5
These conditions can be briefly described.
(1) The absence of the option of political independence.
Irrespective of the preference of the people, the possibility for
Hong Kong to declare independence did not exist. China had always
been firmly opposed to an independent Hong Kong, and this was a
position common to the Manchu and Guomindang governments, which
were too weak to recover Hong Kong, and the Communist government,
which was strong enough to do so but chose to tolerate British
occupation. To the Hong Kong Chinese, the departure of Britain
would mean reversion to Chinese rule, which was perceived as a
worse alternative.
Moreover, despite Hong Kong people's antipathy toward the
socialist government of China and the impending sovereignty
transfer, they were still ambivalent about the issue of
independence. 3 This obviously attested to the lingering
nationalist sentiments among the Hong Kong Chinese.
The impracticality of the option of independence left
subordination to colonial rule as the only viable option
available to the Hong Kong Chinese. As they were fearful of
Chinese takeover, particularly after the Communist regime was
established in China, Hong Kong people were not in the position 3 In the 1988 survey conducted by myself, 41.6 percent of a total of 396 respondents agreed that Hong Kong should not be taken over by China, but should declare independence. 46.7 percent were opposed to the suggestion. The survey was part of the Social Indicators Research Project jointly undertaken by the Centre for Hong Kong Studies (now the Hong Kong Institute of Asia-Pacific Studies) of the Chinese University of Hong Kong, the Social Science Research Centre of the University of Hong Kong, and the Department of Applied Social Studies of the Hong Kong Polytechnic.
Page 90Page 91
No comments yet.
Private notes are available after approval.