Why is "Hong Kong Sister Not Hong Kong"? Nearly half of the applicants come from mainland Hong Kong Sister | Hong Kong | applicants

The annual Miss Hong Kong pageant kicked off on June 10th, with only 26 out of 89 candidates after three rounds of interview screening. They participated in the recording of Miss Hong Kong Pageant 2023 on June 25th.

According to the Hong Kong Economic Daily, the "Hong Kong Sister" interview has attracted a large number of mainland girls to run for TVB. TVB executive Le Yiling praised the high quality of this year's Hong Kong sister in an interview.

In the view of Tian Feilong, a member of the National Association for Hong Kong and Macao Studies and associate professor at the School of Law at Beihang University, this trend is not accidental: "With the integration and development between Hong Kong and the mainland, more and more outstanding mainland girls are entering Hong Kong. As new Hong Kong people, they actively participate in the election for Hong Kong sisters, indicating that they have cultural pursuits and visibility in society, which is an important driving force for building a new Hong Kong and developing Hong Kong's social and cultural development. This phenomenon implies that Hong Kong has deeply integrated into the national development situation, and mainland talents have rapidly grown into international talents suitable for the construction of a new Hong Kong. Therefore, they are increasingly occupying an important influence in various fields of Hong Kong, including the cultural field."

Many "Hong Kong Sister" applicants come from mainland China

At the press conference of the first round of interviews for "Miss Hong Kong", Sing Tao Daily pointed out that in this year's "Miss Hong Kong" campaign, almost half of the contestants have obvious Cantonese accents.

There are more girls registered in the mainland, and the most direct effect is that on social platforms such as Weibo, Xiaohongshu, and Tiktok, netizens' discussion degree is coming up immediately, including appearance, temperament, clothing and other aspects.

"With the integration and development between Hong Kong and the mainland, this is not only related to the concentration of mainland population in Hong Kong after 2000, but also to the large number of outstanding talents from the mainland going to Hong Kong for development in recent years. As new Hong Kong people, they have the same legal rights as local people in Hong Kong, including joining the Hong Kong sisters," said Tian Feilong.

TVB executive Le Yiling stated that she will not set the threshold for "Hong Kong Sister" as a choice for Hong Kong people born and raised in Hong Kong: "Hong Kong born to study abroad, immigrated with a family to run for election, or mainland born and raised in Hong Kong, there will be no threshold for the first round of interviews, and the most important thing is whether they are beautiful." Ho Hsiao hui, the coordinator of the "Hong Kong Sister" conference, added that if you want to fully express your meaning, you can use Mandarin during the election: "We will have some requirements, and if Cantonese is not good, can you learn faster, and we will also consider this aspect."

According to the correspondence, there are only two mandatory requirements for "Hong Kong Sister" registration. The first requirement is for unmarried and childless women aged 18-28, and the second requirement is to have a Hong Kong ID card. In Hong Kong, there is no concept of household registration, and the so-called "Hong Kong ID card" refers to both permanent and non permanent residency status. This means that Hong Kong drifters who have been living in mainland China since childhood but have Hong Kong citizenship, or who come to study and work in Hong Kong, have the opportunity to run for "Hong Kong Sister". He Xiaohui also said, "Many mainland Chinese study in Hong Kong and have lived there for many years with a Hong Kong ID card."

Looking at the resumes of mainland candidates this year, it is not difficult to find that many girls are around the ages of 22 and 23, born after 2001. Although they are Hong Kong citizens, they have been living in mainland China, so they do not speak Cantonese fluently.

Since the return of Hong Kong in 1997, exchanges between the mainland and Hong Kong have become increasingly close, policies have gradually relaxed, and the number of mainland visitors to Hong Kong has further increased.

Starting from January 1, 2002, the quota restrictions on "Hong Kong travel" in mainland China were officially lifted, and the "Hong Kong born generation" became a trend - both parents come from mainland China and have been born in Hong Kong since 2001 and automatically obtained Hong Kong identity. Some Hong Kong scholars refer to them as "TYPE II Babies". According to data from Southern Metropolis Weekly, from 2001 to 2008, the number of Hong Kong born generation increased from 620 to 25000, with a growth rate of up to 40 times.

Since 2016, the number of non local students at all levels of higher education in Hong Kong has been increasing day by day. From 2006 to 2016, the number of mainland students traveling to Hong Kong for higher education increased from 5754 to 11891, more than doubling. However, by 2022, the number of student applications has been rumored to be close to 40000. City University of Hong Kong has released data indicating that the number of graduate student applications has more than doubled compared to the same period last year.

This kind of communication is two-way. Tian Feilong believes that "more and more young people from Hong Kong and Macao are coming to the mainland to study and start businesses, and at the same time, more and more outstanding young people from the mainland have successfully integrated into Hong Kong. This precisely indicates that one country, two systems has entered a new stage of benign integration and development. Hong Kong and Macao youth can find new opportunities in the mainland, and mainland youth can also find better development opportunities in Hong Kong and Macao."

