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Hong Kong: A city that’s no longer home

Darkus Yu is one of thousands of Hong Kong people who have chosen to leave the only home they’ve ever known.

Darkus and his brother-in-law Willie Chan chat after dinner as Willie shares his experience of emigrating to Australia 22 years ago with Darkus. [Bertha Wang/Al Jazeera]
By Bertha Wang
Published On 4 May 20214 May 2021
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Born and raised in Hong Kong, Darkus Yu had never considered leaving his home for almost half a century. But events last year changed his mind.

Al Jazeera documented the Yu family’s last four months in Hong Kong, their story a poignant perspective on why one family decided to move to a country where they do not speak the language and have few friends or job prospects rather than remain in Hong Kong.

Publication of this story was delayed upon their request.

‘I love this place’

The continuing crackdown on political dissent and the overhaul of the education system since China introduced a sweeping National Security Law at the end of June 2020 finally forced him into a life-changing decision.

“Hong Kong is a place where I grow up. I love this place. But the government has been destroying this city…such as the history and education system. This city has been torn into pieces and is no longer recognisable,” Yu said.

The Yus were a typical middle-class family in Hong Kong. Yu and his wife, Esther Law lived in their own flat and had stable jobs with decent incomes working as an animator and executive assistant.

But for the sake of their six-year-old twins Grace and Jayden, the couple decided to sacrifice everything they had in Hong Kong and emigrate to Birmingham, UK, hoping for a better life in a country none of them has ever been to.

“We will not leave Hong Kong if we do not have kids,” Yu said. “I am not confident with the education system in Hong Kong now. The patriotic education equals brainwashing.”

The Yus were unsettled by the Education Bureau’s decision in October 2020 to disqualify a teacher who had been accused of promoting Hong Kong independence.

The Hong Kong government subsequently announced controversial changes, renaming the Liberal Studies subject, which it blamed for helping stoke the 2019 protests, as “Citizen and Social Development”. In addition, children as young as six will now be given lessons in “national security” and be expected to sing China’s National anthem.

‘It is torture to stay in Hong Kong’

“Since the introduction of National Security Law, the political situation here is rapidly deteriorating. We are worried about the future of Hong Kong, also my twins’ future. We want to leave as soon we can,” Yu told Al Jazeera before the move.

The couple had a lot to weigh up: the cost, the education system, language problems, and the paperwork to enter the United Kingdom, which is now offering as many as three million people in Hong Kong the chance to move to Britain and eventually secure citizenship.

Meanwhile, the government has continued its political crackdown.

Pro-democracy legislators and activists have been arrested and prosecuted. Many opposition figures – including veteran opposition legislator Martin Lee and media tycoon Jimmy Lai – were put on trial. Beijing also announced an overhaul of Hong Kong’s electoral system, in which all candidates would be vetted to ensure that only “patriots” would be able to run the city.

For Yu, the developments only served to vindicate his family’s decision to go… and soon. They brought forward their departure to mid-March 2021.

“It is torture to stay in Hong Kong nowadays if you do not support the government. I have no choice but to leave because the events here are disheartening. We are being pushed to the edge of the cliff and there is no way back,” he said.

Yu said he would not miss Hong Kong. There was nothing to make them stay any more. This city was no longer their home.

Grace said she will miss Marife the most. Marife has been taking care of the twins for three years. [Bertha Wang/Al Jazeera]
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Darkus and Esther’s six-year-old twins Jayden and Grace are the reason they decided to emigrate to Birmingham. The twins are excited about their new life and hope to have their own bedrooms in their new home. [Bertha Wang/Al Jazeera]
The twins play with their friends from their balance bike group at a campsite at Sai Kung. Some of these friendships will continue in Birmingham as three other families from the balance bike group are also moving there. [Bertha Wang/Al Jazeera]
Grace and Jayden attend their kindergarten graduation ceremony. The ceremony has been delayed for a year due to the COVID pandemic. [Bertha Wang/Al Jazeera]
Grace listens to her online Mandarin class. Hong Kong children as young as her will soon be taught about National Security under the new guidelines announced by the Education Bureau in February 2021. [Bertha Wang/Al Jazeera]
A countdown board at Darkus’s home. The twins stopped counting down in February as their belongings started piling up in the living room. [Bertha Wang/Al Jazeera]
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Willie Chan and Darkus’s mum on a video call with Willie’s son, who lives in Perth. Willie and his wife, Wendy Yu, left for the Australian city 22 years ago but returned to Hong Kong in 2016. Like Darkus, they were motivated by fear for the future of their children. [Bertha Wang/Al Jazeera]
Darkus’s balance bike group bought a full-page advertisement to support Apple Daily after its founder, media tycoon Jimmy Lai was arrested under the National Security Law. Lai is in custody and facing 11 charges at the moment. [Bertha Wang/Al Jazeera]
Darkus’s last hair-cutting class. Because he knows he will not find the same work or level of pay in Britain, he is preparing himself to do almost any type of work. [Bertha Wang/Al Jazeera]
Darkus’s parents watch their grandchildren Grace and Jayden eating strawberries after their farewell dinner. They are not sure whether they will see their grandchildren again as the 13-hour flight to England may be too strenuous for them. [Bertha Wang/Al Jazeera]
Jayden takes a photo of his maternal grandfather with a new camera Darkus bought to record their last days in Hong Kong. [Bertha Wang/Al Jazeera]
The Yus visit a treehouse and have a “boat ride adventure” before leaving Hong Kong. [Bertha Wang/Al Jazeera]
Esther checks her rapidly emptying house where they lived for three years, as the family prepares to leave. [Bertha Wang/Al Jazeera]
The Yus wait at the clinic for COVID-19 tests. They are required to provide a negative test conducted within 72 hours before their departure. [Bertha Wang/Al Jazeera]
Darkus hugs his mother and Willie at the airport before his departure. [Bertha Wang/Al Jazeera]


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