[
    {
        "id": 215920,
        "series_id": 26,
        "series_slug": "histsyn-rashkb-journal-engine",
        "series_title": "RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊",
        "series_use_hku_proxy": false,
        "document_key": "RAS-2002",
        "page_number": 219,
        "title": "RAS-2002",
        "content_text": "153\n\n\"I would like to do more for students...In our time at school, even in the university, no one really cared about Hong Kong history and at secondary school, we never had a chance to study Hong Kong history, so no one knew about what happened in Hong Kong.\"\n\nKo has also published a battlefield guide and a bilingual publication for the Country Parks Authority. His next book, a resource guide for teachers and students on Kowloon City, should be out in May. Ko has not published in the RAS Journal, and has no plans to.\n\n“Not as many people are writing in Chinese,” said Ko. \"There are a lot of many very good scholars writing very good things like Patrick Hase, James Hayes, but all these, they only write in English.\"\n\nKo is a fifth-generation Hong Konger. He is Hakka and his ancestors were stonecutters. He has traced his family back to the 1850's, before the British came. Ko studied Japanese at the Hong Kong Polytechnic and worked for the HKTA (Hong Kong Tourist Association, now the Tourism Board) for six years before quitting to do more of what he does today record Hong Kong history, including what life was like in the early resettlement blocks.\n\n\"It's quite unimaginable for young people now, the communal toilets, communal bathrooms, no tap water in a small flat,\" said Ko. \"You remember I emphasised during the talk, 24 square feet for each adult, a 100-square foot room would take at least four adults or six, if there are children. You could imagine how the situation could be. All the male members would need to sleep in the public corridor.\n\n\"I always dream of, even till now, I dream of life in the housing blocks. I don't know why, many times a year, even till now, because actually I spent 22 years there...[They] could not be regarded as fond memories because we lived on the top floor and there were a lot of problems then with the ceiling leaking.”\n\nThe 37-year-old has supported himself for the last 10 years through freelance jobs -- acting as co-ordinator and translator for the visiting Japanese media book royalties, and other odd projects.\n\nKo has been a member of the RAS since 1990 and on the Council",
        "txt_file_path": "txt/dfo323lmgvd/RAS-2002.txt",
        "external_url": "https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/mp4901278",
        "rank": 0
    },
    {
        "id": 215921,
        "series_id": 26,
        "series_slug": "histsyn-rashkb-journal-engine",
        "series_title": "RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊",
        "series_use_hku_proxy": false,
        "document_key": "RAS-2002",
        "page_number": 220,
        "title": "RAS-2002",
        "content_text": "154\n\nsince 1997. But getting Ko to first join, and then to be on the Council, was not easy.\n\n\"I never heard about [the RAS] of course, not until I started working at the HKTA. They have the whole set of the journal in the library. So I started reading and it was really an eye-opener for me. Particularly reading those articles written by James Hayes...I never read anything like that before in my life.\n\n\"Even though I'm so interested in history and I knew about this organisation, I think...it's not an organisation for people with a background like mine.”\n\nBut Ko met Philip Bruce, a Council member, during a freelance job, and decided to join. In 1997, he was asked to serve on the Council.\n\n\"At that time my first thought was it was totally beyond my wildest thoughts because of my background...I had nothing to do with academics. I don't have any degree in history, anthropology or whatever, and at that age, I'm not that young, but because all the other Council members are much more senior in whatever aspect, I was quite surprised when they invited me.\n\n\"This is Dr. Hase, Dr. Sinn, Dr. Waters...and who am I?”\n\nAlthough he answers with sincerity that he doesn't know what he's contributed as a Council member, he has given several talks. Ko believes that one reason he was asked to serve on the Council was to help with the recruitment of younger Chinese members.\n\nSeventy-three percent of the members of the RAS are aged between 40 and 60, but over the last year the society has stepped up its effort to recruit new members, especially young Chinese members.\n\nKo said he has tried to recruit some young Chinese friends but because the RAS is an English-speaking society, Ko says from personal experience, it can be intimidating for people who are second language speakers.\n\n\"It's too difficult to speak in English, I think, for many people.",
        "txt_file_path": "txt/dfo323lmgvd/RAS-2002.txt",
        "external_url": "https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/mp4901278",
        "rank": 0
    }
]