Is the election process for Miss Hong Kong like that of a "special forces soldier"?

It is precisely because a large number of mainland girls have joined that the mysterious veil of the past "Hong Kong Sister" elections has also been lifted. Although 33, a 23-year-old girl from Hunan, stopped in the second round of "Hong Kong Sister" selection, she has posted 9 videos related to "Hong Kong Sister" on the social platform, and has frequently hit the media spotlight due to sharp roast.

When netizens questioned her, "If you can't speak Cantonese, don't come and choose Miss Hong Kong," she said, "Is it difficult to understand that I just want to follow the hot topics? We are self media, can I not follow the hot topics of Miss Hong Kong that are in front of me?"

The interview registration and notification email for "Hong Kong Sister" is usually in May. In the days before the first round of interviews, candidates will receive an invitation letter, and the rapidly shortened preparation time has caught many people off guard. In the invitation letter, TVB will inform candidates to bring their own high heels and multiple sets of clothing, such as formal attire, swimsuits, and yoga clothes. As the venue does not provide food and has sufficient air conditioning, they also need to bring their own warm clothes. Registering for "Hong Kong Sister" does not require any fees, but candidates also need to pay for their own transportation, installation, makeup, and other expenses.

At Tseung Kwan O Television City in Hong Kong, 89 "Hong Kong sisters" waiting for passengers carrying large and small bags of luggage will be frantically photographed by reporters as soon as they get off the car, asking for their names. This often tests the psychological resilience of candidates, with some covering their faces and remaining silent in the face of long guns and short cannons, while others speak and smile confidently. Often, most of Hong Kong's Reuters photos come from this, whether ugly or beautiful, all based on their performance.

After entering TVB, the candidates will still be surrounded by magnesium lights, with dozens of journalists forming a circle and waiting for each candidate to walk to the designated location in front of the set board and make their official appearance.

The whole interview lasted from 10 o'clock in the morning to 10 o'clock in the evening. For 12 hours, the mobile phone was confiscated and no food or drink was provided. 33 roast: "I really don't know whether I went to participate in the Hong Kong Sister or how the steel was made? Everyone was still happy in the morning and saw many beautiful women. You looked at me in the afternoon, but I couldn't focus on you." To this end, Le Yiling also apologized through the media: "I have been reviewing and will pay attention. I also told the girl that if you are hungry or want to drink water, you can speak out, and so many colleagues will help you."

In the second and third rounds of interviews, candidates will face a huge physical challenge. According to Li Wenxuan, who previously participated in the "Hong Kong Sister" campaign, after running, he may sleep 3-4 hours a day for several consecutive months. Due to the constant exposure of "Miss Hong Kong", it means that journalists may accompany her for most of the day, and even a slight mistake can lead to some inexplicable rumors. Li Wenxuan recalled that at that time, some media asked her, "I found that you look like Tang Wei. Would you be willing to let you do nude acting now?" She was described by Hong Kong media as "looking down on Tang Wei and not acting.".

Zeng Zhiwei stated that this year, the 51st Miss Hong Kong pageant will enter a new era and use AI to rate the facial features of candidates: "I want to try to move forward by integrating different technologies such as AI and ChatGPT. Many interview questions will use AI.".

Mainland Chinese girls running for "Hong Kong Sister" to challenge themselves

But compared to wanting to become famous and enter the entertainment industry through the Hong Kong pageant, more mainland girls want to challenge and exercise themselves through the "Hong Kong pageant". A candidate posted on social media saying, "You never know the world outside of your cognition. Trying is a good thing. Life is about constantly stepping out of your comfort zone and striving to become a better version of yourself."

In the second round of the "Hong Kong Sister" interview, some mainland girls chose to abandon the competition. Li Siqing, a girl from Hangzhou, revealed to the media that she will face termination of her previous job contract in the second round of interviews: "TVB requested her to sign the contract on the spot during the second round of interviews, and only the signed beauties can go on stage to meet the reporters. However, the contract clearly stipulates that no matter whether she enters the finals or not, she cannot participate in other entertainment activities for six months. However, once she enters the finals, regardless of her ranking, this means that her five-year contract with TVB will officially take effect."

This means that for many girls, signing up to TVB as an actor is no longer their ideal path.

"The favorite to win the championship," Nora posted on her social media platform, saying, "At first, I silently participated with a mindset of challenging myself. In fact, I didn't completely think about whether to give up my teaching job. However, gambling heavily on the prospects of Hong Kong Sister made me feel even more pressured. The main reason for giving up was the opposition of my family, and my parents hoped that I would take a simple path instead of expecting me to become prosperous and wealthy. Their expectations for me were more based on their academic abilities, have a stable job, and not give up on breaking through."