17/09/2019 16:10
Hong Kong tries and fails to hire PR firms to rebuild image
Hong Kong's government contacted eight public relations firms to try and rebuild the embattled city's image, but all of them declined the contract.
The city has seen months of unrest sparked by a proposed extradition bill that has since been withdrawn.
Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam and her government have been widely criticised for their response to protesters.
The PR firms said that "the time is not right" to restore the territory's reputation, Ms Lam told reporters.
"At one point in time, we did have that idea of approaching some international PR firms to provide some advice," she told a press conference on Tuesday.
"The advice we have been given is the time is not right, because we are still in this sort of social unrest, disturbance and violent acts and vandalism on such a regular basis.
"It would perhaps not be the most cost-effective way to use the government resources to launch any campaign to rebuild Hong Kong's reputation. But sooner or later we will have to do it, because I have every confidence in Hong Kong's fundamentals."