A Documentary History of Hong Kong

Transcription

1 A Documentary History of Hong Kong David Faure Published by Hong Kong University Press, HKU Faure, David. A Documentary History of Hong Kong: Society. Hong Kong: Hong Kong University Press, HKU, Project MUSE., For additional information about this book No institutional affiliation (30 Jan :19 GMT)

2 CHAPTER SEVE N CRISIS AND CONSOLIDATION, The signs were probably there even in the 1950s, that the simple formula of a colonial governmen t assiste d b y appointe d member s an d supporte d b y loosely organize d traditiona l communa l organization s woul d no t hold. Housing estate s being built b y the Hon g Kon g government were to hous e hundreds of thousands of people who no t only had no representation i n the government, bu t als o n o effectiv e communa l organizatio n amon g themselves. The trade unions of the 1950s, tied to the remnants of politica l hostility that had developed from before 1949, did not address Hong Kong's labour issues. While th e working populatio n wa s mad e u p essentiall y o f first-generation migrants refugee s whose aspirations did not go beyond survival, an d while th e politica l situatio n remaine d i n balanc e s o that th e Hong Kong government was under no threat to strengthen it s social support, Hong Kon g society continued through the 1950 s and the early 1960 s very much a s it was i n the 1930s. The first sign s that the presen t constitutiona l arrangements wer e unacceptabl e cam e with th e riot s o f 1966, that brok e out over the unlikely caus e of a 5 cent ris e on the cross-harbour far e of the Star Ferry. The commissio n o f enquir y tha t wa s establishe d t o investigat e into the cause of the riots returned with a report that described the participants in the riot as young, under-privileged, low-paid workers who were ignoran t but not criminally bent. From that point on, the 'youth problem 7 came to be recognized as an issue that Hong Kong must deal with. The 'youth problem' was, o f course, muc h mor e tha n a problem o f youn g peopl e lookin g fo r outlets for their energy: it was no less than a recognition of the gap between the have s an d th e have-nots, th e middle-age d first-generatio n immigran t and the generation that ha d grown u p i n Hong Kon g within the 1950s, the government and what i t might think of a s its people. The Hong Kong government would probabl y hav e been les s pushed to

3 286 Society re-think it s relationshi p wit h Hon g Kon g societ y ha d i t no t bee n fo r th e need to organize support for itsel f when it s authority was challenged b y the riots o f Unlik e th e riots, the riot s were inspire d b y th e Cultural Revolutio n that was taking place i n the People's Republic of China, and wer e organize d b y pro-pr C organizations i n Hon g Kong. The riotin g was supported b y stoppages o f work an d hig h tension o n the Hon g Kong - China border. They were also supported b y political terrorism: home-mad e bombs were lai d i n public places and a radio announcer was murdered fo r his pro-hong Kon g government broadcasts. Some of the feelings expresse d in these incident s were n o doubt genuine, especially hostilit y towards th e police, dissatisfactio n wit h a competitiv e educationa l environmen t tha t favoured teaching in English, and frustration a t working and livin g conditions. The terrorism, however, foun d littl e rapport i n the Hon g Kon g population. a. Riot s A noticeable sectio n o f the repor t o f th e Commissio n o f Inquir y int o th e 1966 rio t deal t wit h a n allegatio n mad e b y Urba n Councillo r Mr s Elsi e Elliot tha t par t o f th e riotin g migh t hav e bee n police-instigate d wit h th e view of framing her. Mrs Elliot refused t o disclose her source of informatio n for th e allegatio n an d th e Commissio n foun d he r o f contempt. Whe n th e Commission wen t o n t o argu e tha t th e riot s i n ha d bee n relativel y spontaneous, that participants in the riots had included principally disaffecte d young peopl e rathe r than crimina l elements, i t avoided th e issu e that Mr s Elliot's allegation focused on. I n the early 1960s, the poorer sectors of Hong Kong's population were probably quite disgruntled with portions of the Hong Kong government that they were i n touch with, i n particular the Police. The traditional communa l organization s tha t the Hon g Kon g government ha d relied upo n to reflect public opinion ha d b y the 1960s become inadequate. In other words, government itsel f was out of touch with a substantial sectio n of the Hon g Kon g population. DOCUMENT Vll.al: Kowloon riot, 1966 (source: Kowbon Disturbances, 1966, Report of Commission of Inquiry, Hong Kong: Government Printer, 1967, pp ) The background an d motives of participant s There wa s a practical limi t o n th e number s o f witnesses w e coul d call. These demonstrators and rioters who gave evidence were selected by our counsel as the most significant, mainly from the prisoners at Chi Ma Wan Prison, which housed those who were older or had received heavier sentences.

4 Crisis and Consolidation, Data on al l persons arreste d We had, however, three other sources o f information throwin g some light on th e type and kind o f individuals involve d i n the disturbance s and, i n some cases, on th e reasons the y gave fo r involvement. I t will be see n [fro m a n appendix ] tha t 90 5 wer e arrested and charged, whilst 560 were arrested but released without charge; presumably because the y ha d bee n caugh t u p inadvertentl y i n th e curfe w etc. Amongs t thos e charged, the predominant age group is that of 16 to 20 years but amongst those released the ag e group s ar e mor e evenl y balanced. Th e proportio n o f thos e wit h previou s convictions i s higher as the age groups get older which gives the impression that thes e groups wer e roughe r an d toughe r tha n th e youngsters. Bu t thi s impressio n ma y b e misleading because, given the same propensities, the older age group is inevitably liable to have more previous convictions. Those involved i n offences mor e serious than jus t curfew breaking tended, a s one might expect, to have a higher proportion o f previous convictions but, in this category, there appears to have been no clear tendency toward s a higher proportion o f convictions fo r the olde r offenders, largel y because the figure s for the 21 to 2 5 year group seem to be so much out of line with those of the categorie s on either sid e o f them. The most significant feature of this appendix i s the comparatively high proportion of those i n th e 1 6 to 2 0 year s categor y wh o wer e involve d i n offence s mor e seriou s than curfew breaking. This would seem to point to this age group as the main source of the violence. Analysis o f Chi M a Wan prisoner s A more ambitious document was the analysis of the 313 prisoners held in Chi M a Wan fo r offences arisin g out o f the disturbances; more ambitious because, in additio n to the fact s abou t ag e etc., some details o f their backgroun d wer e include d an d the y were asked to state their reasons for becoming involved in these offences. Of the curfe w breakers, 102 (40%) claimed they did not know that a curfew had been imposed whilst 81 (31.8% ) sai d they di d not realis e the seriousnes s o f the curfe w o r had insufficien t time to go home. 68 (26.7%) sai d they committed the offence i n the excitement of the moment, which was also the reason given by the majority fo r the commission o f other offences offenders had received only a primary education, 10 2 had been to junior or senior middle schools, five had attended a post secondary college and 1 2 had neve r been to school at all. 146 (46.6%) had been in Hong Kong for les s than ten years and only 1 1 % were married. Only six were unemployed and 1 5 were students. The averag e number o f hours worked per da y was nine an d the incom e earne d range d fro m ni l t o $2,000 per month (54.3%) were receiving under $300 a month whilst 106 (33.9%) were receiving between $400 and $60 0 a month. Survey o f detainees a t Begonia Roa d At our request, a group of social workers made a survey of those younger prisoner s who were held at Begonia Road Boys Home for offences arisin g out of the disturbances.

5 288 Society As onl y 2 4 boy s wer e interviewed, thes e worker s stresse d tha t the y coul d no t b e considered a s sufficiently representativ e o f the hundreds o f youths who actually too k part in the riots. A further reason for not regarding them as representative i s mentioned in the next paragraph. The workers also expressed some reservations as to the scientifi c validity o f their survey, because o f limitations o f time an d doubts a s to whether thei r questionnaire wa s properl y balance d an d sufficien t full y t o suppor t thei r somewha t ambitious ai m o f buildin g u p a reasonabl y accurat e pictur e o f th e backgroun d an d certain relevant attitudes o f these youngsters. Whilst accepting these reservations, we think the answers received are of sufficien t interest t o meri t quotin g som e o f them. The y ar e give n fo r thei r qualitativ e rathe r than quantitativ e value, al l the mor e s o a s we were i n no positio n t o asses s the rea l veracity o f these answers or the extent t o which they may have been coloured b y th e fact tha t th e boy s at the tim e o f the interview s wer e actuall y payin g the penalt y fo r their recent clash with authority. Moreover the 24 came from those who had receive d comparatively heavie r punishments, thos e wit h shor t sentence s ha d alread y bee n released at the time of the survey and many of those convicted were never imprisone d at all. Social background. The boys ranged from 1 3 to 1 7 years of age. The majorit y (18 ) had bee n bor n i n Hong Kong. Most had lef t schoo l a t the tim e o f the riot s and th e majority (14 ) had bee n awa y fro m schoo l fro m tw o t o thre e years. Ten gav e 'lac k o f interest' a s their reason s fo r leavin g schoo l an d si x 'financia l difficulty'. Fiftee n ha d both parents i n the family. One ha d no parents i n Hong Kong. Four had fathe r onl y and four had mothers only. Three of the boys did not know their parents' income. The others gave figures between $101 and $1,000 per month; four between $101 and $200, five between $201 and $300, the remainder being above $400 a month. Twenty-one of the boys were working at the time o f the riots in the following capacities : Kitchen hand 7 Apprentice 5 Delivery boy 4 Bar boy 1 Hawker 2 Unskilled laboure r 1 No informatio n 1 Ten claimed they had chosen their jobs themselves. More than half claimed that the y worked very long hours. Including the apprentices, their monthly salar y ranged fro m -$50 2 $51-$100 3 $ $151-$200 7 $201-$250 3

6 Crisis and Consolidation, Seven o f the boys did not have to give any o f their earnings to their parents and fou r had t o giv e all. Six o f them fel t tha t thei r workin g condition s wer e good, seve n fel t that theirs were passable, and another seven, poor. Twelve slept at their place of work, in bunks, camp beds etc. One slep t on a board over a sewing machine. Regarding prospects, half o f them di d not fee l that the y had ver y much futur e i n their present job, while six felt a bit more hopeful. Seve n o f them aspired to be moto r or electrical mechanics, four to catering and restaurant work. Others would like to be seamen (two), clerk (one), radio-worker (one), carpenter (one), construction worke r (one) an d hotel bo y (one). One hoped t o have hi s own garag e and b e his own boss. Five had no plans. The majority, 2 0 out of 24, claimed to be in good health. Eighteen felt recreatio n was essentia l an d importan t whils t thre e fel t i t wa s unnecessar y an d thre e ha d n o opinion. Going to the cinema, loafing in the streets, swimming, ball-games and gambling were the major activitie s apart from work. Attitudes to Government and public utilities. Four of them were unable to make an y comments about the Government. Six were indifferent. Tw o felt the Government wa s good. Six felt it was satisfactory. Si x felt i t was bad. Eighteen of the boys felt there was no equa l treatment fo r people i n Hong Kon g and sixtee n o f them tha t ther e wa s n o justice in the Courts. Others had no opinion on these topics. Sixteen of them considered the polic e forc e bad. One sai d i t wa s ver y bad. Fiv e wer e indifferen t an d tw o wer e unable to make any comments. Twenty-one o f the boys had no knowledge o f who owned the public utilities such as the Star Ferry Co., etc. Only two knew the correct answers. One was indifferent. I n spite o f their lack of knowledge, eleven o f them positively stated that i t was unfair t o raise fares; twelve o f them wer e indifferen t an d onl y one sai d that i t was fair t o rais e fares and then salaries, in general, should be raised. To illustrate their lack of knowledge about public affairs, tw o boys said that the Star Ferry belonged to Mrs. Elliot.* Reasons for participation. Twelv e claime d the y wer e not actuall y involve d i n th e riots but happened t o be passing b y in the street s where the riot s occurred. O f these, one said he was wandering along the street after a movie and was probing with a stick inside an already broken parking meter when he was arrested and charged with breaking it. Of the remaining twelve, four admitted yelling, four admitted throwing things, one said that he an d his fellow apprentice s thought i t was a good chance to take reveng e on the police and to let off steam, so he attacked a police van. Two said they joined the crowds for the fun o f it and to get first hand experience o f being in a riot. Eight o f the boys sai d the y joine d i n ou t o f curiosit y an d eigh t sai d the y joine d i n fo r fun. Tw o stated tha t the reaso n fo r thei r doin g s o was to reject th e far e increase. One sai d hi s motive wa s 'anti-bad-government'. The rest could give no reason. Eight of the boys felt the others were all fighting fo r a cause. Three felt the other s were doing it for fun and three felt there was something wrong with these people. Two Mrs. Elsi e Elliot, Urba n Councillor.

7 290 Society felt these people were 'heroes'. One felt they were 'mad'. The rest had no ide a on thi s matter. Seven out of the twenty-four said that they had no idea why they were arrested. Twelve said the reason for their being arrested was 'breach of curfew order'. Four felt i t was because o f their throwing things and one sai d he wa s accused o f having damage d public property. Seventeen out of the total of twenty-four fel t that the main cause of the riots was the raisin g of fares. One sai d i t was because o f feelings agains t the 'bad-government'. One said it was because of hostility o f the public towards the police. One said that th e riot wa s stimulate d b y excitement ove r th e police' s brutalit y toward s a five-year ol d child i n Tsim Sha Tsui district. Four were unable to express any opinion. Twelve of the boys thought So Sau Chung, Lo Kei, etc/ were 'good people', 'brave men', 'a hero,' and fighting fo r a good cause. Four were indifferent o r could not expres s any opinion. Eight had never heard o f them. Summary by socia l worker s The interviewer s expressed their general conclusions on these boys as follows: It seems obvious that the boys interviewed wer e for the most part employed, ha d reasonably stabl e personalitie s an d cam e fro m ordinar y hard-working families. The y were not social misfits anxious for political or other reasons to cause unrest and trouble in Hong Kong. The interviewer s felt that the type of employment many o f the boys were in held little fo r the m b y wa y o f future securit y o r advancemen t an d this, couple d wit h th e long unorthodox hours they worked, a s well as the low pay they received, contribute d to the feelin g o f aimlessness an d boredom whic h wa s part o f the motivatio n behin d their involvemen t i n th e riots. Becaus e o f th e demand s o f thei r employmen t the y lacked opportunity for normal teenage fun, s o used the riots as one outlet for this need. Conclusions It seems tolerably clear from all this that, whilst the more prominent o f the leaders in the early stages could be described a s misfits or cranks like Lo Kei or So Sau Chung, the main body of these who joined in the demonstrations and subsequently in the riots were more or less ordinary youngsters and people no more disposed o f crime than an y average group o f the les s privileged i n the streets o f Hong Kong. It would be foolish fo r Hong Kong society to comfort itsel f with the thought tha t it wa s onl y th e severel y under-privilege d an d discontente d wh o participate d in, o r passively supported, the disturbances. The great majority o f the participants came fro m the poore r section s o f th e communit y bu t the y wer e no t destitut e no r wer e the y identified wit h what ar e frequently calle d the criminal classes. Messrs. So and L o were prominent participant s i n the Sta r Ferr y incident i n 1966.

8 Crisis and Consolidation, Inspired b y the Cultural Revolutio n i n China, the riots of 1967 made us e of propaganda and slogan campaigns that were by then commonplace all over China. I n Ma y an d June, dail y demonstrations, som e o f whic h wer e transformed readil y into clashes with the police, the propaganda campaign, attempts to incite work strikes, bombs i n the street, the obvious connectio n of some China-related organization s to these activities and the uncertaint y of the Chinese government's stan d o n them adde d to considerable tensio n that wa s fel t throughou t Hon g Kon g society. Mos t o f th e tensio n passe d rather quickl y whe n i t became clea r tha t th e governmen t o f the People' s Republic ha d no t bee n i n suppor t o f drastic action s that migh t topple th e Hong Kon g government. Th e propagand a campaign, however, continue d for some years before i t slowly faded out. DOCUMENT VILa2: Propaganda during the Kowloon not, 1967 (source: HongKong Disturbances, 1967, Hong Kong: The Government Printer, n.d., pp ) In May the communists had under their control all the machinery required for a full-scale propagand a campaign. Bu t wherea s fro m th e star t o f confrontatio n th e communist newspapers at once slavishly followed the party line, the remainder, which included a number o f vigorous and by no means sycophantic publications, preserved their independence. The y hav e continue d t o criticiz e th e Governmen t whe n the y thought criticism was justified but none of them at any time expressed any agreement with the objects and method of the communist confrontation i n spite of the volume of propaganda they produced. In May the communists had under their control all the machinery required for a full-scale propagand a campaign. Their three newspapers, the Ta Kung Pao, the Wen Wai Pao and the New Evening Post, were well established and had a good circulation; and they were backed up by about six other papers which not only followed their lead but at times ran to excesses of wild invention o f their own. They had ample printing facilities fo r other propaganda material and the men and the equipment for newsreel production. They also enjoyed considerable encouragement and assistance from the local office of the New China News Agency (Hsinhua) which is owned and directed by the Peking Government. This agency was largely responsible for directing the propaganda campaign in the Colony a s could be seen from th e identica l reports o f incidents that regularl y appeared in communist newspapers, all attributed to the agency's reporters. It was also responsible fo r producin g distorte d account s o f the event s i n Hon g Kon g fo r th e consumption of the authorities in Peking. Its highly-coloured an d wildly exaggerated reports undoubtedl y playe d a large part i n inflamin g opinio n i n China agains t th e Government o f the Colony. In their campaign the communists employed every theme and every weapon, from deliberate distortion of facts and falsification o f photographs to the spreading of rumour and th e fabricatio n o f non-existent incidents. Rumour s pu t abou t b y them range d

