The heated debate over the appearance of pro-independence posters and banners on university campuses across the city has died down in recent days. Some people in society have consciously attempted to play the issue down so there would be an appearance of peace on and off campuses. But would such a pacification policy bring us real peace? Would Hong Kong separatists disappear or stop trying to divide society and pull the special administrative region away from its motherland?

The answers to these questions are an emphatic "No". Sweeping the issue under the carpet may make things look better at first, but nothing happening on the surface does not mean the problem has gone away. History has given us some important but tragic lessons. When Adolf Hitler gradually revealed his ambitions in Europe in the latter half of 1930s, then British prime minister Neville Chamberlain insisted he could buy peace from Nazi Germany by making one concession after another. In September 1938, Chamberlain declared he had secured "peace for our time" after signing the Munich Agreement, which gave Germany the Sudetenland, a portion of Czechoslovakia along the country's border. His appeasement policy gave false hope to people in the world but could not avoid the outbreak of World War II and the resultant loss of more than 60 million lives.

Some people underestimate the impact of Hong Kong separatism, thinking, or pretending to think, the subject is a mere academic discussion and need not be taken seriously. But, no, anything that affects people's ideological thinking could have a very strong bearing on their behavior. Not that the city could break away from the country even if it wants to, and it is certain most of the people living here do not want that to happen. But if the idea prevails among the young generation, and with the help of hostile foreign forces, it could bring serious harm to the SAR and its people. The city will lose its direction and its focus on economic development. The city will be divided further and there will be no "peace" in any sense of the word.

There is nothing academic about Hong Kong separatism. It definitely runs against the Basic Law, which states without any ambiguity that the city is an inalienable part of China. Problems arise, however, when it comes to taking legal action against the perpetrators. One reason for the lack of forceful action against the secessionists is that it is not certain what could be done. There seems to be no specific criminal code for this purpose. That is why legislation for Article 23 of the Basic Law, which is meant to prohibit any act of treason or secession, is all the more imperative and urgent. Either we nip separatism in the bud or we risk letting it run wild.

(HK Edition 09/14/2017 page7)