonds over the last year amid an ongoing trade war with the US.
https://www.facebook.com/silentmajorityhk/photos/a.500993386656439/2335150606574032/?type=3&permPage=1
“China dumps US bonds, [value of] US debt hits lowest point in the last 2 years,” the post crows.
“Like if you agree with ‘[China] showing Trump our true colors!’”
Enter Sing for Majority, which uses the same Chinese tagline (“幫港出聲,” or “Help Hong Kong speak out”), and has infiltrated the comments section of the (real) Silent Majority page to promote its own page and blur the line between propaganda and parody.
“This is real! May all the nice people have a peaceful life!” read one such comment, borrowing the stilted tone of many of Silent Majority’s posts.
One of Sing for Majority’s posts takes aim at pro-establishment legislator Junius Ho, who recently organized a march in support of police where participants swore at and spat on anti-extradition protesters and opponents. After Monday’s siege of LegCo, Ho commented that Hong Kong would “not tolerate any violence,” and that “rioters must be punished.”
https://www.facebook.com/singmajorityforhk/photos/a.355959845080077/357154034960658/?type=3&__xts__%5B0%5D=68.ARAMZSqn88bC5zHU-uf1Q7FRUeLvxZXnQxJiAE9fQXDaGp9bgxAQdtuiop3OIFo7ye-Xx6lXA4ZBkqGyamavlQJa03jWoXpa0KkxRaQaw2mIW0rjlL_WPdvEashIa-QyCNl49mchJqvss4NldQG0sk53Ua4QXoWCR2lsCzg0OsywDwN5q5GEG3kIDg-4VXRZADCIEjR1YKNpvdYFc18a08pugTtqNpjyfezuGJ3waxfwgxYg3Vwj77UMAEN6KcPNA8e4B1f1IaqabpOuSUWFxepiAeD6iiqvY4GP5Ytxu36jGzwHl_r_16wCGBNQneqdlEQTtxvDxgbDflVgUQhAjBI&__tn__=-R
Like the loyal mouthpiece it pretends to be, Sing for Majority dutifully reported Ho’s comments — while wryly attaching a photo of the red-faced attendees of Ho’s pro-police demonstration.
“Should the rioters be charged?” it asked. “Like if you agree!”
Another post drolly refers to the “very professional behavior by the police” at a June 12 rally that saw authorities use tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse a largely peaceful crowd.
“An independent committee is a great way to help the police and prove their innocence!” one commenter said, referring to protesters’ demand that the police’s heavy-handed use of force be investigated. “They had been working hard but were misunderstood, and that broke my heart!”
On Wednesday, the trolling apparently became a little too much for Silent Majority to bear (huh, who would’ve thought the establishment didn’t have a sense of humor?), with the page launching a sputtering broadside at Sing Majority, calling it “shameless.”
“The fake page stole our images and tampered with our articles,” Silent Majority claimed in a post, calling on its readers to report Sing Majority to Facebook.
Sing Majority, meanwhile, responded in kind, posting a virtually identical comment calling Silent Majority shameless, and adding: “Let’s report them!”
https://www.facebook.com/singmajorityforhk/photos/a.356696238339771/356916688317726/?type=3&__tn__=-R
So with the flame war seemingly going to Facebook’s content police for adjudication, it remains to be seen which page, if any, will come out victorious. Whatever happens, though, we just hope we get to watch humorless pro-establishment hotheads fume over what is frankly some pretty gentle ribbing for a little while longer.
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