9 292 Society from th e possibl e bu t untru e ric e shortages, powe r o r wate r stoppage s t o th e wildly improbable a s for example the stories which appeare d i n minor communis t newspapers, complete with photographs and maps, of Chinese gunboat s approachin g the Colony. Communist reporters and photographers were present at every incident t o produce thei r versio n o f events ; an d i n man y case s demonstration s wer e organize d solely fo r publicit y purposes. Durin g th e phas e o f stree t demonstration s i n Ma y communist newspaper s produce d specia l edition s whic h wer e distribute d fre e t o th e crowds and which were designed to incite them to further violence. The same presses produced leaflet s an d booklets giving lurid accounts o f Police 'brutality'... In the campaign of rumour-mongering, considerable use was made of loudspeakers mounted on communist owned buildings from which were broadcast threats and abus e against the authoritie s an d encouragemen t t o their supporters. The loudes t an d bes t known o f these was at the Bank o f China, the focal point fo r the disorders at the en d of May. To meet this attack the Government se t up its own loudspeakers on adjacen t buildings whos e combine d outpu t mad e th e communis t tirad e unintelligible. Th e Government programm e chose n consiste d o f selection s fro m Cantones e oper a an d the resultin g din mad e th e are a o f Statue Squar e almos t uninhabitable fo r the thre e days that the contest lasted. In the end the communists gave in and their loudspeaker s were not use d again. Broadcasts continued intermittentl y fro m other buildings, while communist rive r boat s arrivin g i n th e Colon y wit h good s fro m China, adde d thei r contribution whil e they were i n port. These broadcast s tended t o attract crowd s an d led on several occasions to clashes with the Police. There was a further addition to the communist propaganda armour y on 24t h June when the Macau broadcasting station, Radio Villa Verde, passed completely int o communist contro l an d wa s used to direc t more propaganda a t Hong Kong. The thir d mediu m o f propaganda wa s posters. These appeare d fro m th e star t o f confrontation an d continue d sporadicall y throughout, reachin g thei r heigh t a t th e end of May and the beginning of June. Posters and slogans appeared everywhere, both ashore and afloat. They were pasted or written on every available wall, on ships in the harbour, and on the trains arriving at Lo Wu from China. Slogans were painted on the pavements an d on the side s of cattle, while on one occasion a couple o f unfortunat e dogs were hung abou t with communis t placards. These demonstration s ha d non e o f the subtlety of the newspaper campaign, the messag e mostly consisting of simple, an d crude slogans. But the cumulative effec t o f such objurgations a s 'Blood for blood', an d 'Death to the Running Dogs' was considerable. They were reinforced o n occasions b y straw effigie s hun g o n traffi c light s o r othe r convenien t place s an d purportin g t o represent the Governor an d other leadin g members o f the community. To discourag e removal, thes e effigie s wer e often decorate d with bombs, real and simulated... Communist propagand a reache d it s pea k i n Ma y an d June. On e o f it s mai n objectives ha d bee n t o enlis t th e activ e suppor t o f th e Pekin g Governmen t i n th e struggle in Hong Kon g and the exaggerate d report s o f the strength o f the suppor t fo r confrontation a s well as of the 'brutal persecution' by the authorities were designed t o that end. Any statement or protest from the Peking Government o r any article in th e

10 Crisis and Consolidation, People's Daily that seemed, or could be made to seem, to support this possibility was given prominent treatment, with banner headlines and extra editions. By the end of July, the tone of the communist press was changing. Its shrill abuse of the Government continued an d it s exhortations t o violence ^ were, i f anything, mor e extreme. Bu t i t began to speak increasingly o f a long hard struggle ahead and pronouncements fro m Peking were given only routine treatment. While the protest afte r th e events o f 8th July a t Sh a Ta u Ko k wa s followed, a t th e promptin g o f th e communis t press, b y widespread violence i n the Colony, the ultimatum issue d by Peking on 20th August and the subsequent attack on the office of the Charge d'affaires passed almost unnoticed in Hong Kong. After th e suspensio n o f the thre e newspapers, a mosquito newshee t campaign began. The newsheets were poorly produced but highly inflammator y an d subversive. At firs t the y wer e distribute d widel y bu t th e campaig n quickl y los t it s momentum an d had die d out completely b y the en d o f the year, without achievin g anything significant. h. Languag e After th e riot s o f an d 1967, the Hon g Kon g government, an d Hon g Kong society, becam e mor e consciou s o f th e anomal y o f Hon g Kong' s colonial status. Th e wor d 'colony ' disappeare d fro m th e Hon g Kon g 1 government' s descriptio n o f Hon g Kon g from th e 1970s. But, Hon g Kong, of course, was a colony, and nowher e was that point more clearly made i n Hong Kon g daily lif e than i n the us e of Englis h i n all officia l documents. It should perhap s no t be surprising that language should surfac e a s the issue tha t universit y student s focuse d o n fo r action. I t was a n affron t t o Hong Kong's Chineseness. Moreover, as English had since the 1950s become the principal languag e of teaching i n Hong Kong' s secondary schools, as a result, wha t fo r th e majorit y o f Hon g Kon g student s woul d b e a second - language skil l determine d t o a larg e exten t educationa l success. I n th e aftermath o f 1967, even i f changes were no t forthcoming, th e Hon g Kon g government showe d tha t i t was willin g t o listen. Hence, whethe r o r no t Chinese wa s mad e a n officia l languag e di d no t lea d t o Hon g Kong' s la w being publishe d i n Chinese, o r eve n mor e Chines e bein g use d i n th e classroom, bu t there was at least a commission, heade d b y well-respected community leade r Si r Kenneth Ping-fa n Fung. In Documen t VII. bl below, Hon g Kon g Universit y psychologis t Eri c Kvan discusses the difficulties face d b y many Hong Kong secondary schoo l students whose native language was Chinese but who had to confront Englis h as a mediu m o f schoo l instruction. I n Document VII. b2, the commissio n appoinited b y th e Governo r o f Hon g Kon g t o examin e th e issu e o f recognizing Chinese as an official languag e reported on the practicalities of this proposal.

11 294 Society DOCUMENT VILbl : The cos t o f bilingual education (source : E. Kvan, 'Problem s of bilingual milie u i n Hong Kong: strains o f the two-languag e system', i n I.C. Jarive, ed. Hong Kong: A Society in Transition, Contributions to the Study of Hong Kong Society, London: Routledge 6 k Kegan Paul, 1969, pp ) Following a suggestion by Saer, I have tried to establish a situation where it would be directl y possibl e t o compar e th e strength, a s i t were, o f the tw o language s i n th e individual* The tas k i s verbally to produce the first association coming to mind upo n seeing a visually presented word in Chinese or English. The reaction time i s registered electrically and the response itsel f is noted. The words are 50 words in both language s the one set being the equivalent o f the other; all the words should be present in the vocabulary of a 3-year-old. The presentation is randomized both with regard to language used an d t o particula r words. From th e investigation s mad e s o fa r i t appear s tha t i t should be possible to place all the bilingual readers of the two languages on a continuum between monolingual Chinese and monolingual English individuals. But not only the relative reaction times are of interest, also the number of translations among the answers, of replies using the same or the other language and of course the nature o f the answer s when the y ar e true associations, are very revealing. In ye t anothe r attemp t t o penetrat e furthe r int o th e result s o f th e bilingua l education I obtained two sets of essays, on the same subject but in the two languages, from a group o f students wh o had jus t complete d thei r annua l examinatio n i n thei r respective groups. O f th e 10 0 participant s som e ha d com e u p throug h th e Anglo - Chinese System, other s throug h th e Chinese, i.e. usin g Englis h an d Chines e a s th e medium o f instruction, respectively. I aske d severa l competen t judge s t o asses s th e (anonymous) essay s wit h regar d t o maturit y an d a s fa r a s possibl e disregardin g th e linguistic expression o f detail. It seems clear that the students who had use d Chines e as a medium o f instruction but had studied English as a subject, were showing greate r originality of thought and greater maturity in general than those who had used English as a medium an d had Chinese a s a subject only. This wa s very obvious i n the Englis h essays, in spite of the limitations on the English of the second group, and my Chinese judges sai d i t wa s even mor e obviou s i n th e Chines e essays. This resul t correspond s closely with the impression s of experienced educator s that the pupils in the Chinesemedium classes are more responsive, more interested in their surroundings both in and outside o f the school. A possibl e explanation o f this differenc e seem s to be the chang e o f language i n Form I of the secondary school when the pupils are about years old. If we assume that the possibilit y o f 'being abl e to convey' i s one o f the most characteristic huma n traits t o establish a relationship with the persons around u s rather than t o conve y 'information' then i t does seem more than likel y that thi s sudden reduction o f the * H. Saer, Experimental Inquiry into the Education of Bilingual People. Ne w Educationa l Fellowship, Educatio n i n a changing Commonwealth, Londo n 1931.

12 Crisis and Consolidation, possibilities for expression would cause a neurosis fully a s severe a s the one we find i n children backwar d i n reading an d writin g fo r reason s which ca n b e counteracted b y special training. I think the picture will be complete i f I just add that one i s not likel y anywhere in the world to find 'bette r pupils' than those in the Anglo-Chinese school s bette r wit h regar d t o discipline, obedience, an d abilit y t o wor k steadil y throug h well-prepared material. To the difficulties create d by the change o f language in the school must be adde d the peculiar difficulties springin g from the many languages which are involved: for the Matriculation examination these pupils work mainly with texts in the classical language written i n the classical period which i s as different fro m the modern spoken languag e as Latin is from French or Italian, or Chaucer is from modern English. It would therefor e appear that their language used for the description o f the phenomena o f everyday life, including scientifi c phenomena, doe s not develo p o n a par wit h thei r interest s an d general academi c progress. Her e w e mus t remembe r tha t th e character s i n an d b y themselves giv e onl y ver y vagu e instructio n wit h regar d t o ho w the y shoul d b e pronounced an d onl y littl e informatio n wit h regar d t o thei r specia l meanin g i n thi s particular context. Unless a character has been learned in a formal learnin g situatio n it requires great expenditure o f energy fo r the individua l t o acquire thi s character leading t o a hig h degre e o f compartmentahsatio n betwee n th e commo n an d th e specialised vocabularies, with a rather small number of characters being allotted to the first group. This means i n practice that the spoken languag e o f these pupils stagnates a t th e level of the years-old, the age at which they last used it as their only real medium of instruction an d expression. What thi s means for the possibilities o f expression an d controlling the emotional forces released at about the same time as the language change will require much further study. Furthermore, a t thi s stag e a ne w conflic t develop s th e conflic t betwee n th e Chinese traditiona l approac h t o scholasti c wor k an d th e les s traditiona l wester n approach. The immediat e conflic t i s undoubtedly mad e muc h les s acute b y the fac t that mos t o f the teacher s ar e themselves traine d i n the Chinese traditiona l wa y an d tend to transfer this method from the Chinese literary studies to the whole curriculum. The ultimate conflict, however, is increased rather than decreased by this approach. So far as our students go it can with advantage be summarised in the following anecdote: a couple o f years ago all Faculties and Departments were at one in their report on th e Matriculation examination: 'The candidates rely by far too much on learning by heart instead of working in an independent and original way with the questions' all except the Departmen t o f Chines e whic h wrote : 'i t i s clear tha t th e candidate s hav e no t memorised a sufficient amoun t o f material' But before we attempt to draw conclusions with regard to the difficulties involve d in th e tw o system s o f education, th e Vernacula r an d th e Anglo-Chinese, i t wil l b e necessary to consider the instruction provided in the primary school and even before. Here an inspection of two samples of Chinese handwriting would be useful to illustrate my point. Before the division takes place at age the two groups have been in the

13 296 Society primary school for 6 years and very many in the kindergarten before that. At al l stages, when the child leave s the kindergarten (a t 5-6 year s of age), the primary school, th e secondary (Middle ) school, eve n th e University, th e Chines e languag e use s th e expression: bi yeh (graduated) an d at all stages the child will receive diplomas an d certificates. This i s characteristic. The forma l instructio n begins a s soon a s the chil d enters kindergarten, most frequently a t about the age of 3, counting age in the wester n fashion. Th e kindergarte n last s fo r tw o year s and eve n i f there ar e many activitie s (which is far from the case in the majority o f kindergartens) the most important activit y is the instructio n i n reading an d writing. When th e childre n si t fo r 'th e entranc e examination' (sic) to the primary school, most of them can read, write and take dictation in about 10 0 to 16 0 characters. Some are very complex, 20 or more individual stroke s are necessary to construct them, to write them. Compare them with the school maturity tests common in the west, e.g. the test published by Charlotte Buehler. Th e test demands that th e 5-year-ol d shal l b e abl e t o copy a circle 'th e tes t ha s been successfull y completed i f the two ends of the circle meet!' o r note in the same test the table an d chair (in profile) whic h the child should be able to copy to the extent o f making the m basically recognisable. Compare such a test with the details of the Chinese character s which the chil d i n the Hong Kong kindergarten must lear n b y heart an d b e able t o reproduce not just copy or recognise a t the same age of 5. This result i s obtained only by daily practice during the years from 3 to 5, both i n school and at home. The y practise at least a half-hour dail y in the kindergarten an d i n Primary I at least on e hour mus t be spent a t home practisin g handwriting. Further i t must be remembere d that the pencil (o r soon the brush) mus t be very carefull y controlle d i n a way much more elaborat e tha n th e wa y i t must be controlled i n the writin g o f English letters. Learning t o write has alway s been regarde d a s much more than jus t learning to for m the characters. I t i s at the sam e tim e a n instructio n i n the abilit y t o control one' s temper, and to develop personal harmony. Looking around fo r way s and means first t o express and then asses s the results o f this very strictly formal instructio n a system which i s so much older than anythin g found outsid e China I noticed that among the more than 2,000 schoolchildren an d the several hundred Universit y student s whom I tested with the reading test s hardl y any were left-handed, writin g or playing. This contrasts very markedly with the position in England. Assuming that the generally accepted views on the subject are meaningful, it seems likely that many children must have been forced t o change fro m lef t t o right hand and the absence of stammer and similar symptoms of particular stress would the n be an expression o f the general uniformity o f this society and of the force wherewit h the individua l personality i s formed an d socialised. DOCUMENT VII.b2 : Chinese a s an official languag e (source : The Eirst Report of the Chinese Language Committee, Hon g Kong: Government Printer, 1971, pp. 1-6 ) From time to time over the years, there has been comment o n the wider use o f Chinese i n public administration. I n 1969, and mor e particularly i n the summe r o f 1970, there wa s a determined 'campaign ' for the adoption o f Chines e a s ' *&%JfejC

14 Crisis and Consolidation, (Fat Ting U Man) which has been interpreted a s 'official language ' in English in some quarters. Ther e ha s bee n suppor t fo r thi s movemen t fro m variou s individuals, organisations and student groups. There were indications that many people felt ther e was considerable justificatio n fo r a wider us e b y Government o f Chinese fo r th e convenience o f the public. We decided to examine to what extent Chinese can have equal status with English under the followin g 3 broad aspects : (a) I n oral and written communications between Government an d the public. (b) At meetings of the Legislative Council, Urban Council and Government Board s and Committees. (c) In Court proceedings and a s a language of the law. In orde r t o see k th e view s o f th e community, w e sen t ou t 1,58 0 letter s t o organisations which fal l i n the various categories. We have als o had discussions with individual s and organisations both i n relatio n to the general matters we are examining and in relation to simultaneous interpretatio n facilities specifically. From the representations received, we have come to the conclusion that Chines e as ' ^^M-xJ (Fa t Ting U Man ) i s intended b y many to mean 'officiall y prescribed ' or 'officiall y recognised ' languag e having equa l status with English. In general ther e would be satisfaction i f Chinese i s given, as far as practicable, equal status with English. We ar e generally i n sympathy with public opinion i n this regard. Our firs t recommendation s dea l with the us e of Chinese i n Legislative Council, Urban Council and Government Board s and Committees. These wil l be followed b y recommendations on the use of Chinese i n oral and written communications betwee n Government an d th e publi c an d the us e o f Chinese i n Court proceeding s an d a s a language o f the La w i n that order, the latte r bein g b y fa r th e mos t comple x o f th e three. Legislative Council an d Urban Counci l Standing Order No. 2 of the Legislative Council stipulate s that the proceedings an d debates o f the Council shall be in the English language. The view s of the Unofficials, as conveyed t o u s b y the Senio r Unofficia l Membe r ar e i n favou r o f introducin g simultaneous interpretation (Englis h to Cantonese and vice versa) in the open meetings so that non-english speakin g members o f the public can comprehend the proceeding s of these meetings; at the same time, they consider al l Council papers which ar e to be published for public information shoul d be translated into Chinese. As regards close d meetings and paper s for such meetings, the opinion wa s expressed to us that i t would be desirable t o provide interpretatio n an d translatio n facilitie s s o as to enable non - English speaking members of the community to be appointed t o the Council i n future. Section 45 of the Urban Council Ordinance stipulates that the proceedings of the Council shall be conducted i n English and this is repeated in Urban Council Standin g Order No. 1 ; in addition, Section 7 of the sam e Ordinance require s a Councillor t o possess an adequate knowledge o f the English language.

