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Bearing in mind the RASHKB is sometimes seen as supporting the "establishment”, in October 1989, four months after the Tiananmun incident, Dr James Hayes, then our President, wrote to the Chairman of the Consultative Committee for the Basic Law (Hayes 1989: xvi). As no reply was received a copy was then sent to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, in London. Again, no reply was forthcoming.
In this letter, put very simply, the President wrote that the RASHKB hoped to be able to continue its activities in the interests of Hong Kong long after 1997. Indeed, members hoped to be able to carry on in the same way as they had been able to operate before 1997. The letter went on to say that the Branch's particular functions are to increase the common stock of knowledge and understanding of Hong Kong and to build a bridge between the Chinese and expatriate sectors of the local community, promoting social interaction and friendship among residents.
Like a number of other societies in Hong Kong, over the years the RAS has in its own way contributed to peace and stability. It has helped to nurture the growing sense of territory identity, for example, that has formed especially since the end of the 1960s. In spite, however, of trying to recruit more Chinese members, especially in recent years, the Branch has had limited success.
I am pleased to say, a few months after the handover of the Territory to China, the Branch is continuing to operate along similar lines as in the past. For the RASHKB, in other words, it is "business as usual”.
It is accepted that the world, including Hong Kong, changes in various ways, and our Branch will need to keep its ear to the ground and move with the times. Although we remain basically an English-speaking Society, we did conduct some lectures in Cantonese during the winter of 1995-96. These were held in conjunction with the Exhibition, Hong Kong Going and Gone mounted jointly by our Branch and the Antiquities and Monuments Office.
Our Society, which has a long and honourable history, consists mainly of active members who make up a generally friendly, cosmopolitan body of people with similar interests. In spite of the fact
157
Bearing in mind the RASHKB is sometimes seen as supporting the "establishment”, in October 1989, four months after the Tiananmun incident, Dr James Hayes, then our President, wrote to the Chairman of the Consultative Committee for the Basic Law (Hayes 1989: xvi). As no reply was received a copy was then sent to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, in London. Again, no reply was forthcoming.
In this letter, put very simply, the President wrote that the RASHKB hoped to be able to continue its activities in the interests of Hong Kong long after 1997. Indeed, members hoped to be able to carry on in the same way as they had been able to operate before 1997. The letter went on to say that the Branch's particular functions are to increase the common stock of knowledge and understanding of Hong Kong and to build a bridge between the Chinese and expatriate sectors of the local community, promoting social interaction and friendship among residents.
Like a number of other societies in Hong Kong, over the years the RAS has in its own way contributed to peace and stability. It has helped to nurture the growing sense of territory identity, for example, that has formed especially since the end of the 1960s. In spite, however, of trying to recruit more Chinese members, especially in recent years, the Branch has had limited success.
I am pleased to say, a few months after the handback of the Territory to China, the Branch is continuing to operate along similar lines as in the past. For the RASHKB, in other words, it is "business as usual”.
It is accepted that the world, including Hong Kong, changes in various ways, and our Branch will need to keep its ear to the ground and move with the times. Although we remain basically an English speaking Society we did conduct some lectures in Cantonese during the winter of 1995-96. These were held in conjuction with the Exhibition, Hong Kong Going and Gone mounted jointly by our Branch and the Antiquities and Monuments Office
Our Society, which has a long and honourable history, consists mainly of active members who make up a generally friendly, cosmopolitan body of people with similar interests. In spite of the fact
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