myHK: To Pee or Not to Pee?
To Pee or Not to Pee? That is the question!
Pee pee, poo poo talks are dominating the interwebs here in Hong Kong these days!!
Hmmm… this is interesting….8^/
I figured it’s about time I join in on the conversation!
Most recently there was a video posted online of two parents from China who let their toddler pee into a diaper outside. This is one of many cases like this in the past couple of years.
This infuriates a lot of Hong Kongers, so of course they started filming and yelling at the parents for letting their child do this. This resulted in the Chinese father taking the memory card which contained pictures of his child and most likely her private parts.
Now I could attack the level of stupidity in this event from so many different angles.
I could discuss the poor decision making by these individual Chinese parents, or the absurdity of grabbing ahold of someone’s baby stroller and yelling in front of an innocent child.
But I’m going to come at this from a perspective that we can all probably relate to in our lives, because I’m assuming most of The Guest Room readers don’t find themselves in these pee fights too often.
What do we hope to achieve?
Is it the wish of Hong Kongers to have no more Chinese tourists?
That’s obviously not an option.
Here they come!
Do we want Chinese tourists to stop deficating all over the place?
Yes!!
Just imagine how many people are peeing in this picture?!
So, now that our goal is determined, is yelling and screaming at parents in front of their toddlers the best way to achieve these results?
Is going online and insulting all Chinese people calling them barbarians going to help our cause?
I can relate this to my 11 year marriage to Mrs.J. Sometimes we’ll be caught in a fight about something, which would sound ridiculous to anyone outside of the argument.
Sometimes we get so lost in these battles that we forget about reality. We forget that after the smoke has settled, we are going to continue on, back into our relationship, hopefully having solved the issue.
Mrs.J and I are getting better at this, but like anything, it’s still a work in progress.
And what’s the best way to solve the problem? Yell, scream and grab ahold of someone’s baby stroller? Video tape?
If I started video taping Mrs.J during one of our arguments, let’s just say, I don’t think that would go over very well!!
Baby peeing! Quick, grab your camera!!
Keeping your eye on the prize, which is resolution, is the most important thing. Let’s be logical!
So how do we solve these toilet troubles?
Forced diaper wearing for all Chinese tourists is probably out of the question.
Let me know what you think in the comments below!
Obviously Hong Kongers have bigger issues with China, but urine hitting the pavement seems to be the tipping point between being able to have a conversation and going insane.
Hopefully, cooler heads will prevail.
Have a great day and see you next week with a new Hong Kong quiz that I think you’ll enjoy!
Cheers!
Mr.J
Sponsored by Jar Design. Check out there HK website! www.jardesign.hk
Sources:http://america.aljazeera.com/articles/2014/4/26/china-hong-kong-.html
The Guest Room 
it’s not babies fault their parents are barbarians but if they were taught it’s OK they will teach their child the same in future (probably). I don’t think anyone wants to be put into Hongkongers’ situation right now – what else they can do to make people ashamed and stop doing those things public? in HK there are enough public toilets in malls that I can have a diarrhea and be safe. streets, shops, even subway cars – people don’t hesitate to pee or shit there. maybe don’t film baby’s private parts but showing faces of parents is OK – they do something illegal and disgusting, people just get the proof of their behavior. besides let’s face it – besides a huge shame Hongkongers can bring to those people there’s nothing that could change that bad behavior. Now they will know not to do that in future.
I always try to find balance but with this I am and I will always be with Hongkongers. I wouldn’t want something to do that in my garden or in front of my home, why is this thing different?
Morning HKH,
I’m with you that I don’t want people urinating up and down the streets.
But there are lots of things that I don’t want to see.
I just don’t see why it should be my job to video tape any of this, nor would I want to.
In this latest case, the mom at least had the consideration to place a diaper below.
What good is video taping going to do? It’s just brought out hate and anger.
MrJ
I just think the very thought of people urinating and defecating wherever they are is horrific, let alone allowing children who do not know any better to learn these horrible behaviors. The one thing I found, when I was in Hong Kong, was that there was not a lack of public restrooms; exceptionally nice ones also, even in the train stations. So with so many public toilettes, why do these people do these things? I agree that the videoing is not helping, but maybe people are trying to shame the mainlanders into acting properly.
Hey Brielle,
Shaming someone with a video isn’t my thing.. But I guess I can see it being a bit effective.
Hitting someone can also be a bit effective, so it’s not saying much.
There are a lot of public toilets in HK, but they’re definitely nothing to write home about! And if you want to use one in the mtr station, I think you have to use the employees toilet. No idea where those are.
Anyways, you’re right, going to the toilet in the street is ridiculous, (unless you’re very drunk and near a very dark alley). As a parent of a toddler, you have to always have toilet time on your mind. When you’re near a nice one, you get your kid to use it. You should always have a toilet itinerary in mind!!
But if I ever did have an emergency with my daughter, and they do happen, and some guy came up on me and started filming her, id snap!
MrJ
There really is never a correct time to do something to harm a child, but I guess a lot of the people taking photos are just too focused on being outraged to think of the children.
When i was in Hong Kong I found quite a few bathrooms in the subway stations, I did take the Tung Chung quite a bit, so maybe that line has some better amenities; I loved Tung Chung. In general though, I found there to be quite an abundance of public restrooms most places i went; the malls in particular were a great place to use the toilettes.
