Whose fault?

From the HK Magazine...

It’s something most of us take for granted, but for Bibi and her mother, the simple task of opening a bank account has proved a frustrating struggle. Bibi was born and raised in Hong Kong and her mother has lived here for more than 20 years. They both have permanent residency, and both Pakistani and British National (Overseas) passports. Two months ago, her mother got a new job and wanted to open a Hang Seng Bank account, but unlike average Chinese Hong Kongers, who only need to submit their ID card, proof of address and the required sum of money, the teller at Hang Seng Bank asked whether she was Indian or Pakistani. “Then the teller asked if my mother still holds a Pakistani passport,” recalls Bibi. “When my mom said yes, the member of staff told her that she was being rejected because ‘Pakistan is a terrorist country’ and they have to prevent cases of money laundering for terrorists.” What is even more preposterous is, Bibi herself was once told to just put “Chinese” as her nationality in order to speed up the process when opening a bank account a few years before, something she is uncomfortable with now that she knows the reason why. “It’s unfair because we are Hong Kong residents, just like local Chinese,” she says. “My mom doesn’t even use her Pakistani passport anymore—it’s been lying at the bottom of a drawer for 20 years.”


It is not about Pakistanis and it is not about Hong Kong banks but how the cause that one supports, paints the ones who do not concur, with the same brush. Both the sides stand justified just as the German immigration officer at the Munich Airport, who made me take off my shoes, my belt and my jacket because the metal in my junk jewellery awakened the sensors. It took me long to get over it. The officer’s defense I assume were probably the four brown faces staring out from “wanted terrorists” posters all around.

To read the rest of Bibi and her mother’s story click here: