There does need to be public service videos nudging better social behavior. What is normal in some circles is not in others.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5kkTetwH7Y
Unless you get tough like Singapore did/does, Hong Kong is what it is. Imagine what it is going to be like in a decade with another million mainland residents lol.
Lets just all agree, that, culturally, the whole manners thing just isn't a ( overcrowded ) Chinese trait, like is expected in, say, Singapore or Japan.... An exponentially, dog eat dog, rush, rush, rush, mentality.
Add a private school education system that allows helicopter parenting to thrive and a government that channels the lions share of any significant financial opportunity, to the super rich, any wonder the average, Hong Konger ( especially females ) just aren't in the mood for sex... @Mat
[playing devil's advocate here]
Why shouldn't they need to be asked? It's good manners using your moral scale but we live in such a global society now, you should consider that there are many cultural differences. In Japan, it's not customary to give up your seat to the elderly.
We live in an age where people from so many different backgrounds interact with each on on a daily basis. To expect that someone you don't know, has the same upbringing, value system and morals as you is selfish IMO. I'm not arguing that the giving up of a seat to others in need isn't the right thing to do. I just disagree when people automatically assume that everyone in the world has the same belief.
Maybe in 20 years, the Mainlanders will realize that it's not very polite to urinate/defecate in public places, etc. We are not born with morals. It's something that is learned. But if you don't take time to teach it and just complain, it'll take longer.
On the issue of groping, I cannot stress enough how important it is to react. And react strongly. Enough to draw attention from those immediately around you.
Contrary to popular belief, they dont look at how a woman is dressed but rather who they *think* will let them get away with it. Shy, alone, naive-looking, etc. A woman in tiny shorts is not more likely to be groped than a woman in a habit.
This is actually a thing, there's a French term for it. Groping is like a drug for twisted minds. When they are out for a 'fix', its not only a feel-up they're after, but being able to walk away with it that completes their high. And like any drug addiction, each time their urges get stronger and they act bolder. You need to react to 'stun' and shame them out of their high.
At the very basic level, gropers are total wusses, and will never do anything back to you if you react. Theyre the ones who will quietly slip away, as it should be.
On the flipside, while any encounter with groper will always stay with you as a memory, how you reacted will deeply impact how you feel each time you are reminded. So dont hesitate pls! And regardless of where it happens, trains, buses, etc.
I cant believe this is going on enough that seperate MTR compartments are being considered! Thats like you are trying to make room for it and allowing it to be a new norm in HK society. No. Just no.
Im almost embarrassed that I have this much to say about groping.
End rant.
I was traveling with my elderly (70+) mother-in-law a few years back on a crowned bus. I asked for someone to vacate the priority seat for her and they pretended not to understand. So I yanked them out of the seat.
There are some real shits here. However' there are also plenty of lovely folks who will help out, particular I found when I had my broken ankle and was on crutches etc. Not all HK ppl are bad. On the whole, the older generation are much nicer than the entitled youth.