15 298 Society In the Urban Council Meeting held on 6th October, 1970, a resolution was moved that Government be urged to consider the necessary amendments to Section 45 of the Urban Counci l Ordinanc e s o that Counci l proceeding s coul d b e conducted i n bot h English and Chinese. This motion was carried but the official member s abstained fro m voting becaus e the y fel t tha t th e resolutio n shoul d als o have include d a proposal t o amend Sectio n 7 o f the Ordinanc e t o enabl e non-englis h speakin g member s o f th e community t o be eligibl e fo r election o r appointment t o the Council. Subsequently, we wrot e individuall y t o al l the twent y Unofficia l Member s o f the Counci l seekin g answers specifically o n the following tw o questions: (a) To allow those not fluent i n English to be eligible for the Council, and for th e public to tak e a greater interes t i n the proceedings, d o you consider i t desirable tha t simultaneous interpretatio n (fro m Englis h t o Cantones e an d vic e versa ) shoul d b e made availabl e i n bot h publi c an d close d meeting s o f th e Counci l i n vie w o f you r resolution? (b) D o yo u conside r i t necessar y fo r paper s associate d wit h you r meetings t o b e translated int o Chinese? Of the fourteen replies received to date, all are in favour of introducing simultaneous interpretation (Englis h t o Chines e an d vic e versa ) fo r publi c meetings : fiv e furthe r suggested that consideration should be given to extending this facility to Mandarin a t a later stage. As regard s the secon d question, th e view s expresse d b y the majorit y ar e that al l papers would have t o be translated int o Chinese i f Section 7 of the Ordinance wer e amended to enable non-english speaking members o f the community t o be elected o r appointed t o the Counci l In th e representation s whic h w e have receive d fro m variou s organisation s an d individuals, two relevant though not necessarily related arguments have been advanced for the introduction o f bilingualism in these Councils, namely : (a) that the general public should be able to follow meaningfully th e proceeding s of the open meetings ; (b) that non-english speakin g but capable members o f the community should b e eligible for election o r appointment. Seen i n the ligh t o f the desir e to encourage the community t o be more aware o f the affairs o f Hong Kong, we consider that interpretation facilities shoul d be provided at the open meetings o f these two Councils for the convenience o f the general publi c and t o enabl e the m t o liste n t o speeche s an d debate s i n thes e Councils. Thi s recommendation i s based on the principle that th e whole community ough t t o hav e complete acces s to the proceedings o f the Councils eithe r b y personal attendance o r through radi o and televisio n an d that th e valu e o f such an innovation shoul d not b e measured b y the number o f spectators i n the public gallery at any particular time. In considerin g thi s particula r aspect, w e hav e t o examin e whethe r Cantones e alone (a s advocated b y the vast majority o f the representations received), Cantones e and Mandarin, o r Mandari n alon e shoul d b e adopted. I n thi s connection, w e not e from th e statistical figures i n the Report o f the Census, 1961, that Cantonese wa s the

16 Crisis and Consolidation, usual language of 79% of the Hong Kong population and it was understood by 95% of the population. We have no further informatio n o n these figures. Consequently, we have no doubt that Cantonese would at the present moment have more relevance and reality fo r th e populatio n a s a whole an d accordingl y conclud e tha t interpretatio n facilities for the open meetings of the Legislative Council and Urban Council should be confine d t o Englis h an d Cantones e only. This doe s not, however, rul e ou t th e possibility o f introducing Mandari n i n years to come and this should be kept unde r review. As it is essential that the efficiency o f the proceedings of the Councils should be maintained, we believe that simultaneous interpretation facilities should be introduced, as oppose d t o consecutiv e interpretatio n whic h i s bot h tediou s an d time - consuming... Our examination o f bilingualism i n these two Councils would not b e complet e without mentioning the proposition that bilingualism could make non-english speaking members o f the public eligible t o serv e on them. A chang e i n thi s direction woul d render i t necessar y not onl y t o provide simultaneou s interpretatio n facilitie s fo r al l closed meetings of the Councils' Sub-Committees and Select Committees but also to prepare papers and to keep minutes, etc. in both languages efficiently an d effectively. This, we feel, would impose for the time being too heavy a strain on loca l resources relating to interpreters and translators, particularly when there are other areas in which the wider use of Chinese in official busines s should be given priority. c. Th e Populatio n Transitio n But Hon g Kon g society wa s changing. On e o f the cleares t indication s o f that wa s th e declin e i n fertilit y i n the 1970s. The traditiona l famil y pu t a premium o n havin g man y children, especiall y sons. Mos t Hon g Kon g families, packe d int o small share d flat s and seein g upward mobilit y withi n reach (se e DOCUMENT VII.e2 below) opted for few births. The Hong Kong population transitio n wa s a quie t movement. Socia l service s provide d reached thei r willin g target s withou t muc h ado, a s fertilit y droppe d fro m 3.4 birth s pe r woman i n t o 2.00 i n DOCUMENT VILcl: Fertility declines (source: Census and Statistics Department, Hong Kong, Demographic Trends in Hong Kong, , An Analysis Based on Vital Registration Statistics of Births, Marriages, and Deaths and on Census Results, n.d., Hong Kong, p. 41) The TFR*, defined a s the su m of the age-specifi c fertilit y rate s in a given year, represents the number of children that a woman would bear (ignoring mortality) if she Total fertility rate

17 300 Society Table 7. 1 Total Fertilit y Rate s and Net Reproductio n Rate s Per Woman, Total fertility rate Net reproduction rate were subject throughou t he r reproductive age s to the fertilit y rate s prevailing i n tha t year. This measur e represents a hypothetical complete d averag e family siz e i f fertilit y were to remain constant a t a given level. For a generation o f women t o replace itsel f each woma n mus t produc e o n averag e on e daughte r wh o wil l surviv e t o th e en d o f childbearing age. This generall y correspond s t o a n averag e complete d famil y siz e o f approximately 2.1 children in conditions of low mortality and allowing for such factor s as th e differentia l i n th e se x rati o a t birt h an d infan t an d childhoo d mortality. A s shown in the table the TFR fell from 3. 4 in to just below 2.00 in a level which would be insufficien t fo r a generation to replace itself. The NRR*, defined a s the sum of the products of the age-specific fertility rates fo r female birth s an d the femal e surviva l rates i n a given year, represents the number o f daughters who, according to the fertility rates prevailing in that year, would be born to a woman (allowin g fo r mortality). I f the NRR i s one, wome n ar e exactl y replacin g themselves; i f i t i s less than one, the y ar e failin g t o d o so. In women i n Hon g Kong were producing 7 per cent too fe w daughters to replace themselves. cl Ne w Hopes and Bold Beginnin g In Apri l 1966, eve n befor e th e riots, th e Hon g Kon g governmen t ha d appointed a working part y made up entirely of civil servant s to consider th e question o f loca l administration. " Th e working part y advise d tha t change s should be implemented, but that they should consist primarily of introducin g Net reproduction rat e ** This th e governmen t probabl y di d i n respons e t o initiativ e i n th e Urba n Counci l t o appoint it s own a d hoc committee to advise on the future scope and functioning of the council. Fo r details se e Government and Politics pp to 136.

18 Crisis and Consolidation, local councils o f an advisory nature that were made u p o f both appointe d and electe d members. Minorit y opinion s expresse d i n th e repor t cas t considerable doub t o n th e relevanc e o f popula r election s a s a basi s fo r representation. Th e riot s tha t followe d clos e upo n th e completio n o f th e report quite changed the tone of the argument at high levels i n government if no t it s content. Throughou t th e riot s o f 1967, man y communa l organizations ha d openl y expresse d thei r suppor t fo r th e Hon g Kon g government and their condemnation o f violence and disruption. The Hon g Kong government ha d possibl y als o come roun d t o the view tha t the ga p that ha d apparentl y bee n lef t unfille d b y the ineffectivenes s o f traditiona l communal organization s ha d to be closed. The immediate answer was no t an electora l reform, bu t th e implementatio n o f th e Cit y Distric t Officer s Scheme, an d th e extensio n fro m there, a s Si r Murra y Maclehos e wa s appointed Governo r i n 1971, of makin g representatio n availabl e t o Hon g Kong's 'grassroots' population. The reforms o f the 1970s changed the tenor of communa l representatio n i n Hon g Kon g society. Th e Hon g Kon g ; i government, havin g foun d traditiona l communa l organization s wanting, dismantled it s representationa l structure, revampe d th e Hon g Kon g community s o that voluntar y association s forme d o n a wider basi s the 'mutual ai d committees' i n resettlement estates were the pride of the Hon g Kong government i n this programme might, in ways that seemed unclea r to observers outside the Hon g Kon g government, to reflec t the view o f the Hong Kon g population withou t the implementatio n o f democracy. DOCUMENT VILdl: A programme for the 1970 s (source: HE the Governor, in the Legislative Council, 18 October 1972, Hong Hong Hansard, Reports of the Sittings of the Legislative Council of Hong Kong, Session 1973) Though it has been a busy year it has been a fascinating one. I have come back to a Hong Kong which is more developed and prosperous and of far greater stature than the one I knew 1 0 years ago. But also I find i t more expectant o f its Government. In this first yea r I have been conscious of the need on the one hand t o learn as much about everything a s possible, and on the other to be selective on proposals for action. I have therefore concentrated on defining broad objectives in three fields where this seemed particularl y necessar y a t this juncture housing, education an d socia l welfare. I now turn to housing. There is no field in which Hong Kong's pressure of people has produced acuter problems or one in which the Government's response has been so vigorous or received such international acclaim million people have been housed at low rents in housing estates. Many of the later estates provide good examples of a solution to Hong Kong's particular problem of living at densities higher than anywhere else in the world. Most of the larger squatter colonies have disappeared. Much of the

19 302 Society aging and dilapidated pre-wa r tenement propert y has been replaced i n the proces s o f private development. Ther e ha s bee n som e thinnin g ou t o f over-crowdin g i n ol d properties, an d th e ris e i n populatio n i n Kowloo n an d Hon g Kon g Islan d ha s bee n halted an d slightly reversed. But i n spit e o f al l thi s effor t th e proble m remains. 300,000 peopl e stil l liv e i n squatter hut s o r temporar y housing. Man y unit s i n resettlemen t estate s ar e badl y overcrowded, or have no separate wash places or lavatories. It is estimated that a further 310,000 people would need rehousing if all of those in shared private flats and tenements were t o hav e a self-contained home, an d fe w o f these ca n affor d th e rent s aske d b y private landlords. It i s my conclusion that the inadequacy and scarcity of housing an d all that this implies, and the harsh situations that result from it, is one of the major an d most constant source s o f friction an d unhappiness between the Government an d th e population. I t offends alik e our humanity, our civic pride and our political good sense. Honourable Member s migh t agre e tha t i n thi s cit y o f risin g standard s an d risin g expectations i t i s not a situation we can accept indefinitely. Nevertheless i t exists and will continu e t o exis t unles s w e ar e prepare d t o tak e determine d actio n ove r a considerable period. The Housing Board and the Government departments concerned have therefor e drawn up a plan. For planning purposes a target time i s necessary, i f only because an y such plan mus t als o provide fo r the annua l natura l growt h o f population. The targe t taken, which I repeat i s as a basis for calculation, i s 10 years and has as its objective t o build on suc h a scale that, wit h th e contributio n o f the privat e sector, ther e wil l b e sufficient permanen t self-containe d accommodatio n i n a reasonable environment fo r every inhabitant o f Hong Kong. Such a target, i f achieved, woul d lea d to the virtua l disappearance o f squatter areas, eliminate overcrowdin g an d sharin g i n both privat e and public housing, and in addition provide accommodation fo r those who have to be rehoused in consequence o f development schemes and other situations where housing is offered t o the homeless o r unfortunate, an d woul d als o keep pace with the natura l expansion o f the population. For such a programme to succeed and to be acceptable to the potential inhabitants, three thing s seem to me essential. First, goo d communications wit h th e ol d urban areas. For Sha Ti n thi s means a four-lane highway and tunnel and double tracking the railway to provide a ten-minute service. For Castle Peak i t means a completely new motor roa d from Tsuen Wan. Secondly, the housing i n the new town s must be accompanied b y a full ration o f what i s essential to modern life : medical, and secondary as well as primary educationa l facilities, parks and playgrounds, police stations, markets, fire and ambulance stations, community centre s and much else. Thirdly, ther e mus t b e work, an d s o sites fo r private commercia l an d residentia l development. Thes e town s i n fact mus t be built a s a whole. We have take n the firs t steps in this direction i n the Lek Yuen estate at Sha Tin and i n the third stag e o f the Lei Muk Shue estate at Kwai Chung.

20 Crisis and Consolidation, Quite apar t fro m th e expansio n o f the mai n ne w town s i n th e New Territories, housing i s also required fo r the rural areas and smaller New Territories townships, an d also for boat squatter areas and for those who wish to live ashore. Plans are therefore i n hand to provide a number of estates in these more remote areas. Although the number to be housed i s only 30,000, i t is a significant ste p that public housing is to be provided in places such a s Tai O wher e nothing has ever been done i n this respect before. I now turn to education. The objective of making free primary education availabl e to all has been achieved. Your Government appreciate s that what i s now needed i s to improve quality, and will exert itsel f in this respect. But I think honourable Member s will agree with the proposition that during th e rest o f the '70 s th e mai n thrus t o f ou r educationa l effor t mus t b e i n secondar y an d technical education, not of course forgetting that increased secondary education carries with i t the necessity for increasin g correspondingly facilitie s i n the tertiary field. We ar e wel l on th e wa y to achievin g th e presen t interi m targe t o f 3 year s post - primary education for 50% of all children in the year age group. Partial objectives, however necessary initially, make for distortion unless replaced by absolute objective s as soo n a s practicable. Ou r absolut e objectiv e o f cours e i s the provisio n o f 3 year s secondary education for all in the year age group, and your Government propose s that we should addres s ourselves to this objective forthwith. In recen t month s th e Educatio n Departmen t an d th e Secretaria t hav e worke d hard on the practicalities and implications o f such a change i n objectives. One mus t not under-rat e th e siz e o f the operatio n involved, whic h require s th e provision o f 184,00 0 assiste d place s i n form s 1-3 additiona l t o thos e no w available. About 20,000 o f these extra places would be in pre-vocational schools. Some would be in governmen t secondar y technica l schools, wher e number s woul d b e substantiall y increased. A furthe r recommendatio n i s t o doubl e th e percentag e o f place s i n secondar y schools fo r the ful l 5-yea r course s leading to a Certificate o f Education examination. This would require 55,000 places i n forms 4 and 5 additional t o those now available, and a substantial increase in the number of places in Government secondary technica l schools i s also planned. In addition to these proposals for increased secondary education it is also hoped to provide 5 additional technical institute s by o f which 2 should open i n To staf f thi s expansio n wit h teacher s th e outpu t o f th e 3 existin g college s o f education would be increase d b y 2,000 by 1976, and thereafter th e construction o f a fourth colleg e or other means would be necessary. As honourabl e Member s wil l appreciate, a n expansio n o f the exten t propose d carries wit h i t financia l implication s whic h th e Governmen t an d the y wil l wis h t o examine closely in due course. But it also implies the possibilities which are as exciting as they are far-reaching for our whole educational system. This hitherto has been based on the regrettable but inescapable assumption that there will be far fewer places available

21 304 Society in secondary schools than students wishing to fill them. It has been this disproportio n of places between primary and secondary schools that has lain at the root of the intensit y of competition for the present Secondary Schools Entrance Examination with all that this implies for students, teachers and parents alike. It is arguable that it has also distorted both the curricul a and teaching methods. If therefor e th e proposal s t o increas e th e provisio n o f secondar y schoo l place s commend themselves to honourable Members, I think we should seize the opportunit y to brin g professiona l an d public, a s wel l a s official, opinio n t o bea r o n th e typ e o f secondary educatio n w e shoul d ai m a t i n th e ne w an d les s restricted circumstances, including th e questio n o f wha t examinatio n syste m woul d b e apropriat e an d wha t curricula. I suggest that the right time to do this is now at the start of the new programme. I therefore propose to ask the Board of Education to advise me on these importan t issues as soon as possible and a s a basis for it s deliberations to submit to it the detaile d plans which the Education Department has already drawn up. Amongst other things it would be valuable to have it s advice on the spee d at which i t i s practicable to plan t o achieve thi s target. Connecte d wit h thi s i s th e exten t t o whic h the y conside r bisessionalism* appropriate a s a permanent o r interim measure. I might ad d that i t i s the vie w o f the Governmen t tha t a n elemen t o f bisessionalis m i s essential i f rapi d progress i s to be made. Their view would also be valuable on the extent to which it is necessary to extend assisted places to all in the year group. Clearly those must be assisted who coul d not otherwise affor d t o attend school, or the object o f the reform would be frustrated ; but what o f those who could and would pay? I said earlier that an expansion of secondary education carried with it the necessity for an increase i n the tertiary field. The demand fo r tertiary education i n Hong Kon g far outstrip s existin g facilities, an d step s t o increas e thes e hav e bee n taken. Thi s i s both because a wider provision o f tertiary education i s good in itself, and because ou r society stands in urgent need of substantially increasing numbers of well qualified youn g people wh o ca n b e traine d fo r professional, technical, administrativ e an d executiv e roles. By the numbe r o f places i n our tw o Universities wil l be som e 6,000. Thi s will mea n tha t th e Universitie s wil l have th e capabilit y o f turning ou t abou t 1,60 0 graduates each year. Plans are now in hand to raise the number of university places from 6,000 to 8,400 by The University and Polytechnic Grants Committee believes that an expansion of this order could be achieved without dilution o f quality. The term 'bisessionalism 7 refer s to the arrangement whereb y student s atten d schoo l i n either the morning or the afternoon, s o that school buildings may be used for two 'sessions' during the day.

22 Crisis and Consolidation, This total i s unlikely to be sufficient fo r our needs beyond the lat e seventies an d in th e eighties, an d w e ar e therefor e alread y considerin g way s i n whic h universit y education i n Hong Kong can be further extended. But the major expansio n i n tertiary education wil l be achieved by the new Hon g Kong Polytechnic. It has had a slow start perhaps inevitable in a wholly new venture but under a dynamic Board I have every hope that it will achieve its target of 8,000 full-time an d 20,000 part-tim e students by Together with the expansion o f the universities thi s wil l mean tha t b y tertiary educatio n i n Hong Kon g wil l hav e been a t least trebled. So to sum up, we envisage education facilities along the following lines: free primary education fo r al l followed b y secondary education fo r all to the ag e of 14; the latter t o include a n expande d pre-vocationa l o r technical stream. At tha t point ther e wil l b e on the one hand greatly expanded facilities fo r further secondar y education leading to the Certificate o f Education; on the other, young people will be able to choose between going into industry, or acquiring a qualification i n a technical institute. Even if they go into industry, the y wil l b e abl e t o benefi t fro m th e technica l institute s throug h apprenticeship courses. In the post-secondary field we envisage a substantial expansion of tertiary education i n the existing Universities and in the new Polytechnic. I might add that we hope that some young people who do not go through forms IV and V may nevertheless benefi t fro m facilitie s fo r part-tim e instructio n i n th e place s o f tertiar y education. This brings me to social welfare. Inevitabl y I look back a t the scen e a s it was 1 0 years ago when socia l welfare wor k was just emerging from the stage o f an emergenc y operation to give assistance to the new influ x o f population i n the 1950s. I note tha t th e economi c an d socia l progres s achieve d i n th e las t 1 0 years ha s enabled a substantial advance to be made. For instance, a Government system of public assistance i n cash has been introduced. I n the community development fiel d ther e i s now a system o f estate welfare buildings bringing together under one roof the welfar e services for people living in resettlement estates. Family welfare services have been reorganized o n a regiona l basi s an d thei r service s integrate d an d mad e mor e comprehensive. Progress has been made in helping the disabled some training centres have bee n opened, an d a rang e o f vocationa l an d pre-vocationa l trainin g facilitie s now exist. The probation and correctional service s have been expanded an d refined. These are notable advances. While no one will claim that they measure up to the requirements o f Hon g Kon g i n eithe r siz e o r scope, the y nevertheles s d o provid e a sound base of carefully though t out and increasingl y professional activit y over a wide field. What I suggest is now required is firstly a comprehensive plan for orderly expansion, and secondly a corps of trained professionals t o carry it out. Let me take the second point first: the corps of professionals. I have found genera l

