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Home  >  hong kong  >  Hong Kong Airport Has A Dunkirk Moment
hong kong

Hong Kong Airport Has A Dunkirk Moment

Matthew Klint Posted onSeptember 3, 2019September 3, 2019 7 Comments

In an inspiring show of solidarity, citizens of Hong Kong banded together in an act many are comparing to the United Kingdom’s Dunkirk evacuation during World War II.

Protestors aimed to shut down Hong Kong Airport (HKG) over the weekend. But authorities were prepared and not only blocked the protest, but shut down the Metro system, stranding thousands of protestors on Chek Lap Kok island, about 35 kilometers from central Hong Kong.  Protestors began walking back to Hong Kong by foot along the highway. But in an amazing act of defiance and camaraderie, citizens began offering rides to protestors. Word was sent out through Telegram messenger service, prompting even more drivers to offer help.

If you are unfamiliar with the Dunkirk evacuation, it was a 1940 evacuation of Allied soldiers from the beaches of Dunkirk, France by over 800 civilian vessels. The evacuation took place during the Battle of France, when soldiers from France, Belgium, and Great Britain found themselves surrounded by German troops and facing imminent death. The heroic actions of citizens who risked their own lives to rescue stranded soldiers provided a huge moral boost to the Allies.  The 2017 film directed on this evacuation by Christopher Nolan is highly recommended.

While it is a bit of a stretch to link the act of saving over 338,000 soldiers to helping stranded protestors trapped in Hong Kong Airport, I get the connection. Both acts involved “normal” citizens banding together to help those trapped and in need.

Dunkirk evacuation in hong kong
those braking night are the driver who volunteering pick up the demonstrator who were trapped in highway as gov shutdown all the public transport between airport and downtown #HongKongProtesters #HongKongPolice #antiELAB #HongKong #FreeHongKong pic.twitter.com/f7zy68RuFk

— Hker (@Hker75931672) September 1, 2019

#HKdunkirk

9.01 Airport Rally have been compared to Little Ships of Dunkirk, when 850 private boats sailed to rescue over 336,000 soldiers.

Tdy hundreds of protestors walked on Lantau Hwy from airport. Numerous altruistic citizens showed up in cars to drive them safe back home. pic.twitter.com/QL3IQQ5elR

— #AntiELAB Fight for Hong Kong (@Fight4HongKong) September 1, 2019

CONCLUSION

I know I was not the only one who cried when protestors sang Do You Hear The People Sing? from the arrivals hall of HKG. Once again, I smile at the solidarity shown by the protestors. Whatever your views on the legality of the protestors or their cause, the acts of brotherhood and sisterhood shown over the last 13 weeks has been inspiring.

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About Author

Matthew Klint

Matthew is an avid traveler who calls Los Angeles home. Each year he travels more than 200,000 miles by air and has visited more than 135 countries. Working both in the aviation industry and as a travel consultant, Matthew has been featured in major media outlets around the world and uses his Live and Let's Fly blog to share the latest news in the airline industry, commentary on frequent flyer programs, and detailed reports of his worldwide travel.

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7 Comments

  1. James Reply
    September 3, 2019 at 8:26 am

    Psychology of the masses. Whether you are right or wrong, as long as you go in numbers, whatever you do must be right. There’s no way all these people are in the wrong.

    Sadly, in the pyramid of society, the bottom is not made from the educated.

  2. Paolo Reply
    September 3, 2019 at 9:05 am

    These kids are incredibly, almost unbelievably brave and this was a very moving scene.
    They’ve gone ‘all in’ with the protests and it looks pretty clear that they have the support of a substantial proportion of the population ( not from this cavalcade so much as similar reports from all over HK).
    As for Dunkirk, the Paul Gallico novella “ The Snowgoose” ( filmed with Richard Harris c 1970) is a great work; the ultimate classic is Mrs Miniver, one of the most loved films of all time.

    • Hiro Reply
      September 3, 2019 at 9:40 am

      I agree in regards to the bravery and their initiative to fight, but theres something to be said about hypocrisy here. These are the same people who advocate for democracy, but tell anyone who speaks against them to “clean your dirty mouth you bastard”/call them wumaos or trolls; project their anger against unprecedentedly violent riot police, calling them terrorists, while they continue to throw lethal petrol bombs all over the streets; ask for freedom, though prevent people from catching their flight.

      Hong Kong’s government is doing a terrible job trying to hone in these protests, and China certainly isn’t helping either; though are the protesters really the “heroes” here?

  3. HkAirporter Reply
    September 3, 2019 at 9:51 am

    The peaceful protests are being ruined by the violent riots and destruction of public infrastructure by many “protestors”. They get mad when the MTR shuts down to prevent violence and then go on rampages destroying the stations. Blocking the airport and making innocent passengers walk miles and miles in the high heat and heavy rains isn’t winning them any fans either. These kids are playing into exactly what China wants – namely discrediting the whole peaceful protest movement through their actions.

    I would also mention that this photo is partly propaganda too – many of those lights are just the traffic jam they caused.

  4. Truth Reply
    September 3, 2019 at 11:00 am

    To be fair, one should also present the other side of the story from an independently-funded local TV network. The road blockade happened as the protestors actually used their own cars to block the highway. Furthermore, the protestors also threw foreign objects such as metal rods onto the Airport Express rails, this represented derailment risk, which would have been lethal — this by itself should have been an arrestable offence and it is fair to shut down the Airport Express for safety reason!

  5. DT Reply
    September 4, 2019 at 10:31 am

    If you plan to travel to China, you should not have this article (or any other referencing the protests) on any of your electronics you are bringing in.

  6. Carfield Reply
    September 4, 2019 at 4:39 pm

    I don’t realize Chinese trolls are interested in an aviation blogs, and when you name yourself “Truth,” you are possibly not really doing that…

    Hong Kong People, add oil!

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