Hong Kong’s relationship to China
Hong Kong was returned to China in 1997 and it was during this time that the Chinese government started to put up the “one country two systems” or also known as OCTS principle after Hong Kong’s return (Yue-Man Yeung 65). Based on the results the OCTS became a successful that has exceeded far beyond its expectations. As a result, Hong Kong was transformed to become a country that is politically and economically stable after it was returned to China. It was the plan of the Chinese government that the OCTS principle will cause the transfer of the administration of the Hong Kong to the people of Hong Kong. After the sovereignty of Hong Kong, the Chinese government rejected the offer of the British government to continue the administration of the subject country. China believed in the ability of the citizens of Hong Kong to administer their own country. The OCTS has two primary objectives and they are: 1.) to encourage the people of Hong Kong to inform the Chinese government on how to manage the transition; and 2.) to enable the Hong Kong citizens to become familiar with the administration of their own country after its return to China by assisting in the smooth transition of the country’s sovereignty from Britain (Yue-Man Yeung 65). The difficult challenge is how Britain will relinquish it colonial power over Hong Kong territory to China, which practices a dissimilar ideology and political system.
The Hong Kong residents became more politically motivated as seen in the advancement of Hong Kong media from television, radio and newspapers. The people became more politically involved as they began to form their own opinions on local politics and politicians. These substantial alterations in the Hong Kong government have improved the relationship between the government and the people by making it more acceptable for them to express their opinions on the performance of the government officials of the country.
Prior to the actual transfer of Hong Kong, China has planned the long-term prosperity of the country by establishing a special preparatory committee the held three plenary sessions and five study groups to focus on the political, economic, legal, cultural, social and security affairs of the country. The OCTS principle was viewed as endeavor that guaranteed the security and stability of Hong Kong to remove the doubts and suspicion on the credibility of the country to establish on their own. The economic success of Hong Kong became evident after the country has received a strong support from its central government known as the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR). One of the game changers is the labor productivity of the country of its GDP. The labor productivity of the country was assessed based on the gross domestic product (GDP) as each of the employees involved were required to increase the GDP of 3.7 percent on a yearly basis (Yue-Man Yeung 67). As a result, there was a 2.8 percent average rise in the country’s economy which only shows the effectiveness of the knowledge-based activity that has upgraded the labor force of the country. The development of the labor force helped Hong Kong to gain its economic freedom by implementing low taxes on the country’s GDP.
The booming consumer market of Chinese economy has become an advantage for Hong Kong as a location for business expansion. This event caused the advancement of the economic
rapport between Chinese mainland and Hong Kong as they enforced a free trade agreement. This became an advantage for Hong Kong since it was allowed to import its products to Chinese mainland free from tariff and customs. The terms of their agreement allowed Hong Kong to import its products without added cost. In effect, there was a free flowing exchange of goods and became the driving influence to strengthen the economic interaction between the two countries despite their separate customs territories.
The economic success of the country can be attributed to its hardworking and productive labor force. In addition, the government has extended the opportunities for higher education as private schools were made available for in almost all of the ethnic groups on the country. The youth has become better educated after the establishment of a formal education system to ensure the competitiveness of the country all over the world (Genzberger 169).
In terms of culture, particularly the film culture of the country has experienced a contemporary exchange with Hollywood actors, directors, martial arts and the cult-circulation among African-Americans and Asian-Americans. There was a shift in the martial arts kung fu cinema embodied by the Bruce Lee era to the martial arts comedies associated with Jackie Chan in order to conform with the Chinese diaspora to the transnational audience and the shift from nostalgia to urban transnationalism (Mennel 84).
In conclusion, the humble changes in the political and economic situation of Hong Kong had a major impact on the social and cultural identity of its people. This was made evident through the recognition of civil liberties granted to them by giving them the opportunity to express themselves in terms of language, art and media.
References
Genzberge, Christine. Hong Kong Business: The Portable Encyclopedia for Doing Business
With Hong Kong. California: World State Press, 2004. Print.
Krasner, Stephen D. Problematic Sovereignty: Contested Rules and Political Possibilities. Columbia: Columbia University Press, 2001. Print.
Leung, Beatrice. Hong Kong Sar: In Pursuit of Domestic and International Order. Hong Kong:
Chinese University Press, 1997. Print.
Mennel, Barbara. Cities and Cinema. New York. Routledge, 2008. Print.
Yeung, Yue-Man. The First Decade: The Hong Kong SAR in Retrospective and Introspective.
Hong Kong: Chinese University Press, 2007. Print.