23 306 Society agreement that the days are over when social welfare in Hong Kong was an emergency service where primar y requiremen t wa s fo r enthusiasm, energ y an d devotion. Thes e qualities ar e still called fo r and alway s will be, but now expertise and professionalis m will be increasingly necessary. Hong Kon g ha s bee n wel l serve d b y th e socia l welfar e department s o f it s tw o universities, bu t ther e i s grea t nee d fo r trainin g belo w th e universit y level. Th e Government therefor e propose s t o establis h a n Institut e fo r Socia l Wor k Training, providing two-yea r course s leadin g t o a diploma o r certificate. Th e institut e wil l b e open alike to those proposing to enter Government service or to work in the voluntary agencies... So much for the people; now for the philosophy and the plan. In order to formulat e these th e Governmen t se t u p ne w plannin g machinery, an d i n concer t wit h representatives o f the Hong Kong Council o f Social Service and the voluntary socia l welfare agencies a white paper has been drafted. I t is entitled: 'Social Welfare i n Hong Kong: the way ahead', and will in its final form incorporate a complementary, detaile d 5-year plan. I consider it a most valuable contribution. Its proposals represent a practical consensus of informed and experienced social welfare opinion on both the philosoph y and the details o f a carefully phase d expansio n programme. The proposal s envisag e 4 main area s fo r developmen t o f which th e firs t tw o ar e concerned with help in cash and the second tw o with help by service. The firs t area covers assistance to those who through causes outside their contro l have not adequat e mean s o f support. This i s the are a i n which th e publi c assistanc e scheme alread y i n existenc e i s progressivel y provin g it s value. The secon d are a i s assistance i n cash to what the paper describe s a s vulnerable. Groups which might b e singled out a s beneficiaries ar e the severel y disabled and elderl y infirm. Bu t there ar e other groups, for instance the chronically sick or widowed mothers with young children, which might eventually be included i n the scheme. In respec t o f thi s are a th e pape r make s th e interestin g proposa l tha t financia l support shoul d b e given to such group s regardless o f their mean s tha t i s to sa y o n proof of disability, just as people are eligible for public assistance on proof of poverty. It is maintained that in practice such a principle would not be abused and it would vastly simplify administrativ e procedures and costs. I am sure that honourable Members will wish to look closely at this aspect of the proposal, and I will be interested to hear thei r comments. While ther e i s much t o b e sai d o n eithe r side, I hope tha t ther e wil l b e general agreemen t firstl y tha t extensio n o f assistanc e t o the disable d an d infir m i s a commendable objective to which we should now address ourselves; and secondly tha t the important thing is to get such a scheme going, and to learn from practical experience what administrativ e arrangement s ar e ultimately mos t appropriate. The thir d are a i s provision o f facilities fo r the disabled, so that there may be comprehensive service s to meet their known needs in the field o f training, employment and housing, particularly so as to help them to be independent and self-supporting member s of the community. Here clearly employers will have a vital role to play. In this area the problem of providing for th e elderl y als o bulk s large. This i s now bein g examine d b y a workin g part y o f

24 Crisis and Consolidation, members from the Government and the voluntary sector. The elderly should of course benefit both from public assistance and from the disability scheme I have already referred to. But the objective o f the further service s we have in mind would be to enable the m to remain in the community a s long as possible. The objective fo r the elderly might be described a s car e withi n th e community. Finall y th e pla n contain s comprehensiv e proposals for extending the existing limited network o f community and social centres operated b y th e Socia l Welfar e Departmen t t o cove r th e whol e o f Hon g Kong. Considerable expansio n o f socia l an d recreationa l facilities, primaril y throug h th e voluntary agencies, i s also envisaged. I woul d lik e a t thi s poin t t o sa y a wor d abou t socia l security. I t i s an emotiv e phrase, and means different thing s in different countries. But basically it should mea n that provisio n b y the stat e enable s people t o liv e secur e i n the knowledg e tha t the y and their children will be protected from the worst effects of adversity. In some countries it ha s bee n codifie d i n a comprehensiv e unifie d system. Thoug h thi s ha s no t bee n done in Hong Kong we are nevertheless i n a fair way to having such provision by the state. I have just referred t o what i s already being done and what i t i s proposed will be done in the field o f what we call social welfare. But to this should be added our medical services, as no one need now pay more than a small fee for treatment either at a clinic or i n hospita l an d fee s ar e remitte d fo r th e needy. Adde d als o shoul d b e ou r educational syste m whic h provide s fre e primar y education, an d i n whic h nobod y i s deprived o f secondar y o r tertiar y educatio n becaus e o f lac k o f means. Add als o th e provision of low rent Government housing on a scale unknown elsewhere in the world for those with lo w incomes. I find thi s a very extensive system of social security base d on th e principl e o f assistanc e fo r thos e i n need. Ther e i s nothing els e quit e lik e i t anywhere i n th e world. I t i s something characteristi c o f and uniqu e t o Hon g Kong, something we may be proud of and something on which we may build with confidenc e as our resources allow. I wis h her e t o ad d anothe r genera l poin t abou t th e Government' s attitud e t o payment for services provided by the tax payer such as housing, secondary and tertiar y education, and so on. We are all agreed that these needs should be provided as cheaply as possible, a s our means allow. But if, and I repeat if, w e are ever faced with a choice between having the means to provide the infrastructure, tha t i s to say the houses, the schools, the universities and the staf f to work them on the one hand, and of providing them free or almost free on the other, I am sure that honourable Members, and indee d the people of Hong Kong, would agree that at this stage of our development, while we have a population that is predominantly young and active, the first call on Government should always be to provide the physical infrastructure leavin g for later an d a s our resources ar e available th e lowerin g o f payments by those benefiting wh o ar e abl e to pay.

25 308 Society DOCUMENT VILd2: Rebuilding grassroot society (source: HE the Governor, Address in the Legislative Council, 1 6 October 1974, Hong Hong Hansard, Reports of the Sittings of the Legislative Council of Hong Kong, Session 1974) But I would lik e to speak about what the public thos e at the receiving end o f crime hav e done. Th e creatio n o f 1,50 0 mutua l ai d committees, wit h th e accompanying superstructur e o f are a committees, i s no t onl y a considerabl e administrative achievement, but indicates the great need that these organizations fil l There wa s indeed, a void: a void which wa s a s danagerous fo r th e Government a s i t was unwelcom e t o th e ordinar y citizen, wh o wa s lef t withou t mean s o f influencin g conditions outsid e hi s own front door. Some o f these committee s ar e more effectiv e than others, but they have done much to discourage crime in their own areas. In many cases they have installed alarm systems, and engaged watchmen to patrol the premises, and they constitute a new deterrent to criminals that can be made increasingly effectiv e and i s very welcome to police and public alike. I always leave meetings with mutual aid committees encouraged by the knowledge that i n thi s fiel d attitude s ar e changin g fast. W e hav e man y goo d citizen s willin g t o give a lead on how the people o f a neighbourhood ma y help each other an d help th e community b y making their own areas safer, cleaner and better to live in. DOCUMENT VII.d3: The new Hong Kong Society (source: Mr Denis Bray, Secretary for Home Affairs, Addres s in the Legislative Council, 2 9 November 1973, Hong Kong Hansard, Reports of the sittings of the Legislative Council of Hong Kong, Session 1973) Sir, in a review of any sort the dominant theme i s change and in Hong Kong there is seldom a lack o f change t o contemplate. The physica l environment change s wit h startling rapidity, and judging from the speeches earlier this afternoon this will continue, but m y theme to-da y i s social change. Social change seem s to be emergin g a s one o f the most dramatic developments o f the early seventies. Our olde r society, prize d loos e fro m it s stabl e cla n structure, wa s mad e u p o f individuals mor e concerne d wit h materia l wel l bein g tha n socia l awareness. Publi c services o f a makeshift sor t wer e accepte d wit h gratitud e fo r securit y wa s what the y wanted. As the children of the post-war settlers have grown up we have been reminded that they expect more that the makeshift service s good enough for their parents are not goo d enough i n the more prosperous societ y their parents have created. Service s have been improve d and lon g term plans drawn up. But it has only recently become clear that the most important change in society is not it s increasing wealth nor it s increasing expectations o f Government performanc e but it s new sense o f purpose. The new society no longe r expects everything to be done fo r i t by a paternalistic Government. It is a society on the move, prepared to act on social issues with the same vigour that the old refugee societ y displayed i n the pursuit o f private prosperity. How els e ca n on e explai n th e publi c respons e t o th e tw o campaign s o f socia l

26 Crisis and Consolidation, awakening Clean Hong Kong and Fight Violent Crime? Litter strewn streets are an obvious manifestation o f social indifference. Befor e the 'Clean Hong Kong' campaig n we were four million lap sap chungs*. The publicity and the strengthening of cleansing services wer e indispensibl e part s o f th e campaig n bu t eve n th e cleanes t stree t ca n become litter strewn in a few hours. The effort require d of each person was only a little restraint but i t involved restraint by everybody, all the time. This was forthcoming. Violent crime posed a completely different problem. We were not a society of four million criminals. Indeed only a very small fraction o f the population has ever seen a violent crime being committed. Reporting crime, dialling 999, raising a hue and cry all required a mor e positiv e effor t tha n refrainin g fro m throwin g litte r about. Nobod y knew when they might be expected t o make this effort. I should lik e t o b e abl e t o parad e a table o f reliable statistic s abou t th e stat e o f crime illustratin g the succes s o f the campaign but I cannot. The troubl e abou t crim e statistics i s that criminal s d o no t sen d i n accurat e statistica l returns. Ove r a shor t period when there i s likely to be a steady proportion o f unreported crime we can dra w conclusions about trend s from figure s o f reported crime. But i f an extensive publicit y campaign i s mounted t o encourag e report s o f crime, i f fou r o r mor e ne w reportin g centres are set up, i f reporting procedures ar e simplified, an d i f the public responds i n this as it has shown itself willing to do in other social causes then the one thing we can be sur e o f i s that th e proportio n o f unreported crim e wil l decline. There wa s even a drop in reported crime during the intensive part of the campaign when the police di d everything they could to put men on the beat. But this drop has not been maintaine d partly, w e suspect, becaus e crime s ar e reporte d instea d o f bein g shrugge d off. Th e statistics show, for instance a disproportionate increase in the number of small robberies reported robberie s whic h woul d no t hav e bee n reporte d ha d th e campaig n no t taken place. I t i s als o happenin g tha t whe n criminal s ar e caugh t an d foun d t o b e responsible fo r a string o f other crime s man y o f thes e othe r crime s wer e discovere d only afte r th e crimina l ha d bee n caught. Cache s o f stole n good s use d t o b e foun d which could not be returned because their theft had not been reported. There i s less of this now. When w e get a longer serie s of monthly figure s reflectin g th e new higher rate o f crime reporting we shall be surer of our conclusions on the underlying figures of actual crime. In the meantime I believe we should be encouraged by greater public confidence. Last winter people were beginning to stay off the streets at night, to keep their children at hom e an d wal k i n fea r o f attack. Thi s i s not th e cas e to-day. Report s fro m Cit y District Offices, opinio n surveys, an d polic e contact s al l reflec t a strengthenin g o f public confidence i n law and order. Just as the cleaner streets we can see for ourselve s are a sig n o f the succes s o f th e 'Clea n Hon g Kong ' campaig n s o a strengthening o f confidence which we know o f ourselves is the true measure of the success of the 'Figh t Violent Crime' campaign. Literally, litter bugs', referenc e to people who litter.

27 310 Society Even so we still have far too many robberies and other violent crimes. The polic e must be given the men to deal with them. The immediat e current object o f the 'Figh t Violent Crime' campaign i s to recruit mor e men an d women int o the regula r police. The first two weeks of the current recruitment campaign produced 1,64 9 young people who wished to join the Police. On past performance w e would expect one out of seven applicants t o measur e u p t o police standards. Many mor e ar e needed an d I am mos t grateful that honourable Members have expressed a desire to help find the people who can do this work which i s of such vital importance t o our community. I said that I believed a fundamental chang e was taking place in society that th e community was developing a new sense of purpose. If this is so what should our reaction be? Three main initiative s seem to be required : first w e must let people know what w e are thinking ; second we must make it easier for people to formulate and present their views; and third w e mus t mak e sur e tha t thes e expression s o f opinio n ar e take n int o account. On th e firs t point m y honourable Friend, M R LOBO, ask s that th e gree n pape r system be more widely used. Having come recently from the New Territories where al l sorts o f policy issue s are freel y discusse d with rura l leader s I do not fin d th e proposa l new or alarming. Green papers, reports of advisory bodies and findings o f consultant s are frequently publishe d before decision s are taken. More informal methods o f arising [sic] ideas and proposals could be developed (fo r instance a good many ideas have been aired this afternoon) an d I should like to give further thought to this. There are obviously limits - m y honourable Friend, th e Financia l Secretar y woul d i n al l probabilit y no t really wish to air his budget proposals before presenting them to honourable Member s in the Finance Bill Nevertheless I would like to think that we can air more proposal s involving a choice of courses open to us so that there i s an opportunity to shape policy more closely to public aspirations. On th e secon d point w e do start with a basic structure which enable s people t o formulate an d presen t thei r views. At th e centr e w e have a broad rang e o f advisor y bodies whic h ar e n o doub t capabl e o f furthe r sophistication. I a m howeve r mor e concerned with the very much more widespread network o f committees that has been reinforced durin g th e 'Clea n Hon g Kong ' an d 'Figh t Violent Crime ' campaigns. M y honourable Friend, Mr CHEONG-LEEN, proposed District Consultative Committee s but thes e wer e firs t se t u p informall y fiv e year s ag o whe n th e CD O schem e wa s introduced. A s a par t o f th e tw o campaign s thes e informa l committee s hav e bee n established a s more formal Cit y Distric t Committees. I n addition there ar e the Are a Committees an d the gras s roots organizations o f over 1,00 0 Mutua l Aid Committees.

28 Crisis and Consolidation, In the New Territories the Rural Committees an d village organizations ar e quite ne w and wer e se t up i n suppor t o f these majo r campaigns. Bu t I certainly hop e the y wil l provide the means whereby people can put forward their views of anything they like. I hope these institution s wil l develop further befor e w e look fo r yet more new type s o f organization. In addition we do hope to improve our own opinion gathering methods. Proposals to strengthen th e syste m are now being drawn up. On the third point, the responsibility for taking public opinion into account rest s on al l official s an d unofficial s concerne d wit h polic y decisions. In additio n a specia l responsibility rests on the holder of my post to ensure that public opinion i s presented and considered a t all levels. DOCUMENT VILd4: The ideology, goals and structure of the CDO scheme (source: Ambrose Yeo-chi King, Administrative Absorption of Politics in Hong Kong: Emphasis on the Gras s Roots Level', in Ambrose Y.C. King and Ranee PL. Lee, eds. Social Life and Development in Hong Kong. Hong Kong: Chinese University Press, 1981, pp ) The CD O [Cit y Distric t Office ] schem e wa s launche d wit h grea t fanfar e an d publicity in mid-1968, immediately afte r the climax of the riots. A government - sponsored intensive image-building campaign was successfully carrie d out to convince the public that the CDO Scheme is something which is genuinely of and for the people. The ideolog y of the CDO Scheme i s a 'service ideology': service for the Government ; service for the community; and service for the individuals. These ar e explicitly state d in the Directive to City District Officers. The explici t goal s o f th e CD O Schem e ar e many-sided. I t i s designed t o b e a political communication agent, a community organizer, a trouble-shooter for the people. To put it in more general terms, the CDO Scheme is aiming to counteract the tendency of the metropolitan Government towar d centralization and departmentalization. Th e establishment o f th e CD O Schem e i s to mak e on e perso n o r on e offic e whic h th e residents could recognize a s 'the government' i n their district. The CDO scheme was approved by the Hong Kong Government i n early It was decided that te n CDOs would be established i n the whole metropolitan area. B y the end of the same year five CDOs had been established: Eastern, Western, Wanchai, Mong Kok, and Ya u Ma Tei. The other five, subsequently opened b y the end o f 1969, were Central, Kwun Tong, Sham Shui Po, Kowloon City, and Wong Tai Sin. The CDO Schem e i s under the general supervisio n o f the Secretaria t fo r Hom e Affairs. Directl y unde r th e Secretar y fo r Hom e Affair s ar e tw o deputies. One i s i n charge of the traditional duties of the former Secretariat for Chinese Affairs - newspaper registration, trust fund, liquo r licensing, tenancy matters, etc. The other i s responsible for the CDO Scheme. Under him are two City District Commissioners, one responsible for the four CDOs on Hong Kong Island, and the other for the six CDOs in Kowloon. The organization s o f the ten CDOs ar e the same. The City District Officer i s the head o f the office. Under him are two sections: Internal and External, each headed by

29 312 Society an Assistant City District Officer. The Internal Section deals mainly with administrative matters, and th e External Section wit h fiel d o r 'liaison' duties. The number o f othe r staff varie s wit h individua l offices. Ther e ar e usuall y fiv e t o eigh t Liaiso n Officer s assigned to each office. One i s invariably assigned to the Public Enquiry Counter, an d a greater part of the rest to the External Section. There are two to four Liaison Assistants in each offic e t o assist the LOs [Liaiso n Officers]. The CDO a t Work i n Kwun Ton g Communit y How has the CDO Scheme actuall y performed a t the district level? How has the ide a of th e CD O Schem e bee n transforme d int o action? W e hav e selecte d Kwu n Ton g District for our study. Kwun Tong District, one of the ten City Districts of metropolitan Hong Kong, i s one o f the most rapidly developed urban communities i n Hong Kong. The CD O i s not a n ordinar y functionally-specifi c administrativ e organization ; rather, i t i s a multifunctional politica l structure. What ar e the functions o f the CD O in the Kwun Tong District? According to our findings, during the three-month perio d of June t o August 1971, the CDO's activitie s involve such things a s commenting o n the District's development planning; helping to clear out huts and hawkers; building a playground fo r children ; helpin g i n relie f o f typhoo n victims ; organizin g festiva l celebration: administering the Fa t Choy Specia l Aid Fund ; handling 'individua l an d family cases'; answering public enquiries; and administering statutory declarations, etc. The CDO's activitie s ar e indeed highly functionally-diffuse. The y involv e just abou t everything occurring in any local community, ranging from political to very mundane affairs. One o f the CDO' s majo r function s i s to facilitat e communicatio n betwee n th e governors and the governed, including the input of intelligence about 'public opinion' to the decision-makers i n the government. The CDO i s required to produce a report entitled 'Th e Anatomy' o f his Distric t within si x months o f his appointment. I n th e 'Anatomy' thoroug h informatio n abou t th e peculiaritie s o f the socia l an d economi c structure of the district as well as its personalities i s expected to be included. The CDO is often aske d by various departments t o give comments on intended actions, such a s the Development Town Plan of the Public Works Department, and other Government organizations as k i t t o gathe r informatio n o n socia l need s fo r decision-making. Fo r example, the CDO has conducted a 'survey' on the needs of the ferry service on behalf of the UMELC O (Unofficia l Member s o f the Executiv e an d Legislativ e Councils). The methods used to gather intelligence, besides 'survey' conducting, are the Distric t Monthly Meeting, the Stud y Group and 'Town Talk'. The CDO holds regular Monthly Meeting s which involve a fairly stable group of local leaders, leader s o f Kaifon g Associations, Multi-Store y Buildin g Association s (MSB), District Associations, the business and industrial sector, etc.; the representatives of field agencie s of Government department s ar e also present. The Monthly Meetin g is the primary mechanism o f the CDO fo r collecting the opinion s o f local leaders o n any issue concerning the Government and the public. From the minutes of the meetings, we find that members present voice their opinions on the procedure of reporting crime

