TNAG-0642-FCO40-790-Kowloon-Walled-City-and-aircraft-safety-in-Hong-Kong-1977 — Page 151

465

Walled City

[LORDS]

of Kowloon although everything around it.

466

also

Pros-

nial

very

lear-

leon,

In the modern age with the increase in the population and perity of Hong Kong, the Government have developed effective, a very admirable, slun ance policy. Great areas of !· most of it, have been slum cle new blocks of flats have been but They are good, sound blocks. The deity of population is much higher than

[Lord Kennet.] 45,000. That gives us a population of | Chinese. 8,500 people per acre. With what shall we compare this? We can compare it with the greatest density of population known in this country, which is about 300 people per acre in our old city centres. New development in this country at the highest density allowed high-rise buildings--is 120 people per acre. Probably other slums in Asia reach a density per acre of 1,000 or 2,000 people. In the Walled City of Kowloon it is 8,500 compared with 300 which is the highest we can see in our own rundown city centres. There are thus 45,000 people bringing up children in a place where they can never see the sky. You cannot see the sky anywhere in these 18-inch wide alleys.

Those who wish to visit their neigh- bours in the Walled City walk across a plank at the tenth storey over the street into the window opposite. In some places 'they do not even need a plank; they just step across. It is as near as one can ever come in this world to the ideal con- cept of the city of dreadful night. How did this arise? It arose because when Britain leased Kowloon from Imperial China in 1898 an exception was made to the sovereignty granted in the lease for the old Walled City itself. A Chinese magistrate was left there with Chinese jurisdiction by the agreement of Britain. Within about three or four years there was disagreement about his functions and he left or was removed by the Imperial British Government. The history is obscure and I cannot properly go into it.

The present Chinese régime, as we all know, regard the whole lease of Hong Kong and Kowloon as being virtually null. They regard it as an unequal treaty and do not admit its existence. De facto, as we all know, they do not object; there is a de facto agreement that the economic and political phenomenon of Hong Kong shall continue; they do not seek to upset it. But within their de jure objection to British sovereignty in Hong Kong, there is an area of especial de deure objection, and that concerns the Walled City itself. They say to the whole of Hong Kong and Kowloon, "We do not admit your pre- sence, but in practice we do not object". About the Walled, City-this 6 acres they say, "This is especially Chinese",

4 and

know

neral pretty. think 1. In Long

in Europe but not higher than i in Asia. Life there, though re is certainly quite tolerable and there is little ground for comp 1963 the Colonial Government Kong faced the question of the Walled City, which was then a normal Asian shum. There was no water, no el Picity : there were insanitary conditions, open drains, rats. But the buildings we only on or two storeys bigh and alleys were the normal width, 8 feet to ! feet The Colonial Gomment of mud. began to clear that slum, as thy had cleared all the slums round about

#

the was a

There came rumblings from Peting and London, and the Hong Kong Goment desisted from their slum clear: In effect, this action gave the green light to speculators. The speculators message. They realised that he place where there was no lay neither British Colonial law nor Chine Law. I have described its outward appearance. Inwardly, perhaps, socially and terms of social philosophy, we see what happens when lawlessness meets soaring land valucs. There is lawles nors else- where; there are soaring land valne else- where, but I believe that nowh

se in

torey

me no

rapers they

the world is there the combing of lawlessness with soaring land vahe. The result is as I have described it: buildings, 18 inches apart. The building regulations. Those <! have been built without foundat: could fall at any moment. The only law which has been observed by the ocula- tive builders in the Walled City is the law which says they shall not coach on the approach funnel to the airport. In practice they have not done so, one approaches Hong Kong by air one flies in a few feet from the top storeys, and looks in at the people having their evening meal. The builders have kept out of the approach funnel.

If

A

1

4