A recurring argument has surfaced in Hong Kong's public discussions: now that the city has moved "from chaos to order," some claim that safeguarding national security is largely "done" and that Hong Kong should shift its full attention to the economy and development.
Hong Kong's transition from "chaos to order" and its move from "from stability to prosperity" should be understood as one continuous, integrated process. The central thread is straightforward: development requires security as a precondition, while security is strengthened through sustainable development. The two are not competing priorities but mutually reinforcing pillars.
Looking back on Hong Kong's recent years, it is particularly difficult to deny that restoring stability has also improved the environment for development. Security and development function like two wings of a bird or two wheels of a vehicle: at different moments, one may bear more weight depending on circumstances, but neither can stop moving without undermining the whole.
That is why it is misleading to reduce "from chaos to order" to security alone, or to interpret "from stability to prosperity" as development alone. In reality, the tasks of "restoring order" and "reviving growth" often overlap—and each phase contains elements of both. Without security, there can be no meaningful development. Security and development are not two separate stages with a clean handover from one to the other. They are two dimensions of a single governance agenda.
As global uncertainties intensify and geopolitical and economic risks evolve, Hong Kong's push for faster development will also place higher demands on its ability to manage risks and maintain security. Whether it is about capturing opportunities or preventing disruptions, the capacity to safeguard security becomes more—not less—important.
Hong Kong, therefore, needs to keep its strategy consistent: strengthen both security and development. This means consolidating the gains of restoring order while building stronger momentum for growth—so as to ensure long-term prosperity and stability and keep "one country, two systems" on a steady, sustainable course.
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