30 Crisis and Consolidation, to the police, o n th e improvemen t o f recreational facilitie s i n th e district, etc. Th e CDO i s designed t o extend th e Government' s consultatio n circl e a t the centr e t o a much wider circle at the peripheral and district level. The Stud y Group i s rather a d hoc i n nature. The people invited to discuss in th e Study Group var y from on e occasio n t o another, dependin g o n the topic s discussed. The discussant s includ e industrialists, schoo l principals, hawkers, sho p owners, taxi - drivers, factory workers, students and others. Sometimes the subject s discusse d migh t include not only matters of a specific nature but also matters of common concern suc h as traffic problems, corruption, petty crimes, smoke from restaurants, clearance of refuse, Chinese a s an officia l language, etc. The 'Town Talk' mechanism i s not officiall y include d in the CDO Scheme, but i t is believed t o be one o f the most important channel s fo r soliciting public opinion b y the CDO. I t i s probably tru e tha t th e Monthl y Meetin g o r the Stud y Grou p are, i n practice if not in theory, geared primarily to reach local leaders rather than the ordinary man. The Town Talk i s in a sense more oriented towar d the 'ma n i n the street'. Th e CDO ha s no specifi c instruction s o n whom t o consult. As one respondent reported, comments were noted down from casual conversation with whomsoever they happened to tal k to, o n officia l o r privat e terms. I t emphasize s no t th e quantitativ e bu t th e qualitative aspec t o f the opinion s expresse d b y the people. The ke y word i s 'people'; several officers interviewe d repeatedly and separately asserted that the present 'trend ' was contacting th e 'man-in-the-street'. A second function o f the CDO i s to articulate the demands made known to them through the Monthly Meeting, the Study Group and Town Talk by people from differen t walks of life, as well as demands channelled through newspapers and outside 'requests'. Moreover, interest s ar e articulate d b y th e CDO' s self-initiative, base d upo n it s knowledge of the needs and attitudes o f the residents of the community. The interest s articulated by the CDO ar e both minor in nature and all-embracing. According to our findings in the period under analysis, the CDO made comments on multi-storey building car parks, cooked foo d stalls, hawker bazaars, a mini-bus station, a refus e collectio n centre, and a clinic with regard to the Kowloo n Ba y Development Plan. The CDO' s interest articulation is limited in the sense that it has only a recommendation function. With respec t to the redressin g o f grievances, i t has been expressl y denied b y th e Chairman of the Urban Council that the CDOs are ombudsmen. The CDO i s certainly not a n ombudsma n i n th e origina l Scandinavia n sens e whic h guarantee s hi s independence as an instrumental officer o f the legislature. The CDO is not independent. However, th e publi c imag e o f th e CD O a s an ombudsma n i s prevailing, an d i t is, furthermore, clearl y stated i n the Report o f the CDO Scheme. The CDO's grievanc e redressing activities can be classified int o two major types : redressing of grievances fo r groups and for individuals. The firs t typ e arises out o f events affecting a large number of people, such as a clearance operation. This type of grievance redressing i s relatively rare; i n Kwu n Ton g Distric t ther e wer e onl y tw o instances. One wa s the Shu n Le e Chuen Clearance in which villagers whose huts were due to be demolished demande d compensation fro m th e Government throug h th e CDO; the othe r wa s the Typhoo n

31 314 Society Rose cas e i n whic h th e victim s o f Sa m K a Chuen demande d a reassessmen t o f th e decisions o f the Resettlemen t Department. B y contrast, th e individua l case s i n th e same period were very large in number, totalling 256. Of these, family disputes accounted for 152, housing 37, and traffi c accident s and compensation 24. In all cases it was the clients who took their complaints t o the CDO fo r assistance. The CD O referre d th e tw o grou p case s fo r consideratio n b y th e department s responsible but they were not favourably reviewed because the departments concerne d thought their demands were not in compliance with government policies. In this respect, the CDO coul d d o very little, but i t did 'explain' the government policie s to the tw o groups in a more personal way. As for the individual cases, 204 out of 256 cases received were recorded to have been settled. In handling individual cases, the CDO acte d a s a middleman betwee n partie s i n deputes. When individua l grievance s aros e fro m a Government decision, the CDO could not reverse the original decision, but it had th e 'power' t o bring the cas e to the responsibl e departments fo r a second look, althoug h often al l that the CDO coul d do was 'talk things over', and 'giv e advice'. Another function o f the CDO i s a special set-up called the Public Enquiry Service Counter, usuall y manned b y an Executive Officer, a clerk, and clerical assistants. The PES set-u p i s designed t o familiariz e peopl e wit h th e governmen t bureaucracy. Th e Hong Kon g metropolita n Governmen t ha s becom e mor e an d mor e technical, complicated, and fragmented; the ordinary people are often bewildered by the intricac y of governmenta l operation. Ther e exist s a kin d o f 'informatio n gap ' betwee n th e Government and the people. The PES is apparently a useful mechanism to bridge this 'information gap', and thi s i s evinced i n its enormous us e by the people. The numbe r of enquirie s receive d pe r mont h b y th e CDO' s PE S counte r increase d fro m 99 1 i n September to 5,472 in April The enquiries cover a wide range of informatio n concerning personal documents, land and housing, employment, taxes, duties and fees, family welfare, education, traffic, medical, and other miscellaneous things. Another importan t politica l functio n o f th e CD O ma y b e calle d politica l socialization an d recruitment. Th e CDO, i n thi s regard, provide s a framewor k fo r participation b y 'responsible ' loca l sectors. Mos t o f th e CDO' s effort s ar e geare d t o structuring the channels of participation o f two major categories of people - youth an d 'local leaders'. Differen t institutiona l mechanism s hav e bee n create d t o co-op t an d socialize them i n CDO-sponsored communit y activities. The Monthly Meeting i s the most forma l forum. Durin g th e thre e month s unde r study, othe r mechanism s an d activities relating t o socialization an d recruitment wer e used. For example, with th e help o f the Lion' s Club an d th e Army, student volunteer s were mobilize d to assis t i n constructing a playground an d jett y a t Kowloo n Bay ; the y initiate d an d sponsored, with the support of local prominent people from Kaifongs, schools, and business firms, district-wide sports activities; they worked through voluntary associations in organizing and promoting recreational an d festival activities. All these activities were apolitica l in terms of their manifest functions; they were primarily recreational in nature. However, these activities were not sheer structuring o f leisure time for the loca l leaders and th e youth; the y serve d t o channel participatio n i n a 'right' way, to develo p community -

32 Crisis and Consolidation, oriented civi c consciousness, t o transfor m th e youn g peopl e int o 'goo d citizens ' an d future communit y leaders, and to create a political culture which i s supportive o f th e political structure o f Hong Kong. DOCUMENT VILd5: Mutual Aid Committee offices (source : Janet Lee Scott, Action and Meaning: Women, Participation in the Mutual Aid Committees, Kowloon. Cornell, Ph.D. 1980, pp. 4145) The establishmen t o f an offic e fo r the M.A.C. [Mutua l Aid Committee] i s a big event, fo r most member s conside r i t important t o have one. There ar e many reason s for this. First, th e settin g u p o f an offic e proclaim s t o al l tha t a n M.A.C. ha s bee n established fo r the building or the block and that the residents have worked hard an d have cooperate d t o reach thi s goal. Also, the offic e indicate s a strong an d successfu l committee, one that i s thriving and should be noticed by the M.A.C.s o f other block s or units. This ca n b e see n mor e clearl y wher e ther e ar e connecte d block s sharin g a common entrance on the ground level I f each block has an M.A.C. but only one has an office, the other committees will spare no effor t tryin g to establish one, too. Most of the M.A.C. offices that 1 visited were found i n the public housing estates. Private housing M.A.C.s are less likely to have offices, a point to return to later. These offices ar e usually locate d o n th e groun d floor, o r occasionally, a vacant roo m on a n upper floor will be turned over to the M.A.C. by the Housing Department. Committe e members will not le t the lac k of a room stop them fro m having an office. I f necessary, they will collect the materials and build one themselves in odd spaces: the air space in the center o f the block, the area near or under the stairs, an unused storage room. Once established, the room is nicely decorated. A partial description of one estate office wil l give some idea o f typical arrangement : The roo m itself, i n a n uppe r floor, seeme d newl y opened. Tile d wit h ne w brown cerami c tile, i t wa s encircle d alon g th e wall s wit h woode n foldin g chairs wit h re d padde d seats. The wall s themselve s wer e hun g wit h brigh t banners, formal paintings of Chinese horses, and a new blackboard. Two fans, one overhea d an d on e floo r fa n attache d t o th e wall, kee p th e roo m cool. Walls painte d green. A t on e end, a foldin g tabl e covere d wit h coloure d oilcloth, and behind it, a new cream-coloured metal desk with vases and pots of flowers. On th e wall behind the desk, framed souvenir s and mementoes, a new wal l clock. Near th e window, a new televisio n se t sit s on a stand als o holding an array of drinking glasses, cups and thermos bottles. The decoration o f the offic e ma y be meager, the size may be small; no matter, th e important thing i s to have one. Still, not al l of the estate-base d M.A.C. s have them, but there are more there than i n private buildings. A majo r reaso n for this i s the lac k of space. Private contractors rarely include extra rooms in their designs, so few buildings have spaces that could be rented or used. I once visited one office i n a private building

33 316 Society that had been converted fro m a storage room. Two ladies there showed how they ha d decorated the room with crepe paper, put up pictures, gathered table s and chairs, an d had a telephone installed. They wer e quite pleased an d prou d o f the result. Anothe r committee, feelin g th e lack, too k ove r par t o f the roo f o f their buildin g t o se t u p a recreation area. Whil e no t a n offic e i n th e strictes t sense, i t wa s intende d t o b e a gathering spo t fo r committe e members, an d wa s furnishe d wit h item s donate d b y members. This lac k o f space i s keenly felt an d mentioned, togethe r with the proble m of few social activities, as a major reason for residents not getting together more often, or even fo r not becoming acquainted. When th e tim e come s t o ope n th e offic e formally, a specia l celebratio n an d ceremony may be held to mark the occasion. If possible, it is good to have an importan t figure officiate an d give the main speech; the City District Officer o f the Wong Tai Sin District, has performed thi s task for some of the M.A.C.s in the Tze Wan Shan Estate. Other dignitaries, officials, an d officer s o f nearby M.A.C. s ar e als o invited. I n mor e than on e offic e ar e frame d photograph s o f it s opening ceremony, attende d b y man y public figures. One chairman showed me, with some pride, a clipping from an overseas Chinese newspaper describing the opening ceremony fo r her M.A.C office. She the n insisted that m y assistant and I add our signatures to the re d commemorative banne r that wa s to hang i n the room. The activitie s centreing aroun d thes e office s ar e informal, ye t recognized b y th e residents. The office s ar e especially busy in the estates and more so if they are locate d on th e groun d floor, wher e the y ar e convenientl y place d fo r th e constan t strea m o f passers-by. It i s at the offic e tha t the patrol teams gather and the officer s mee t to plan activities. Depending on room size, the subcommittees may also use it for their meetings and the yearly elections are held there. It is a clearing area for announcements; notice s from th e Distric t Offic e an d othe r organization s ar e placed ther e fo r people t o read. The offic e i s staffe d b y at leas t on e person, ofte n a n olde r gentleman, whil e on e o r more of the officers ar e usually present. These office helpers (it is unclear whether the y are paid) answer the phone, take messages, give out information, and make themselve s generally useful. Telephone numbers and addresses of the residents are usually kept i n the office, a practice whic h make s i t easie r t o contact someone. A goo d percentage o f the offic e traffic i s accounted fo r by people coming in to use the telephone, or to leave message s or packages fo r someon e i n the building. Older resident s o f the building, mostl y th e old men, congregat e aroun d th e offic e t o watch televisio n (whic h man y committee s buy for thei r offices ) an d relax*. There i s always a group o f them there, spending th e day with their friends, chatting and nibbling. Younger residents, teenagers, are foun d less frequently, but they do come in just to see 'what i s going on.' The M.A.C. uses the The sectio n on old peopl e congregatin g a t the M.A.C. Offic e shoul d reall y read, bot h old men and old women congregate there... Great numbers of ah paus [old women] si t there all day gossiping and watching the residents go by/ Author's communication t o Ed.

34 Crisis and Consolidation, office to store its equipment (patrol team helmets and sticks, party decorations, extra cups an d materials ) an d displa y it s memorabilia ; banners, trophies, letter s an d photographs are all displayed with pride. Given al l this, i t i s not surprisin g tha t th e committees wil l not onl y striv e t o obtain an office, bu t to keep one. At the time of this study, numerous committees in Wong Tai Sin an d Tze Wan Sha n Estate s were angry over increase d rent s fo r thes e offices b y the Housing Department. Som e of these committees felt that the increas e was too much and that they could not pay. Moreover, such a facility should not, they felt, be taxed at all as it was part of an officially establishe d programme and backed by the District Office. With evident frustration som e committee member s told me that such a move woul d jeopardize the committee itself. At tha t point, possessio n o f an office i s more than a point of pride; it is part of the existence of the committee. e. Hon g Kon g Worker s r Hon g Kong' s people did no t seek change b y putting pressur e on the Hon g Kong government. Hon g Kon g families looke d inward s a s they mad e thei r bid t o improv e themselves i n the ver y competitiv e Hon g Kon g economy. * Hong Kon g workers di d no t join trade unions, seldom wen t o n strike, ha d few idea s about ho w their jobs might improve, bu t they seemed agree d i n one aim, an d tha t was that their childre n shoul d mov e ou t o f the povert y trap. They expected bette r education fo r their children t o b e an answe r t o upward mobility, and, i f education for all their children together was beyond reach, the n a family strateg y shoul d com e int o pla y s o that the daughter s might work to contribute to family incom e that would allo w the sons to be ' educated. Fo r many families, i n the industriou s Hon g Kon g of the 1970s, this strategy pai d off, bu t i t also implie d that upward mobilit y tended t o be associated with the natural family cycle and that, at least, among the poorer majority, i t was the long-time resident, rather than the fresh immigrant, who would se e it s benefits. DOCUMENT VILel : Employees ' expectation s fo r themselve s an d thei r childre n (source: H.A. Turner, The Last Cobny, But Whose? A Study in the Labour Movement, Labour Market and Labour Relations in Hong Kong. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1980, pp ) The Hong Kong workers in the sample did not, i n general, appear to have high aspirations for themselves, or resemble the aggressively ambitious petty-capitalists so * S.K. La u calls this 'utilitarianisti c familism ' i n hi s Society and Politics in Hong Kong, Hong Kong: Chinese University Press, 1982.

35 318 Society frequently describe d b y writers such as England and Rear*. When aske d what kind o f work the y hoped t o b e doin g i n fiv e years ' time, the sampl e displaye d a lo w leve l o f personal aspirations. Over half o f the sample (55% ) wishe d to keep their present job, and o f those that named another type of work (276 respondents), 83 chose some kind that woul d involv e a sideways or downwards move. A furthe r 3 9 respondents replie d that the y hope d t o b e ou t o f the labou r marke t b y that tim e an d 14 7 di d not kno w what kind of work they would like to do. Only 12 3 respondents out of the total sample (13%) hope d t o hav e improve d themselve s i n fiv e years ' tim e b y eithe r securin g a more prestigious job or by going into business on their own account. The respondents' replies to a follow-up question specifically on whether they had considered starting a business within the next five years confirms the previous finding. Less than a third (31% ) o f the sample had seriously considered this, a surprisingly lo w figure considering the great number o f small businesses in Hong Kong and their rapi d turnover. Finally, th e respondents ' modes t leve l o f persona l aspirations*i s furthe r confirmed b y their replies to the question on attendance a t vocational classe s (nigh t school). The 21% of the sample attending such classes seemed to be definitely o n th e low side considering the age distribution o f the sample, the pressing shortage of places in full-tim e post-secondar y educatio n institution s i n Hon g Kon g an d th e pre - occupation, s o commonl y foun d i n developin g societies, wit h forma l educationa l qualifications. There wa s littl e differenc e withi n th e sampl e o n th e questio n o f respondents ' hopes fo r fiv e year s ahead, wit h th e exceptio n (t o a limited extent ) o f governmen t employees. Thus 24 % o f government employee s aspire d t o jobs with higher prestig e than thei r presen t job, compare d t o 9 % o f Cantones e fir m employees, 9 % o f Shanghainese firm employees and 13% of UK firm employees. On the specific question of starting i n business, there was a perceptible differenc e thi s time by skill level, with 37% o f white-colla r worker s having considere d this, compare d t o 18 % o f unskille d workers. There was more variation within the sample in the case of further education. The proportions o f white-colla r worker s (36%), governmen t employee s (34% ) an d employees o f very larg e firm s (32% ) attendin g vocationa l classe s o f some kind wer e higher than the average (21%). Respondents in the years group (32%) were also more likel y to attend, togethe r with, a s might be expected, a larger proportion o f the under-20 group (40%). Despite their tendency to have limited aspirations for themselves, the workers i n the sample had high aspirations for their children. When asked if they would like a son of theirs t o d o a job simila r t o thei r ow n when h e gre w up, the vas t majorit y o f th e workers in the sample (89%) replied that they would not. When asked what job instead they would lik e a son o f theirs to get, 80% of the white-collar workers with a definit e J. Englan d an d J. Rear, Chinese Labour Under British Rule: A Critical Study of Labour Relations and Law in Hong Kong, Oxford: Oxford Universit y Press, 1975.

