SOAS Research Online

Abstract

Hong Kong faces the greatest challenge in its history as it returns to Chinese rule in 1997. How will it be affected by the pressures of the hand over period, and what lessons can be drawn from its relations with China and its other neighbors in recent years? Hong Kong has survived crises in the past, most notably after the Japanese takeover in 1941. In the course of the Pacific War it came under the Allied Theater for which the nationalist Chinese leader Chiang Kai shek was Supreme Commander, and in 1945 its future as a British colony was seriouly threatened. Although Hong Kong did ultimately return to British rule, an appointment was made with China for the year 1997. Hong Kong was to rejoin mother China. Despite the assurances of business leaders and politicians--from both East and West--that no radical changes are planned, doubts remain over the course that has been mapped out for Hong Kong in the next millennium. Hong Kong: An Appointment with China provides a much needed introduction for the general reader to the background and implications of this historic hand over, including the problems which have threatened the process--particularly the impact of the Tiananmen massacre and disputes over democratization.