The Handover
By the 1970s Hong Kong was a regional financial hub and started to move into the tertiary sector, which was well-timed given Deng Xiaoping’s opening up of the mainland economy and the resulting industrial shift to north of the border. However, the question of what would happen when the British lease on the New Territories expired in 1997 was looming ever larger and the uncertainty this caused hindered investment.
In 1984 the situation was resolved by the Joint Declaration, which assured the return of the entire territory to China in 1997 with a tacit understanding (but no guarantee) that its democratic system of government would remain in place for at least 50 years. This sent shivers up the spine of many Chinese who had fled here in 1949, and there was large-scale emigration to Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the USA.
The flood of people leaving Hong Kong peaked after the Tian’anmen Square Demonstrations in 1989. Some of the student protests in Beijing were organized from Hong Kong and the most vehement condemnation of the brutal Chinese response came from here – candle-lit remembrance vigils are still held in Victoria Park on June 4th every year.
Relations with the mainland were further strained when Chris Patten, the last British governor appointed to Hong Kong in 1992, introduced expansive electoral reforms, which gave a voice to a much greater percentage of the population, without backing from the Chinese government.
However, contrary to the expectations of some, when the giant handover countdown clock in Beijing’s Tian’anmen Square finally reached zero, the return of Hong Kong passed without incident. The British sailed away on HMS Britannia and there were huge celebrations around China, but otherwise business in the territory carried on as usual.
Patten’s electoral reforms were reversed and Tung Chee-hwa, a shipping magnate, was appointed as the first chief executive of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR), running the territory under the “one country, two systems” policy, which Beijing is still trying to repeat in Taiwan.
Competition, Democracy & Disease
However Hong Kong’s days as the economic top dog of the region were numbered, particularly after the designation of Shanghai as China’s financial capital. Shortly after the handover, the Asian Financial Crisis hit Hong Kong hard.
Skyrocketing property prices and labor costs pushed more and more businesses north of the border into the Pearl River Delta and cities such as Shenzhen sprung up almost overnight.
In spite of continued infrastructural investment (most notably the completion of the Sir Norman Foster designed international airport at Chek Lap Kok), the scale of development was more than matched over the border in the Delta, which was increasingly challenging Hong Kong’s role as the region’s primary trading hub. Added to this increased competition, the recent SARS and Bird Flu scares stopped the territory’s tourist trade in its tracks.
Government corruption has been another major source of contention and, while some argue that the right to protest is an indication of political freedom, others point out that this is only valid if opposing viewpoints are actually listened to.
For Hong Kong to achieve the democratic society it aspires to it needs to satisfy the populace at large. In 2003 a half-million-strong protest took to the streets of Hong Kong and their calls for Tung Chee-hwa’s resignation were eventually answered in 2004 when he was replaced by the long-term civil servant, Donald Tsang.
The Environment
For all its first-rate public services, futuristic skyscrapers, fancy restaurants, theme parks and international visitors, Hong Kong is rated as one of the most polluted cities in the world, thanks in no small part to the thousands of factories just over the border.
While the environment was previously treated as a resource to be exploited, greater awareness and concern have led to a stronger environmental movement in the territory, which has been incorporated into policy (see www.epd.gov.hk for more).
However, when there’s lots of money at stake, nature still seems to get a rough deal, as evidenced by ongoing land reclamation projects. Of the many issues that might frustrate residents (and visitors), the environment is most regularly cited. If Hong Kong wants to continue attracting international businesses and their employees, it urgently needs not only to acknowledge the problem, but also to ensure that appropriate action is taken.
The Future
In summary, although Hong Kong is facing ever more competition and is no longer the only boomtown in the region, it is by far the most developed part of China. Today there is a first class infrastructure, people enjoy greater social freedom than they do just over the border and the government is committed to making Hong Kong a truly developed international city – look no further than the overload of public infomercials relating to health, safety and good conduct for a view of where they would like Hong Kong to be in the future.
The return to China is only a decade old and the region is still trying to define its role within the burgeoning Chinese economy which undoubtedly makes for uncertain times. If the authorities can successfully walk the fine line between pleasing the people and keeping Beijing happy, as well as clean up the environment, then there’s no reason why Hong Kong can’t remain the focal point of this part of Asia.
For now, the skyscrapers keep getting taller, the malls are full of shoppers flexing their credit cards and all the indications are that this adaptive, resourceful and international community will continue to prosper.