36 Crisis and Consolidation, preference opte d fo r a technologist, professiona l o r managerial typ e job and a furthe r 6% fo r thei r son' s running a business. Only 14 % named a job that wa s at thei r ow n lower white-collar/technician leve l Th e blue-colla r worker s wer e equall y ambitiou s in relative terms. Thus, 56% of the blue-collar workers with a definite preference named either a technologist, professiona l o r managerial type job, 30% named a lower whitecollar/technician typ e jo b an d a further 4 % opte d fo r havin g a business. Only 10 % named a manual job. The worker s wer e prepared, moreover, t o financiall y suppor t a son throug h th e educational process so that he could obtain the type of job either they hoped he would get, or the job the son himself preferred. Ninety-six percent of the sample would support a son for three years of secondary school and 94% for five years; 80% would support a son for a full-time thre e year university or polytechnic course. While equal proportions of all groups would financially support a son for three or five years of secondary school, there wer e som e difference s whe n i t cam e t o supportin g a son fo r a university-styl e education. White-colla r worker s (96% ) wer e mor e willin g t o d o s o than unskille d workers (72%) and respondents in the years age group (93%) were considerabl y more willing to do so than thos e i n the 50 years and over group (58%), thus showin g that these workers were again more ambitious thi s time on their son's behalf. DOCUMENT VILe2 : Dutifu l secon d daughte r (source : Janet W. Salaff, Working Daughters of Hong Kong: Filial Piety or Power in the Family? Ne w York : Columbi a University, 1995, pp ; thi s book wa s firs t publishe d b y Cambridge Universit y Press in 1981 ) Mae Goh was 22 in Her solid build, her hair fixed in an outdated ear-lengt h coif, tightl y curled, he r broa d fac e wit h it s calm, seriou s demeanour, an d th e plain, conservative gaberdine pants and knit skirts and top s she wore gave her the loo k of a hardworking, no-frill s woman. This impressio n wa s appropriate, becaus e Ma e wa s a pivotal contributor to her family economy. Mae singlemindedly devoted herself to her family, an d she derived her self-esteem fro m thi s care and attention. The Go h househol d consiste d o f Father, Mother, an d si x siblings. Father wa s a low-paid clerk and First Brother was a delivery boy for a well-known retail comprado r firm in Hong Kong. Mae and First Sister, Hua, were factory workers. The three youngest children, al l sons, wer e student s i n The Go h famil y aspire d t o upgrad e itsel f economically by drawing upon the wages of the three eldest children, and i n so doing advance the education and hence the careers of the three youngest. Although ambitious for a working-class family, thos e plans were attainable a s long as no unforeseen crisi s occurred to weaken the family earning power. All family members had become keenly aware o f th e importanc e o f coordinatin g thei r workin g effort s an d poolin g thei r individual earnings. Self-upgrading th e household b y multiple wag e earning wa s th e Goh family' s strateg y that had lon g guided Mae's behaviour.

37 320 Society Home Mae wa s a Ch'iu-chaonese bor n i n a village near the por t cit y Swatow, northeast o f Hong Kong i n Kwangtung province. Father brought his mother an d younger brothe r along with Hua and Mae with him to Hong Kong on a fishing boat in The Hon g Kong government lacke d the facilities t o receive the incoming wave of refugees fro m the newly founded People's Republic, and families like the Gohs initially had to manage with rudimentary, makeshift accommodations. Upon their arrival, the Gohs purchased an overpriced, ramshackle squatter' s hut fro m a petty entrepreneur who had nailed i t together fro m ol d crates. The squatte r hut s wer e cramme d togethe r o n a Kowloo n mountainside whic h teeme d wit h impoverishe d refugees. Withi n month s thei r hu t was badl y burne d b y a fir e tha t swep t th e squatte r complex, an d althoug h th e Go h family escape d unscathed, the y ha d n o othe r recours e bu t constructio n o f a secon d shack similar to the one they had evacuated. Eventually the community was provided with a pump with running water, one communal outhouse for every 10 0 families, an d cement walkways. Primar y school s wer e buil t i n th e neighbourhoo d b y missionar y societies, but few other community service s were available in the squatter area, which the government considere d temporary. In fact, the Gohs remained in this squatter area for nearly a decade, during which three son s were born, befor e th e famil y wa s finally resettle d i n tw o rooms i n Lok F u resettlement estate, wher e th e sixth, an d last, chil d wa s born. Government-buil t resettlement estate s were a relatively inexpensive form o f housing for the Goh family, but their facilities were rudimentary. Their two 10 ' by 12' rooms, standard for the time, were allotted on the basi s of 24 square feet per adul t (6 ' b y 4'), and the y had a ninemember household. Childre n wer e allocate d onl y one-hal f o f th e 'adult ' space, s o resettlement estat e familie s had t o curtail the physical movement an d indoo r play o f their youngsters. Simple home industries like plastic flower assemblin g and piecewor k sewing were permitted in the rooms. Shops, schools, churches, a playground, and even factories wer e contained i n the basements an d on the rooftop s o f the Gohs' block o f flats. This older estate in which Mae lived lacked indoor plumbing and water taps and private kitchens. The outdoo r balcony wa s the sol e walkway on each floor. Here th e Goh famil y cooked, store d water, hung clothes, washed children, and socialize d wit h the neighbours. There wa s a common stall-typ e toile t on ever y floor, launderin g an d bathing areas, as well as a common water spigot, where the family fille d it s water jars. One o f the Gohs' rooms was partitioned int o three sleeping areas: the first fo r the two elde r girl s and Grandmother, th e secon d fo r th e thre e eldes t brothers, an d th e third fo r the parents and younges t child. The othe r room serve d a s their livin g roo m and contained a long side-board that held a matching tea service, a large Kewpie doll, and a telephone. A wal l o f the room wa s dominated b y the 23-inc h television set. A refrigerator wa s placed agains t the secon d wall, and the sewin g machine too k u p ye t another wall. The dinin g table, which fille d th e centra l floo r space, double d a s th e evening study area for the boys. Calendars advertising the fishing gear sold at Father' s workplace adorned the walls.

38 Crisis and Consolidation, By the 1970s, the Goh famil y coul d affor d a more spacious flat an d wa s put on a waiting list for a government-built low-cost housing unit. But Mae was relatively satisfie d with her estat e apartment, despit e it s obvious shortcomings, because o f its proximit y to her plac e o f work. Sh e explained, 'Livin g here i s quite convenient. W e hav e th e market just downstairs, and transportation t o work i s easy. The onl y bad thing abou t this place i s security. Just the other da y a restaurant on th e next bloc k wa s robbed o f sixteen hundred dollars, and not long before that a fellow was robbed in the staircase. Also, ther e ar e a lo t o f peeping tom s here. The managemen t installe d door s on th e toilet stall s onl y a fe w month s ago. Befor e that, i t was really horrible. There wa s n o privacy a t all. And the y stil l haven't don e anythin g abou t th e bathin g are a yet. A friend o f mine had to scream for help not long ago when she was bathing someon e was peepin g a t her. No w I have t o g o earl y t o bathe, whe n ther e aren' t to o man y people hanging around the bathing area. Also, it' s very dangerous to walk around th e estate ver y late, an d s o I usually tr y t o ge t bac k befor e eleven. I f I come home afte r that, then I ask Mother to be my guard.' The Goh famil y tolerate d these cramped, difficul t accommodation s becaus e the y were a decided improvemen t ove r th e squatte r shack s i n whic h the y ha d live d fo r many years. Also, thi s future-focuse d famil y concentrate d it s meage r fund s o n th e younger children' s educatio n an d preferre d no t t o squande r it s mone y o n housing, which apar t fro m short-ter m comfor t promise d fe w returns o f the famil y investment. Nevertheless, th e nee d fo r spac e an d physica l securit y wer e increasingl y pervasiv e concerns, and by this time the Gohs could afford t o search the private housing market for a modest alternative to the older resettlement estate apartment. While waiting fo r a government-financed low-cos t housing apartment, the Gohs rented an inexpensiv e two-room fla t i n the Kowloon Walled City, a district not fa r fro m thei r estat e home. Several of the Goh family members moved to the Walled City and others remained i n the estate rooms, which began to seem comparatively spacious. Parents Mrs. Goh wa s a large-boned, rathe r stou t woman, broa d shouldere d an d easygoing. Her childhood was spent in a village near the city of Swatow, and like all of the mothers in my sample she matured during the economic depression and the turbulent year s of China's war with Japan and the civil war. Mrs. Goh never attended school and at ag e 18 entered an arranged marriage with a neighbouring villager whose father was a trader in smal l wares. Afte r tw o childre n wer e born, th e Goh s emigrate d b y se a t o Hon g Kong. At first, Mrs. Goh's mother shared a squatter home with the family, but she and Mrs. Goh wer e continually a t loggerheads, an d th e olde r woman finall y move d t o a one-half room resettlement estat e apartment nearby. Mrs. Goh wa s required t o cook, se w clothes, sho p dail y fo r foo d bargain s i n th e open-air marker, and take the youngest child to and from the nearby kindergarten, s o she never had time to undertake employment outside the home. Her main diversion s were chatting with her neighbour s an d watching television, an d sh e gained pleasur e from being with her family. Mrs. Goh never attended the cinema because she was not

39 322 Society able to understand eithe r the Mandarin dialect o f contemporary Hon g Kong films o r the Chinese subtitles. At home, however, Mr. Goh cleared away the table and washe d the supper dinner dishes so that Mother could view her favorite televisio n soap opera after dinner. Observing he r childre n develo p an d doin g he r bes t fo r the m wa s a sourc e o f fulfillment fo r thi s dedicate d mother. Mrs. Goh mad e i t clea r t o m e tha t sh e wa s distressed by the large size of her family and revealed that she originally had wished t o have fewer children. She had taken herbal contraceptive formulas in an effort to prevent her sixth birth. Later she blamed hersel f fo r the consequences: 'M y youngest so n ha s been i n the hospital severa l times, and a s you se e he has no appetite. Mother-in-la w says that th e chil d i s sickly becaus e o f the herba l medicine s tha t I drank.' Mother' s attempt a t rudimentary birt h contro l indicate d tha t sh e never cease d attemptin g t o control her life, although the action she took was not effective. A slightl y buil t man, Mr. Goh ha d a broad face, an d Ma e proudl y pointe d ou t their physical resemblances: 'Many times I've been walking down the street and people have stoppe d m e t o ask, 'Ar e yo u Goh' s daughter? ' We loo k s o much alike! ' Fathe r clerked behind the counter i n a small Ch'iu-chao trading firm that exported Chines e fishing net s to Ch'iu-chao trader s i n Thailand an d Singapore. He dresse d neatly i n a white shirt and gray slacks, in contrast to the blue and black garb of the manual workers. Father's statu s on the job was low, and a s jack-of-all-trades (or, a s he put it, a 'many - kick-foot') h e wa s required to toil long hours and sometimes al l night a s counterman, stockboy, and watchman. This wa s Father' s firs t stead y wor k i n Hon g Kong, an d he ha d remaine d a t th e same fir m fo r ove r 2 0 years. The manage r spok e th e sam e Ch'iu-cha o dialect, an d Father felt loya l to the firm. When Fathe r firs t obtaine d thi s position he earne d onl y $40 a month*, and after 2 0 years (with annual raises of $4), his income reached $120, a probabl e ceiling. Father' s earnin g woul d soo n b e toppe d b y the wage s o f his sons, who would, h e ferventl y hoped, d o muc h bette r tha n h e i n th e worl d o f work. B y 'better' he meant higher wage s and shorter hours i n a steady white-collar position. A modest man, Father had never complained to his manager about his low pay. Hua an d Mae both wishe d tha t Fathe r coul d fin d a position with improve d wage s and hours, but the y realize d that i t was impossible fo r a man hi s ag e to change hi s line o f work. The girl s loyall y insiste d tha t th e fir m di d no t pa y Fathe r hi s worth, an d the y endeavoured t o make up for i t by contributing their earnings to the family. Althoug h Eldest Son had already taken a job as a delivery boy in a grocery store, paying somewhat less than Father's job but with shorter hours, hopes were pinned on Second Son, wh o would be promoted throug h technica l colleg e b y dint o f the family' s effort s an d wh o would vindicate Father's expectations. All dolla r value s i n this entr y hav e bee n converte d b y the autho r t o the U.S. dolla r at approximately HK$ 5 t o US1.

40 Crisis and Consolidation, Education Such a n expectation wa s realistic because neighbourhood school s were accessibl e t o working-class childre n residin g i n the resettlemen t estate. The Goh s obtained smal l sums of money from missionary societies to pay the school fees and sent all six children to school. Each successive child attended a bit longer, paving the way psychologicall y and socially for the improve d schooling o f the next-younger sibling. The primar y schoo l tha t th e sister s an d brother s attende d enjoye d a modes t reputation. I t was a private missionary school, with a curriculum oriented towar d th e Secondary School Entrance Examination taken by all Hong Kong primary graduates. The pupil s wer e taugh t i n vernacular Cantonese, bu t Mandari n wa s the mediu m o f written exercises, which the pupils rarely learned t o proficiency. Mae' s parents chos e the schoo l becaus e o f it s proximit y t o home, lo w tuitio n fees, an d th e fair-minde d reputation o f it s principal, a missionary who wa s outspokenly critica l o f the politica l and economic conditions that Hong Kong working-class people endured. 'It' s a good school. It' s close, too. The headmistres s i s a good person who' s done a lot fo r peopl e like us,' commented Mae. Hua lef t schoo l afte r primar y 2 to work in a light bulb factory a t 20 c per day, but Mae completed primary 6 before going out to work. Mae proudly included her graduation from primary school among her major accomplishments. First Brother, the third child, obtained 3 years o f secondary schooling, afte r whic h he hel d severa l jobs, includin g factory worker and delivery boy. The family pinned its economic hopes upon the fourt h child, who wa s studying to enter a postsecondary technica l institute, and the fifth, a form I I pupi l (th e secon d yea r o f secondar y school). The sixt h wa s stil l i n primar y school. The two sisters deeply regretted their inadequate education, which they attempted to remedy b y attending night schoo l afte r work. At grea t physical cos t and with fe w tangible results, Mae sat in a crowded classroom every night vainly attempting to absorb the rudiment s o f English gramma r an d a fe w fact s o f European history. Sh e recalle d 'Hua and I rushed right to school from work. We never had time to eat dinner. I used to bu y a brea d rol l an d ea t i t whe n th e teache r turne d hi s hea d t o writ e o n th e blackboard. I t wa s really tiring! Bu t I enjoyed i t becaus e that' s wher e I met m y bes t friend 1-ling, as well as A-li and some other friends. Although we have all dropped ou t of class by now, we still keep up our friendships. ' Mae then enrolle d i n part-time Englis h lesson s at the Carita s (Catholic ) Yout h Centre, where w e first met i n 1973, and various other classe s a s well fol k singing, European cooking, and social dancing. At the end o f she re-enrolled i n nightl y classes, favoured b y Mother a s a means t o improv e he r jo b opportunities. However, Mae candidl y admitte d tha t suc h a n evenin g school, which provide d n o recognize d certificate for its graduates, would not greatly elevate her job options, and she continued mainly to make more friends an d for the contact with organized knowledge. Mae and Hua ended their formal schooling for self-proclaimed 'economic reasons', but the reasons for which their parents sent them to work were based on conventiona l

41 324 Society definitions o f the elde r daughters' obligations. The family' s undoubted need fo r cash, coupled with norms limiting women's education an d the eas e o f factory employmen t for young girls, made inevitable the sacrifice o f their further educatio n in favour o f the family's economic needs. Nevertheless, the girls' education as far as primary level should be viewed a s an assertion o f a woman's right to learn. Hua and Mae themselves sa w i t that way. Secondar y educatio n wa s psychologicall y an d sociologicall y remot e fo r working-class girl s o f their ag e at the time. The sister s learned t o rea d whereas thei r mother ha d not, an d thei r forma l education, howeve r limited, distinctl y increase d their employment an d socia l opportunities. Because school provided extrafamilia l experiences, i t had a lasting value beyon d the forma l curriculum. Mae and Hua came into contact with other women thei r age, and thei r participatio n i n th e age-grade d classe s stimulate d a consciousnes s o f th e common bon d tha t unite s youth. They als o became awar e o f their abilit y to achiev e on thei r ow n apar t fro m thei r family, whic h pave d th e wa y fo r thei r assumptio n o f continued responsibility for their own friendships, leisure-time activities, and jobs afte r leaving school. Mae at wor k In both larg e factories an d smal l workshops, al l o f Mae's jobs consiste d o f repetitiv e operations: electronics assembling, seaming garments, and fusin g th e seam s of plastic bags. Mae foun d smal l workshop s preferabl e t o large r factorie s becaus e th e persona l proximity o f the workshop owne r meant he wa s aware o f and coul d appreciate Mae' s hard work on his behalf. Mae responded best to such personal calls upon her effort. Mae invited me to visit one place of work, a small plastic bag factory i n a narrow, two-floor tenemen t building within earshot o f the busy Kai Tak Airport, with neithe r heating for the damp winter air nor air conditioning for the intense summer hear. The plastic bag s were printed o n the firs t floor, an d Ma e an d thre e othe r women cu t th e bags to size and seamed three edges in the loft. They worked from a fifty-pound rol l of plastic, unwindin g i t b y hand, pullin g on e en d unde r th e ar m o f a machin e tha t resembled an electric paper cutter; then the electrified ar m dropped and seamed a bag. These action s took a few seconds but could not be mechanized becaus e one machin e could not handle the many sizes and shapes of bags, and as Mae further remarked, 'W e girls ar e cheape r tha n machines. ' Ma e wa s pai d o n a piecework basis, $ 1 fo r 1,00 0 plastic bags, which represented 2 hours of seaming at a fast pace. She preferred piecewor k because o f the flexible workin g hours and the lur e o f higher earnings than on a fixe d wage. However, Mae earned a t most $19-$20 fo r a 6-day week in Before joinin g thi s worksho p i n 1973, Mae ha d trie d he r han d a t severa l othe r jobs typically performed b y women. In 1970 she left a relatively low-paying electronics factory for a slightly better wage in a plastic bag factory, where she learned the shortcuts from her sister Hua, who was already employed there. Mae quit that factory because a defective automati c machin e sh e ha d bee n usin g t o sea m th e bag s emitte d electri c shocks and sh e burned her hand. The managemen t refuse d t o repair it, blaming Ma e for handling the machine poorly. Mae commented, 'After I left, my replacement received

