Gau wu

Gau Wu (Chinese: 鳩嗚) (Cantonese pronunciation: Gau1 Wu1), is a Chinese expression that was coined shortly after an interview clip in which the term was used was broadcast by HK cable TV in August, 2014. The expression means “disorderly shouting” or “squabbling over nothing”. Since 2014, Gau Wu has become a street expression, often translated from Cantonese as ”shopping”, since the expression is homophonic with “shopping” in Mandarin (購物 gòu wù). It represents a means of expressing discontent with various issues such as the Individual Visit Scheme, parallel traders, and the 831 Decision.

“Gau Wu” was originally used during an interview with a Chinese National who participated in a rally known as Sign for Peace and Democracy Movement, expressing her opposition to Occupy Central on August 17, 2014. On the day of the anti-Occupy Central rally, a reporter from HK Cable TV interviewed her and inquired about her role in the event. In Cantonese she replied that she had come to Hong Kong for 'entertainment'. The reporter then asked her what she had planned to do for fun in Hong Kong, and she replied that she was going to shop (Gau Wu). The term Gau Wu has since been used as a satirical term by the anti-Occupy Central movement. It is also used to denote a type of demonstration, disguised as patronizing a business district (see details below).

Following an interim injunction order executed the day before, a pro-democracy encampment in Mong Kok affiliated with the Umbrella Movement was cleared by the Hong Kong police force. Following this event, Hong Kong's Chief Executive CY Leung encouraged Hong Kong people and Mainland visitors to shop in Mong Kok in order to support local businesses. As a political tactic, Hong Kong pro-democracy protesters returned to Sai Yeung Choi Street South, a major street in Mong Kok, claiming that they were following the advice of the chief executive. They then started Gau Wu or the “Shopping Revolution” by pretending to shop in busy districts, blocking roads, and wearing out the police force by acting in a flash mob style. Protesters made use of the fact that it was difficult for the police to distinguish between real and "fake" tourists going shopping. The aim was to confuse and provoke the police, and it became a strategy for pressuring the HKSAR Government and continuing the protests' call for “genuine universal suffrage”.

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