66
ALINE K. WONG
Kong stands apart from the Chinese communities in Southeast Asia, or elsewhere, in the United States, England, or New Zealand. The reasons are these:
1. Unlike the Chinese communities in Asia or elsewhere in the world, the Chinese in Hong Kong are not a minority people in the numerical sense. On the contrary, the Chinese make up 99% of the local population.
2. The Nationalist and the Communist governments in China have never regarded the residents of Hong Kong (and Macau) as "overseas Chinese" in the same way as they look at the Chinese in other parts of the world. Residents in Hong Kong are considered by both governments as Chinese citizens per se, and not as people with dual nationality, as were so many Chinese in Southeast Asia before the Communist government took a firmer stand on the question of nationality status, beginning in 1954.
3. The dominant culture in Hong Kong is the Chinese culture. If it is true that many overseas Chinese in other parts of the world still consider themselves as "Chinese" irrespective of their actual nationality, it is more true of the beliefs and attitudes of the Hong Kong Chinese. The organization and cultural content of their social life is unmistakably Chinese, although Hong Kong seems to be very westernized in certain aspects, such as in the styles of dress, food habits and recreational life.
4. A large number of people in the Colony are political refugees from China. According to the 1955 United Nations Report on the Problem of Chinese Refugees in Hong Kong, at least 385,000 people could be considered as political refugees at the time.11 As such, these people demand a special kind of status and require some special policy treatment. The problem of the refugees is not just a problem of cultural assimilation, but is one calling for political solutions.
For the above reasons, I do not think that Hong Kong should be considered as one of the "overseas" Chinese communities. It is a city with a unique society of its own in which social life bears an unmistakable Chinese stamp. It is within this context
11 E. Hambro, The Problem of Chinese Refugees in Hong Kong. Report submitted to the United Nations High Commissioner of Refugees, 1955, p. 125.
66
ALINE K. WONG
Kong stands apart from the Chinese communities in Southeast Asia, or elsewhere, in the United States, England, or New Zealand. The reasons are these:
1. Unlike the Chinese communities in Asia or elsewhere in the world, the Chinese in Hong Kong are not a minority people in the numerical sense, On the contrary, the Chinese make up 99% of the local population.
2. The Nationalist and the Communist governments in China have never regarded the residents of Hong Kong (and Macau) as "overseas Chinese" in the same way as they look at the Chinese in other parts of the world. Residents in Hong Kong are con- sidered by both governments as Chinese citizens per se, and not as people with dual nationality, as were so many Chinese in Southeast Asia before the Communist government took a firmer stand on the question of nationality status, beginning in 1954.
3. The dominant culture in Hong Kong is the Chinese culture. If it is true that many overseas Chinese in other parts of the world still consider themselves as "Chinese" irrespective of their actual nationality, it is more true of the beliefs and attitudes of the Hong Kong Chinese. The organization and cultural content of their social life is unmistakably Chinese, although Hong Kong seems to be very westernized in certain aspects, such as in the styles of dress, food habits and recreational life.
4. A large number of people in the Colony are political refugees from China. According to the 1955 United Nations Report on the Problem of Chinese Refugees in Hong Kong, at least 385,000 people could be considered as political refugees at the time.11 As such, these people demand a special kind of status and require some special policy treatment. The problem of the refugees is not just a problem of cultural assimilation, but is one calling for political solutions.
For the above reasons, I do not think that Hong Kong should be considered as one of the "overseas" Chinese communities. It is a city with a unique society of its own in which social life bears an unmistakable Chinese stamp. It is within this context
11 E. Hambro, The Problem of Chinese Refugees in Hong Kong. Re- port submitted to the United Nations High Commissioner of Refugees, 1955, p. 125.
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