42 Crisis and Consolidation, such a serious shock that she was sent to the hospital, and only then did the management send someon e t o fi x th e machine. ' Soo n afte r that, Ma e attende d a n evenin g clas s where sh e learned wi g assembly. She pai d $18 fo r the class, but shortl y afte r sh e ha d acquired the skill, the artificia l hair industr y collapsed. In alone, Ma e worke d i n thre e separat e establishments. Attracte d b y th e promise of 2c more per 1,00 0 plastic bags (for 2 hours of work), Mae phoned in 'sick' to the sho p I visited an d trie d ou t another worksho p tha t offere d highe r pay. However, the manager of the new workshop broke his word and reduced the wage to the cheape r rate prevailing o n the labou r market. Conceding that the y had los t the disput e wit h the management, almos t all of the women who worked there lef t fo r other shops, and Mae joined them, returning to the first plastic bag plant. But she was soon laid off due to a shortage o f plastic materials, which th e manufacturer s importe d fro m Japa n bu t whose local supply was temporarily being hoarded by larger factories. For several weeks Mae worked only a few hours a day in her workshop, supplementing that with work in a large r factor y wit h a n adequat e suppl y o f materials. A fe w months later, th e smal l workshop suddenl y close d it s door whe n th e owne r absconde d wit h th e funds. Ma e turned t o another typ e of work altogether: seaming garments. Mae did not undertake these job changes lightly, because they were costly in time and money lost. On her first day in the plastic bag workshop that I visited Mae earne d only $ 1.60 because she had not yet learned how to use that particular seaming machine. On he r secon d da y there sh e earned $2.40. 'Still too low! ' she complained - she wa s aiming fo r th e $3.50-per-da y wag e tha t wa s her usua l ceiling. Ma e di d not fin d th e transportation t o the new shop convenient either, and she walked a round tri p o f 7 0 minutes between home and work to save 8c bus fare each way. Mae attribute d he r poo r an d irregula r workin g conditions, th e frequen t layoffs, and lac k o f wor k securit y t o th e personalitie s o f th e employer s operatin g i n th e competitive economic situation i n Hong Kong. Her naivete o f the local employmen t situation wa s grounde d i n a basi c incomprehensio n o f th e internationa l capitalis t division o f labou r an d Hon g Kong' s dependen t rol e i n thi s divisio n o f labour. Accordingly Ma e stated the reason that the manager would not pa y her the extr a 2 c per 1,00 0 bag s was his 'stinginess,' whereas the next manage r wa s 'all right.' Thoug h he lai d of f the workers without pay or warning when he ran out o f materials, this was 'not his fault,' but was due to the 'competition among workshops for plastics.' Mae was not critica l o f th e government, an d sh e rarel y rea d newspapers. Regardin g a then - current teachers' strike, Mae said vaguely, 'It's hard to know who is right, the government or the teachers. ' Mae wa s unawar e o f th e locatio n o f th e expor t market s fo r th e product s sh e manufactured. Sh e showe d m e a larg e yellow plastic ba g she had finishe d o n whic h was written, 'Have a safe Hallowe'en, fro m you r Esso dealer,' embossed with a picture of a witch ridin g a broomstick. Sh e di d not know what Hallowe'e n was. I thought i t ironic that Ma e had los t one o f her jobs in a dispute over 2c for 2 hours o f work, an d yet the bag s she seamed had s o little value that the y were to be given awa y with th e purchase of a tank of gas. Mae thought her firm also finished bag s for Mexico, 'becaus e

43 326 Society the word s loo k lik e Spanish. ' (I t seeme d mor e likel y t o m e tha t th e bag s bor e th e emblem o f a chic boutique i n New Haven o r Chicago. ) Despite he r shallo w understandin g o f Hon g Kon g exportin g practices, Ma e manifested a n undirecte d bu t vita l respons e t o he r poo r workin g condition s i n th e willingness to change jobs. Although he r frequent jo b shift s wer e refle x response s t o work problems, from whic h Mae fle d instea d o f altering, she at least demonstrated a n active rathe r than passiv e stance. Hua, i n contrast, wa s considerably les s resourcefu l and remained i n one factory fo r over 1 0 years. T have considered changing jobs,' Hua said, 'but I don't know any other trade. Also, I'm different fro m Mae, who changes jobs frequently. It' s not worth it! You'll just have to change again later. ' Mae fel t responsibl e fo r her family' s economi c station. Ver y close to her parent s emotionally, Ma e willingl y subordinate d he r persona l goal s t o thei r vie w o f famil y needs. She sa w very few contradictions between her personal work ambitions and th e economic needs o f the family. Mae had no personal work goals, but she would labou r as hard o n thei r behal f a s she could. Fo r that reason, i t wa s not eas y to discus s wit h Mae her 'future career ambitions,' a somewhat abstract concept that suggested a freedom of choice between work and marriage or between careers that she did not feel empowered to make. Whenever I raised thi s topic, Mae responde d tha t sh e intende d t o d o 'th e usual thing' expected of young women - to work, see her brothers through school, then marry and continue until her own children arrived. In thi s context, Mae' s wor k goal s wer e limite d t o th e realisticall y attainabl e paycheck, friendl y coworkers, an d tim e fo r leisure. Elde r sister s worke d no t onl y t o improve thei r family' s economi c situatio n bu t als o t o attai n a greate r sens e o f independence an d to spend small sums of money on themselves. They were relativel y satisfied with their paychecks because they were an improvement over the recent past. Hua recalled that at age ten she earned only 20c daily in a light bulb factory, and eve n then th e employe r did not eve n pa y all of her pitifull y lo w wages. 'The managemen t sometimes delaye d payin g m e becaus e I wa s unde r ag e an d to o afrai d t o complain, until Mothe r woul d g o and rais e hell' Althoug h consume r price s were considerabl y lower then (Hua paid only 10c for a meal and 2c for bus fare), the Goh family considere d itself worse off in those days. On the contrary, Mae's daily wage of close to $3.5 0 was a decided improvement, eve n wit h th e ris e i n prices. This decade-lon g gradua l wage increase committed workers like these two women to tedious factory jobs because they helped alleviat e family poverty and want. The widenin g o f the family' s horizon' s tha t followe d it s solutio n o f the critica l problems o f shelter and hunger committe d th e offsprin g t o work even longe r fo r th e common good. The stagnatio n o f real wages from to further strengthene d the girls' commitment to work, because they were still expected to elevate their family' s living standards. Improvement of the young women's work situations was discouraged by the family, the internationa l divisio n o f labou r (wit h Hon g Kon g worker s performin g labour - intensive, low-skille d manufacturin g work), an d th e educationa l system. The Go h family encourage d daughter s t o stud y only when th e trainin g di d not interfer e wit h

44 Crisis and Consolidation, their current earnin g power. Although som e o f Mae's friends preferre d job s in whic h they learne d ne w skills, fe w suc h job s wer e available, an d sinc e mos t wome n wer e enjoined t o remit their wages weekly, they invariably abandoned idea s of job trainin g and upgrading i n favor o f higher-paying piecework machining. As a result, thes e tw o sisters and thei r friend s wer e fixe d i n a work routine a t an earl y age, and the y coul d acquire othe r skill s onl y a t th e fring e o f thei r workin g routines, i n evenin g school. Their brothers, however, who were expected to contribute significantly to their parents' support, even after marriage, were more likely to undertake low-paying apprenticeship s for severa l years or to remain i n school longer, t o ensure themselves bette r prospect s for th e future. Althoug h a n employe d marrie d daughte r stil l contribute s smal l sum s from her wage packet to her own parents, she is not obliged to do so. This gives rise to the relative lack of concern for the daughter's future caree r opportunities, a carry-over from the patriarchal traditions of Chinese culture, which severely restricted those young women's chances fo r remunerative wor k after marriage. Mae dislike d her wor k but had n o futur e jo b plans. Mae believe d tha t th e onl y kind of job advancement for a woman was to study sewing and tailoring skills in evening class and then leav e the factory t o become a tailor. Her friend I-lin g did just that, bu t Mae rejected that idea. 'What other kind of job could I have?' she asked rhetorically. T don't know how to do anything else, and I don't like to sew!' Mae held a conventional notion o f women' s prope r sphere. Pointin g t o th e ma n wh o ra n th e machin e tha t painted the logo on the plastic bags, Mae said, 'Only men do that. Of course it's better paying than seaming work, but your hands get dirty when you handle that equipment. ' After the small plastics workshop closed its doors, Mae turned to garment manufacturin g despite her distaste for sewing. The truncatio n o f Mae's ambitions wa s consistent wit h the limite d employmen t opportunities available in Hong Kong. For example, in the electronics industry, Mae' s first job setting, the transnational corporations assign only a narrow spectrum of labourintensive assembl y job s t o thei r Hon g Kon g plants. Bu t th e reason s fo r th e limite d career mobilit y i n factorie s an d shop s wer e littl e fathome d b y Ma e o r Hua. Th e educational system encouraged neither an understanding of the international politica l economy i n which Hon g Kon g wa s situated no r th e necessar y technica l trainin g fo r women in those highly skilled factory jobs that did exist. Nor did the factory ever train Mae fo r it s supervisory o r management posts, which wer e filled b y male graduate s o f technical institutes, and thes e technical college s would not accept students lik e Ma e and he r friend s wit h onl y primar y schoo l education. Som e o f Mae' s peer s attende d private evening school in English, hoping to improve their service girls' qualifications, but the classe s were for the most part poorly taught. However, a few factory wome n wer e selected a s 'lead girls'. Two o f Mae' friends, A-li an d Kitty, advance d t o suc h positions. At firs t bot h hesitated, doubtin g thei r ability to direc t others, but ultimatel y A-l i too k th e job. The secon d firml y rejecte d the position o f section leader, stating, T was afraid tha t when I had 'm.c. ' [menstrua l cramps] I would not b e able to work or give orders,' thereby revealing her agreemen t with the prevailing dictum that 'anatom y i s destiny'. Thus, feelings o f self-limitatio n

45 328 Society and lac k o f socia l support, roote d i n thei r subordinat e positio n i n th e family, th e workplace, an d th e educationa l system, undermine d th e determinatio n o f Mae an d other women t o compete fo r th e fe w opportunities fo r advancement ope n t o factor y hands. Neither Mae nor her elder sister Hua compared their jobs unfavourably with those of their brothers, since they felt that men and women 'naturally' held different type s of jobs. Instead, the y contraste d thei r wor k experience s wit h thos e o f women o f thei r social class in earlier generations. In so doing they realized that opportunities to wor k had broadened considerably compared to even the recent past. The speed of economic change wa s exemplified b y the fac t tha t Mae' s mother had never worked outside th e home whereas her daughters held semiskilled factory jobs. Hua had remained for years at a n unsatisfyin g jo b i n th e plasti c ba g workshop, wherea s Mae, 2 years her junior, more easily transferred fro m one factory to another. The generational comparison tha t Mae mad e wa s thu s roote d i n reality. The increase d importanc e o f single-se x pee r groups furthe r underline d th e youn g woman' s identificatio n wit h othe r wome n lik e herself and suggested the inevitable contrast with women older and younger than herself. Family relationship s Mae's paid labour input to the family economy was a continuation o f her earlier unpaid work a t home. I t wa s assume d tha t th e elde r childre n i n larg e familie s woul d tak e responsibility fo r everyda y tasks, and Ma e an d Hu a fulfille d thi s expectation. Man y jobs fel l t o the m befor e the y wer e adolescents, becaus e o f thei r mother' s bus y involvement with toddlers and infants. Hua and Mae hauled water daily and cooked, cleaned house, and washed clothes. After the y joine d th e pai d labou r force, th e tw o sister s continued t o vie w thei r primary goal in working as the elevation of their family's living standard. Even thoug h Mae's earning s varie d wit h he r frequen t change s o f employer an d th e lengt h o f he r work week, she generally contributed close to three-quarters of her wages to her family. Mae and Hua accounted fo r over two-fifths o f the family income i n 1973, a relatively high proportion, because their father earne d s o little. Hua an d Ma e clearl y understoo d th e centralit y o f their earnings, which helpe d the famil y purchas e essentials : rent an d foo d fo r the entir e family, medica l expenses, and education fo r the younger children. Rent fo r public housing was low, but utilitie s (including telephone) wer e expensive. Food comprised a substantial portion o f thei r budget. Sociologist s usuall y interpre t a high proportion o f family budge t spen t upo n food a s a trait o f poverty, but there was little doubt that the Goh's meals improved i n substance and appeal as their income enlarged. They could afford meat or fish daily, to eat ou t a s a group i n restaurants on e o r more Sunday s a month, an d occasionall y t o bring cooked foo d fro m stall s to eat at home. Mae an d Hu a visite d privat e physician s fo r mino r ailment s an d the y purchase d Chinese herbal medicines when ill. The tw o sisters' income also enabled the Gohs t o pay fo r Secon d Brother' s educatio n whe n h e faile d t o qualif y fo r a governmen t scholarship. As the family income rose with several members working, more consumer

46 Crisis and Consolidation, goods wer e purchased. Th e televisio n set, electri c ric e cooker, electri c fan, smal l refrigerator, an d sewin g machin e wer e al l considere d necessitie s i n Hong Kon g an d could normally onl y be purchased b y means o f the children' s addition s t o the famil y wage. Thus, accordin g t o Mae, he r famil y cam e t o enjo y a relativel y comfortabl e existence only when there were more workers than dependents. 'Then,' Mae said with obvious satisfaction, 'ou r family wa s finally on it s feet! ' For a family o f daughters, this relatively comfortable lif e was necessarily of limited duration. Several years before Hua became engaged t o Lan Bing in 1973, some o f her income had been put asid e for her dowry, and when Hua married a t age 25, she coul d no longer contribute to the family budget. Mae's earnings became even more importan t than before. Mother an d Fathe r too k th e daughters ' incom e fo r granted, an d th e tw o sister s had little say about how their earnings were spent. Mae recommended that her younger brother attend her old primary school, and since her parents had little experience with educational institutions, they followed her advice. This did not signify their acceptanc e of a decision-making role for Mae. Nevertheless, Mae felt that her income contributio n to the family did not go totally unrecognized, because she gained more freedom i n her personal life. As long as she made the expected contribution to the family budget, Mae was freed for peer relationships of her own choosing, and thus she attained her goals in work: time to spend in activities with her friends. Mae legitimately withheld a part o f her earnings for her own clothes and fo r outings with friends, suc h a s Sunday tea an d movies, which she could affor d onl y when she was employed full-time. Mae share d her mother' s opinion s abou t the importanc e o f enlarging the famil y wage, and hence ther e were fe w conflict s ove r the mone y Ma e spent on herself. Sh e gave an example: 'I had to go to a wedding banquet and had to pay night school fees at the same time. So I talked it over with my mother. I said, To b e a person, which, afte r all, reflect s upo n th e family, I mus t giv e mone y a t th e banquet. Furthermore, m y schooling might be beneficial to me in getting jobs in the future.' Mothe r agreed tha t both expense s were reasonable, and s o we agreed that I would give les s money to th e family for several weeks.' Indeed, Mae could recall only one recent conflict with Mother over expenses. She wished to consult a Chinese herbal doctor about her cold, and her mother protested at the extra cost. But because Mae herself considered i t a reasonable use of her earnings, she saw the herbalist anywa y and paid for i t herself. Although Ma e remitte d mos t o f her mone y t o her family, sh e spen t he r leisur e time as she wished. After sh e entered the labour force she performed littl e housework. Her mothe r di d mos t o f it, an d eve n he r younge r brother s helpe d out. Ma e wa s a t liberty to spend her spare time visiting friends, attending courses, and going on outings. But Mother found i t unthinkable that Mae might ever move away from home and rent a room b y herself, i f only because o f the dro p i n famil y incom e thi s would entail. I n agreement with her mother's viewpoint, Mae never seriously entertained such an option. Although th e sister s gaine d littl e authorit y i n th e famil y throug h thei r wag e contribution, they gained considerable status as 'good daughters' from that contribution and increased their sphere of freedom. Mae valued that enlarged personal sphere highly,

47 330 Society especially when sh e contrasted he r positio n t o that o f women o f earlier generations, who had lowe r status and considerably fewe r personal options. Peers Young peopl e for m a substantia l an d visibl e par t o f Hon g Kon g life. Adolescent s comprise a large sector of the population, and organizations like schools, factories, an d clubs that draw members from teenagers and young adults thereby promote interactio n among youths. Consequently, Hong Kong youths have many experiences in commo n and ar e aware o f their status in society. After leavin g primary school, where Mae an d Hua first participated i n meaningful activitie s with others their age, the sisters entered large factorie s wit h othe r girl s als o recruited fro m school. Eve r since, the tw o sister s have worke d sid e b y sid e wit h othe r wome n o f thei r age, and the y freel y turne d t o peers for assistance with job-related problems. Friends helped the sister s locate work; Mae herself was an importan t lin k i n th e job information network. One evenin g durin g the wag e dispute with the manage r o f the plastics workshop, I arrived at Mae's home to find her on the phone. A friend an d former coworke r ha d jus t phone d th e nam e o f a newl y opene d worksho p tha t wa s hiring women to seam plastic bags. Next, several of her current coworkers telephone d to receive that information. This situation was not unique to Mae, and her friends als o kept i n touc h wit h thei r forme r workmate s a t picni c reunion s o r o n th e phon e t o exchange jo b intelligence. Th e expres s purpos e o f suc h reunion s wa s socia l bu t expanding channels o f information wa s also important. When I spent a day i n Mae's workshop, the informa l assistanc e she afforde d he r workmates was obvious. Mae twice stopped her plastic bag seaming to help two women next to her push and lift the 50-pound roll of plastic to their benches. The cooperatio n of two or three workers was not only necessary to perform mechanical tasks but i t was also the means o f learning the job, and i n fact Hua had taught Mae to seam the bags. 'Otherwise I' d g o to o slowl y whil e I wa s learnin g an d wouldn' t ear n much, ' Ma e explained. She did not appea r to begrudge the time such cooperation cos t her, all the more striking given the rapid pace at which she resumed her piecework seaming, perhaps because she anticipated a future need fo r the assistance o f workmates herself. Work i s just one identity-forming activity, and becoming an adult in Hong Kon g involves learning many more social roles. Mae and her sister, having taken on heav y obligations at an early age, lacked an opportunity to enjoy an 'irresponsible adolescence' during which the y could tes t out adult roles. This testin g i s especially important i n a society like Hong Kong that i s undergoing rapid social change, because youths canno t learn all their expected behaviour from adults. Friends teach each other about clothes, dating, Western films, picnics, and work opportunities. And youth s look to the wor k setting for friends. Mae's oldes t friend s wer e forme r workmates. He r phot o albu m containe d thre e major sets of picture, of which friends from work were an important part. One group of pictures showed three girls posing in different settings. The more recent of these wer e wedding photos. Mae explaine d tha t th e thre e girl s had bee n employe d i n the larg e

