That's true if you don't mind paying more for the same thing. Until recently, you can buy the same lens in HK at 20% discount with no difference in warranty coverage.
Now that Canon has remove the international warranty in their lenses and flashes, it is up to each person to decide whether it is worth the risk to get a lens with no Canon SG warranty from HK. From my past experience with Canon cameras and lenses (dating back to '80s), the only item I have send to CSC is one 35L (and that's for calibration). And even that I blame it on my mismatch expectation rather than Canon's manufacturing fault.