History of Hong Kong

Modern Hong Kong under British rule (1950s - 1997):

The manufacturing industry opened a new decade utilizing large portions of the population. The period is considered the first turning point for Hong Kong's economy. The construction business would also be revamped with new detailed guidelines for the first time since World War II. While Hong Kong started out with a low GDP, it would use the textile industry as the foundation to boost the economy. China's cultural revolution would put Hong Kong on a new political stage. Events like the 1967 riot would fill the streets with home-made bombs and chaos. Bomb disposal experts from the police and the British military defused as many as 8,000 home-made bombs. Statistics rated 1 in every 8 bombs were genuine.

Family values and Chinese tradition would be challenged like never before as people spent more time in the factories than at home. Other obstacles include water shortages, long working hours coupled with extremely low wages were all trademarks of the era. The Hong Kong Flu of 1968 would infect 15% of the population. Amidst all the struggle, "Made in Hong Kong" went from a label that marked cheap low-grade products to a label that marked high-quality products.

The 1970s also saw the extension of government subsidised education from six years to nine years and the creation of Hong Kong's country parks system.

In 1974, Murray McLehose founded ICAC, the Independent Commission Against Corruption, in order to combat corruption within the police force. The extent of corruption was so widespread that a mass police petition took place resisting prosecutions. Despite early opposition to the ICAC by the police force, Hong Kong was quite successful in its anti-corruption efforts, eventually becoming one of the least corrupt societies in the world.

In 1982, the British Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher, hoped that the increasing openness of the PRC government and the economic reform in the mainland would allow the continuation of British rule. The resulting meeting, led to the signing of Sino-British Joint Declaration and the proposal of the One country, two systems concept by Deng Xiaoping. Political news dominated the media, while real estate took a major upswing. The financial world would also be rattled by panics, leading to waves of policy changes and Black Saturday. Meanwhile Hong Kong was now recognised as one of the most wealthy representatives of the far east.

On 4 April 1990, the Hong Kong Basic Law was officially accepted as the mini-constitution of the Hong Kong SAR after the handover. The pro-Beijing bloc welcomed the Basic Law, calling it the most democratic legal system to ever exist in the PRC. The pro-democratic bloc criticised it as not democratic enough. In July 1992, Chris Patten was appointed as the last British Governor of Hong Kong. Patten had been Chairman of the Conservative Party in the UK until he lost his parliamentary seat in the general election earlier that year. Relations with the PRC government in Beijing became increasingly strained, as Patten introduced democratic reforms that increased the number of elected members in the Legislative Council. This caused considerable annoyance to the PRC, which saw this as a breach of the Basic Law. On 1 July 1997 Hong Kong was handed over to the People's Republic of China by the United Kingdom.

Modern Hong Kong under China (post 1997 - Present):

The new millennium signalled a series of events. A sizeable portion of the population that was previously against the handover found itself living with the adjustments. Article 23 became a controversy, and led to a marches in different parts of Hong Kong with as many as 750,000 people out of a population of approximately 6,800,000 at the time. The government also dealt with the SARS outbreak in 2003. Other health crisis such as the Bird Flu Pandemic (H5N1) gained momentum from the late 90s, and led to the disposal of millions of chicken and poultry. The slaughtering put Hong Kong at the center of global discussions. At the same time, the economy is trying to rebound fiscally. Hong Kong Disneyland was also introduced in the much turbulent time. In a very short time, the political climate heated up and the Chief Executive position would be challenged culturally, politically and managerially.

Hong Kong's skyline has continued to evolve, with two new supertall skyscrapers (one currently under construction) dominating. The 415 meter (1,362 foot) tall, 88 story Two International Finance Centre, completed in 2003, is currently Hong Kong's tallest building, but will soon be eclipsed by the 484 meter (1,588 foot) tall, 118 story International Commerce Centre, expected to be completed in 2010. Nine additional skyscrapers over 250 meters (825 feet) have also been completed during this time.

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