8
signified that to the Hong Kong Chinese, co-option by the
colonizers was the only means to obtain political status. In
fact, the colonial government had over time instituted a
structure of political mobility for the colonial subjects based
upon political sponsorship from above. 6 Through political co-
option, the Hong Kong government was able to enlist the
collaboration of the Chinese elite in colonial rule. Given the
depoliticization of the Chinese community and its freedom from
serious social conflicts, the acquiescence of the Chinese elites
in colonial domination went a long way to ensure effective colonial
rule.
(4) General consensus on the political system and public
policies. There was a high degree of public acceptance of the
political system and the major policies formulated and
implemented by the Hong Kong government,7 so much so that the
Hong Kong people vociferously demanded their preservation in the
post-1997 arrangements. In particular, government by
consultation, limited involvement of government in social and
economic affairs, a moderate welfare role of government, an
untrammelled capitalist market system, political elitism,
consensus politics and political moderation had become common
understandings in Hong Kong. In such a context, political
radicalism was difficult to nourish. In fact, it was difficult to
See Ambrose Yeo-chi King, 'Administrative Absorption of 1 Politics in Hong Kong: Emphasis on the Grassroots Level, Asian Survey, Vol. 15, No. 5 (May 1972), pp. 422-39; and Lau Siu-kai, Decolonization Without Independence and the Poverty of Political Leaders in Hong Kong (Hong Kong: Hong Kong Institute of Asia- Pacific Studies, Chinese University of Hong Kong, 1990), pp. 5-6.