Parents should always do the bathroom stop whenever there is a restroom present, even if the children say they do not have to go, they will usually go. I learnt that from my friend, who learnt the hard way with her little ones; one too many accidents in the car.
Overall, I guess i do not really know how bad it is since I am not living in Hong Kong, would love to though. i am also not really sure of the deep seated dislike of Mainlanders, but I am reading much on the topic lately; a lot of Mainlanders feel the HK residents are a bit snooty and elitist. I personally found people to be very pleasant in HK, but then again I am not Chinese. I am part Mongolian, but white enough to not seem anything other than caucasian, I think at least.
But the man in Mong kok should not have grabbed the stroller, that is just not right.
I guess one of my biggest frustrations with this topic, is that these people out their cursing Chinese tourists and online saying the most vial comments, seem to think that they are the only ones allowed to judge.
There’s a rule I follow in teaching. Give at least three positive comments for every negative. Well in this case, I’d like to see what these people who complain and complain about how Chinese tourists are hurting Hong Kong, do for the positive to help HK. What positive things do these online complainers do?
If all they do is simply bitch and moan about the Chinese, I have no respect for them either.
I’m gonna take a wild stab in the air and say that the HK guy in Mongkok, that decided to grab ahold of the baby stroller while the kid was crying, is a dick. Just a guess…
MrJ
Hi Mr J,
I would like to say that these Chinese tourists who do their private businesses in public in the streets of HK is simply a bullying behaviour. I don’t see them doing it in non-Asian countries. They would even pay to use one when they’re in foreign lands. I live opposite a popular park in Sydney CBD, there are public toilet cubicles that you need to pay 50c (AUD) per usage, with AUD 50c you can buy a bun from a bakery in HK. I see Chinese tourists queuing up to use these cubicles every day, kids included. Therefore I can conclude that Chinese tourists who pee and shit in public in HK is simply a lack of respect. ‘Oh i can shit on the streets back home, why can’t I shit on the streets in HK? It’s part of China.’ I would like to say that their behaviours are like animals, marking “territories” with their “unique” scents.
Is there a way to improve this situation? Education is the way, but I don’t see it happening any time soon. The population of China is too big, you can’t simply tell everyone that shitting in public is not okay, some families have probably been doing this for generations. They don’t see why it is wrong, because they are selfish people who only care about themselves. To be considerate of others is something that should be taught from a young age. I don’t like to stereotype but you can see a large portion of Mainland Chinese are opportunists, with the ways they queue-jump/pee & shit in public/talk really loud. All these because they think they’re more important than others. I have met some well mannered Mainland Chinese, but they are really endangered species that WWF should probably list them as top priorities.
Filming them is probably not a politically correct thing to do, but you need proof and examples when you want to point out wrong-doings. HK police should pay attention to all the uncivilised behaviours that the Chinese tourists do and proceed with issuing them with big fines, failing to pay for the fines should restrict them from visiting HK in the future. Perhaps the HK government need to design a public toilet locator app to help out, or handouts about toilet locations at each district.
I don’t believe HKers despite Mainlanders solely because they’re Mainlanders. We don’t like them because they create a lot of inconvenience to the locals and the Mainlanders think that they’re the best damn thing in the world since sliced bread. No one likes people like that with those attitudes and behaviours. Instead of calling Hkers ignorant, why can’t they comply with local customs before they visit a country/city? We can’t change the minds of millions of people, so I can’t wait for zombie apocalypse to happen.
Cheers,
Calista
Delighted our humble blog has readers in Sidney, Calista! I think we have to look at the situation with balance. Education might be the key but, as you say, that has its own challenges in the mainland. Everyone just has to find a way to live with each other in the meantime, in this city of immigrants.
Ah I was randomly followed on Twitter by you guys, that’s how I started reading this blog! That was effective marketing strategy! I consider myself an Aussie with a HK background, since I’ve been over here for half of my life. I care about HK a lot and I find your blog very interesting! Keep up the great work ^_^
Hey Calista,
Thanks for your comment. Some interesting points!!
I guess I can see how videoing could have some positive points.
However, how bad is it for a mom, in an ’emergency’, to let her kid pee into a diaper?
If I saw that, I wouldn’t even bother stopping. No harm done.
Should I start video taping everyone that I disagree with, like when I see Hong Kongers yanking their dogs by the neck or cutting nails on the MTR?
I’m not going to do that. It’s just not my responsibility.
Id rather spend my efforts doing a positive act for society, hopefully canceling out one of those negative ones.
Mr.J
Hey Mr J,
I don’t think HKers would make a big deal out of it if it was an isolated case! Mainlanders are being filmed/photographed doing their private business publicly in the last 2-5 years! I have never seen any non-Chinese doing this in my life. Given that I wouldn’t give a rat’s ass about it myself since it was a child who needed to relief itself, but the parents could have picked a better place, like a back alley, or just make the child to wear the diaper in this case!
A positive thing to do for the society is for these visitors to learn local custom in the first place! I don’t see why peeing publicly is unacceptable is something that need to be informed in the 1st place! I can totally see why HKers are angry and frustrated. There’s nothing HKers can really do about this situation because the government will not limit the amount of Mainlanders coming into this little city on a daily basis. I think HKers are tested and tested again with their tolerance. I belive they will blow up sooner or later.
A positive thing for HK economy would be fining people who can’t act the civil way.
Cheers,
Cali