48 Crisis and Consolidation, plastic factory where Hua and Mae worked, and all five became fast friends. She aske d me excitedly, 'Do you recognize me? This i s my sister, and that i s a friend wh o marrie d two years ago. She has a baby now. That othe r woman married just last year. Now w e hardly meet. Actually, our 'group' has only three who are unmarried, and pretty soo n my sister will marry, too. Then th e onl y other maiden s lef t wil l be m e an d the othe r girl i n th e picture. ' Ma e pointed t o a young woman i n th e snapsho t wh o sh e calle d Kitty. Mae and Kitty went out together to film shows and teahouses and visited me a t my apartment fo r lunch. When th e other women married, Mae rarely saw them, an d she and Kitty became inseparable. Mae relie d upo n forma l recreationa l group s fo r ne w experiences. Th e yout h activities sponsored by missionary and other welfare associations enabled young workers like Ma e t o mak e th e transitio n t o a youth-oriented cultur e wit h man y link s to th e West. The missionar y societie s set out to provide 'somethin g constructive ' fo r youn g Hong Kon g workin g peopl e wit h spar e tim e an d money. Thei r Western-originate d peer activities filled th e cultural vacuum. Mae joined thos e activitie s with enthusias m an d wa s a responsible leade r o f he r peer group just a s she was a leader at home o r i n the workshop. Whenever a n outin g was planned, invariably it was Mae who compiled the list of participants and collecte d money fro m them. Sh e arrange d fo r eac h perso n t o mak e o r purchas e foo d fo r th e parties of my English class. When I return to Hong Kong for brief visits, it is Mae who I phone i n order to contact the other former language class members, their sisters, and friends. The Hong Kong way of life is also influenced b y the mass media. A decade ago the media barely reached the working girls, but their presence has since become pervasive. Like other Hong Kong youths, Mae saw films almost once a week, watched televisio n several hour s a day, an d rea d fashio n an d movi e magazine s frequently. Wha t i s th e message of the media for Mae and her friends? When flown across the ocean do products and behaviour that portray Western centrifugal society directly influence the centripetal Hong Kong way of life? Studies of the media's impact upon North American viewers' behaviour find, firs t of all, that people are likely to be influenced personally by ads if the product or advertised behaviour counter s no importan t socia l norm. A relate d consideratio n i s that whe n persons who are important in the viewer's milieu (what sociologists call reference groups) use o r advertis e th e product, th e viewe r wil l be more likel y to adop t it. Advertisers, well awar e o f thi s phenomenon, deliberatel y associat e consume r product s i n thei r commercials with images of powerful people and opinion leaders to suggest that viewers can become just a s powerful i f they simply buy the goods. Accordingly, Ma e an d he r famil y ar e likel y eventuall y t o adop t th e consume r goods the y vie w o n televisio n bu t ar e not likel y t o accep t th e human relationship s portrayed i n the media, because only the forme r accor d with the fundamental norm s of Hong Kong society. For most of the women in Mae's milieu, the purchase of goods is limited chiefly by the amount o f money available. Thus the most visible impact o f the media was in the areas of fashion and entertainment, to which there was little parental

49 332 Society opposition. As long as they had some money, Mae and her friends purchased clothes or records that were advertised. The marriag e an d famil y relationship s viewe d i n film s mad e an d influence d b y Hollywood containe d element s o f behaviou r congruen t wit h famil y norms, suc h a s dating patterns, th e weddin g dress, an d honeymoons. Hon g Kon g youth s wer e encouraged b y the medi a t o date, and thos e who di d not kno w th e moder n custom s and code s o f dating could lear n fro m th e movie s or press. For several year s one loca l magazine, Lover (Ai-lu), gained popularity by capitalizing on this phenomenon. Man y of th e article s an d letter s t o th e edito r concerne d th e meanin g an d cultivatio n o f 'love', and local starlets depicted the new marriage style in the magazine's pages. Lover thus profitabl y assume d th e rol e o f soundin g boar d an d contemporar y authorit y o n dating and boy-girl dilemmas faced b y young working women. The cinem a presente d variou s comple x datin g situation s an d solve d the m i n Western fashion. The dilemmas presented in such films surrounding the institution of romantic love captivated Mae and her friends. The favorite film s were Love Story, The Graduate, The Young Ones ( a Taiwan film), and a Hong Kong film from the 1960s, The Prince and the Maid. The plots of these films featured a couple in love whose marriag e was oppose d b y their parents. The film s showe d tha t lov e triumphe d ove r parenta l objections based on status, but the successful romance ended in the death of the brid e (except in The Graduate.) Ma e and her friends identified emotionally with the celluloid couples' love affair s an d thought i t tragic when the brides died. However, th e impac t o f th e cinem a upo n Mae' s behaviou r wa s limite d b y th e fundamental difference s between the styles of courtship and marriage portrayed on the screen and Hong Kong family norms. Hua wa s introduced b y friends t o a young ma n she liked well enough to marry, but their relationship wa s successfully oppose d by her ^ parents. I n thi s situatio n Ma e side d wit h th e parent s an d no t wit h 'romanti c love'. Thus there wa s no opposition to these young women's adoption o f clothes, groomin g styles, and consumer goods that they saw on the screen. Such consumer goods countered few fundamenta l famil y norms. However, whe n i t cam e t o matrimony, th e media - portrayed famil y drama s tha t advance d th e children' s righ t t o ac t a s independen t individuals when choosing a mate fell on hostile ground. The mass media are also especially effective when there are conflicting expectation s among th e group s tha t compris e th e viewers ' socia l environment. I f peopl e wit h contradictory socia l role s wis h t o reduc e th e discomfor t o r eve n pai n cause d b y competing demand s upo n them, an d i f a produc t o r behaviou r i s presented b y th e media a s the means to resolve such role dilemmas, then such media can become ver y persuasive. Superficial medi a portrayals o f family lif e and Western marriag e that omi t muc h of th e realit y an d portra y onl y th e glos s ma y possibl y encourag e youn g Hon g Kon g women in their conflicts with the older generation. Asked about the discrepancy tha t remains, however, between their vicarious enjoyment o f love matches in Western film s and their reluctance to counter their parents' opinions, A-li, a friend o f Me, explained, 'Oh, w e think tha t th e Western wa y i s really the best! We reall y want t o lear n ho w

50 Crisis and Consolidation, they d o it, eve n i f we ourselve s can' t alway s follo w tha t wa y jus t yet. ' The wome n adopt Western marriage values as portrayed by the media only i f their families suppor t them. Perhaps when the conflict o f social opinion regarding their expected behaviou r intensifies even further, Mae, A-li, and other friends will adopt the centrifugal marriag e pattern o f the media programs. Dating an d marriag e Mae did not have a boyfriend an d rarel y met eligibl e bachelors a t work. This did no t distress her, however. Sh e onc e date d a man sh e met throug h friend s i n the factory. She recalled, 'Th e fello w di d not phone m e afte r tha t on e time, s o I guess he didn' t want to keep up the relationship. Anyway, I' m too young to marry! ' When the time did come to marry Mae did not want Mother to arrange the match. Mae tol d o f the wa y Mother intercede d i n Elder Sister' s marriage plans : 'The perso n Hua i s marrying i s her second boyfriend. Sh e met the firs t one on her own through a factory friend. Mother didn't lik e him and called him a 'teddy boy'. ' 'Was he really a 'teddy boy' in your opinion?' I asked Mae. 'Well, he looked a bit like one, but the main problem was that he was not Ch'iu - chao. And so Mother arranged a marriage with Lam Bing, a Ch'iu-chao like us. Mother and Hua visited someone's home to meet Lam Bing. He answered a few questions, but both he and my sister were too shy to say much.' Lam Bing turned out to be a low income earner. 'With the baby coming they have lots o f money troubles. As fo r me, I prefer t o accep t complet e responsibilit y fo r m y choice, otherwise late r I might blame mother! ' Mae intende d t o marr y a perso n wit h who m sh e wa s 'compatible'. Havin g participated i n pee r activitie s fo r severa l years, sh e value d th e kin d o f marriag e i n which her husband would hold similar ideas and would be as much a companion to her as her friends had been. Since Mae and her parents sa w things in much the same way, however, she did not exclude the possibility that a man introduced to her would become compatible. Compatibility coul d develop given enough time. Mae's accommodation to members of the older generation did not extend to living with the m afte r marriage. Ma e an d Hu a bot h recalle d Mother' s lon g disput e wit h Paternal Grandmother, which was only resolved when the old lady was provided wit h her ow n quarters. Ma e explaine d i t thi s way, 'Despit e th e fac t tha t Mothe r i s ver y easygoing i n nature, Grandmothe r wa s to o conservative. Ther e wa s no rea l il l wil l between them, bu t the y alway s argue d ove r thei r differen t ideas. ' That instanc e o f generational conflict wa s impressed deeply upon the two sisters and they swore not t o live with their own future mothers-in-law. When Hua married in late 1973, she and Lam Bing first rented a small room near her mother-in-law' s residence. La m Bin g stresse d th e limit s o f hi s obligatio n t o hi s mother: 'We need not liv e together. So long a s we give my mother the firs t choice o f living near her, as opposed to living near my wife's mother, that's enough. Neither sid e wishes to do more than that. We don't reall y get along, and Mother herself wishes t o preserve her independence. '

51 334 Society When th e Lam' s first chil d wa s born, Bing' s face-saving attitud e coul d no longe r be maintained. A relative was sorely needed to care for their baby so that both parent s could work. Mrs. Goh wa s willin g t o tak e ove r car e o f the chil d an d s o the coupl e moved int o th e Goh' s Lo k F u resettlemen t estat e apartmen t wit h Mother. A t tha t point there were too many people in the Lok Fu flat, an d Mae obligingly went to liv e with he r aun t an d uncl e i n thei r resettlemen t estat e apartment. Findin g tha t thei r small flat was still overcrowded, Mae's parents rented a two-room apartment in a nearby tenement i n a district known a s Kowloon Walled City, where rents were cheap. Domestic arrangement s fo r the Goh famil y March, A. Mother, Father, and si x children liv e in two rooms in Lok Fu resettlement estate, Kowloon. Hua, the eldest daughter (ag e 25), i s engaged to Lam Bing. B. Father' s brothe r an d hi s wif e an d childre n liv e i n anothe r resettlemen t estate. Their chil d occasionall y come s to spend the night with the Goh family, an d th e Goh childre n often sta y with them. September, A. Mother, Father, and fiv e children liv e in the same resettlement estate. B. N o change. C. Hu a ha s married, an d sh e and La m Bin g rent a room i n an apartmen t o n Hon g Kong Island. Hua i s pregnant. D. La m Bing's mother lives near the Lams with her brother's family. Mother Lam eats with her brother's family an d assist s them with child care. September, A. Residenc e unchanged, but now Hua's baby stays with Mother Goh. Mae has moved out. B. Ma e moves to the resettlement estat e room of her aunt and uncle. C. Hu a an d Lam Bin g live during the week in their rented room. On weekend s th e couple returns t o the Gohs' Kowloon resettlement estat e rooms to be with thei r child. D. N o change. September, A. Th e Go h famil y (Father, Mother, Mae, and fou r brothers ) move s int o a privat e two-room tenemen t fla t i n Kowloon Walle d City. Mother continue s t o care fo r Hua's child. B. Ma e moves out o f her uncle's place, back to her family. C. Hua, La m Bing, and paternal grandmother Goh liv e i n the Lo k F u resettlemen t estate rooms vacated b y the Goh family. D. N o change. After Hu a marrie d an d ha d a child, Mae' s earning s wer e mor e importan t tha n

52 Crisis and Consolidation, ever, and Mother was apprehensive about her possible marriage. Mae had anticipated gaining suc h centralit y i n th e famil y wage-earnin g unit, an d s o a t th e tim e o f her sister's engagemen t sh e emphasize d t o m e her plan s t o remai n singl e unti l Secon d Brother completed his schooling and went to work: 'Mother said I can marry whomever I wish, but even afte r I find someone I must postpone the marriage for several years. With Elder Sister married, we can't afford t o lose another income just now!' Realizing that her marriage was an event that concerned the family a s a whole, Mae did not worry about being without a boyfriend. At the age of 22, she was not yet considered a n 'ol d maid. ' Becaus e he r parent s an d peer s understoo d tha t Ma e wa s meeting famil y obligations, an d becaus e thos e obligation s wer e equall y incumben t upon Mae's friends, little pressure was exerted to find a spouse. Mae's relative unconcern over being single was also related to the eventual possibility o f arranging a marriage should she approach age 30 with no prospect in sight. At ou r last meeting, however, she was not yet considering this eventuality. She gained status from meeting her family obligations and she enjoyed opportunitie s to interact with friends. Neither would be possible if she were to marry. Summary As second daughter in a family of six children who were growing up while the famil y was in straitened circumstances, Mae was trained to put her family's definition o f its economic needs before her own desires. The theme of Mae's life was that she not only accommodated the needs of her family but realized her own desire to enjoy peer-group experiences. Both were possible through Mae's factory employment. Her duties to her family did not prevent Mae from enjoying peer activities, and her loyal fulfillment o f her family's expectations gave her more independence to pursue friendships. f. Transformin g th e Rural Famil y As always in Hong Kong's history, for a substantial number of people, settling into urba n lif e i n Hon g Kon g implie d a brea k wit h th e rura l past. I n th e 1970s, the trend o f urbanization was rapidly reaching many New Territories villages. Some came under it s impact earlier than others, some villages had to move to make way for urban development while others remained i n situ, as it were, as three-storey houses built in the style of the 'Spanish villa' took over th e villag e landscape, bu t non e wa s spare d fro m th e boomin g city. One should no t jump to the conclusion that urbanization necessaril y resulted in the nuclea r family. The villagers o f Kwa n Mu n Hau, notin g the change s to their lifestyle, clung on to the values o f the joint family. Kwan Mu n Ha u Villag e was originally locate d o n the shore near what is no w th e tow n centr e o f Tsue n Wan. Th e populatio n accepte d

53 336 Society compensation fro m th e Hon g Kon g governmen t an d move d t o th e ne w Kwan Mun Ha u Village on the hillside i n The author of the following entry live d i n the new village for eighteen month s from Novembe r DOCUMENT VII.fl : Som e explanation s o f change s i n household size, structure, and process (source : Elisabeth L. Johnson, Households and Lineages in a Chinese Urban Village, Ph.D. thesis, Cornell University, 1976, pp ) Kwan Mu n Ha u household s ar e now larger, o n th e average, than the y wer e 3 0 years ago. The larg e joint househol d i s almost a phenomenon o f the past, however, with only one such household presently existing in the village, although a number o f joint property-household s exist. Ther e ar e no w mor e ste m famil y household s tha n there wer e a generation ago, an d fewe r nuclea r famil y households. There ha s s o fa r been little tendency to divide stem households into nuclear ones, but potentially joint households have, with one exception, divided. Households continue t o be organize d patrilineally fo r the most part, although there are a few exceptions. The explanatory variables discussed below are those first set out in the Introductio n to this thesis, which presents thos e hypotheses relatin g famil y change and economi c development which have been proposed b y other authors. (1) Demographi c changes. Th e large r siz e o f contemporar y Kwa n Mu n Ha u households must be explained by the demographic changes resulting from the village's involvement i n the urbanization and modernization process. Particularly important i s the fact that Kwan Mun Hau has become part of the urban milieu without the migration of individual s o r familie s fro m th e village. Ther e i s now virtuall y n o migratio n o f individuals out o f the village, one couple from househol d 6 and three brothers o f ego in household 1 8 being the only exceptions. A few households from each of the lineages have move d elsewher e i n Hong Kong, to China, o r abroad. Bot h lineage s als o hav e households livin g i n Hoi P a Village, which wa s adjacent t o old Kwan Mun Hau, bu t this is nearby, within the city. In contrast, it was a common pattern during and especially prior t o the 1930 s fo r individua l me n fro m villag e household s t o work either i n th e urban area s o f Hong Kon g o r abroad. I n mos t case s the y stil l retained propert y an d economic tie s wit h thei r households, an d thos e wh o worke d i n urba n Hon g Kon g could return at intervals, but those who went abroad could return only rarely, i f at all The dangerou s nature o f the wor k the y engage d i n (mining, railroa d building ) mus t have mean t tha t the y ofte n di d no t surviv e t o return. Bot h short - an d long-ter m migration must have resulted in decreased fertility becaus e they meant the separatio n of marrie d couples. Wit h th e earl y developmen t o f Tsue n Wa n i n th e 1930s, suc h migration becam e unnecessar y becaus e loca l employmen t opportunitie s developed. The separatio n o f marrie d couple s becaus e o f th e demand s o f employmen t i s no w unknown. In contrast, the large number o f single-person households among outsider s in Kwan Mun Hau suggests that migration has either disrupted marriages or prevented them fro m bein g made. Likewise, the relatively smal l siz e of outsider households an d their simpler structure points to the disruptive effect s o f migration, fo r i n many case s relatives were either lef t behind i n China o r scattered b y separate migration and th e

54 Crisis and Consolidation, search of employment and housing in Hong Kong. The property base of such households would also have been lost through land reform and the nationalization o f businesses in China. There i s little evidence fo r changes i n marriage patterns i n Kwan Mun Hau tha t would result in changes in household size, structure, or process. Marriage remains nearly universal and the averag e ag e at marriage appears not t o have changed i n the las t 30 years, althoug h wome n marryin g durin g th e 1920 s an d befor e wer e probabl y mor e likely to marry in their late teens, especially those who were married as small daughtersin-law*. The fac t tha t th e husband-wif e bon d i s now mor e solidar y becaus e o f th e prevalence o f introduced an d self-arranged marriage s among younger people, suggest s that wive s hav e mor e influenc e o n th e timin g o f household division, an d tha t th e nuclear famil y ma y ten d t o b e mor e o f a separate uni t i n relation t o th e res t o f th e household. Some property-households ar e unusually large at the present time becaus e the me n hav e mad e polygynou s marriages, bu t suc h household s ar e no t alway s coresidential Polygynou s marriages have often served to increase the number of children born t o a man an d thu s th e siz e o f the property-household. A s the y ar e apparentl y declining in popularity, this change should have a negative effect on household siz e in the future. The mos t strikin g demographi c chang e i n Kwa n Mu n Ha u durin g th e pas t 3 0 years ha s bee n th e declin e i n mortality, du e primaril y t o th e availabilit y o f moder n preventive an d curativ e medicine. Wherea s befor e abou t 1945, approximately hal f the childre n bor n di d no t survive, th e deat h o f a child i s now extremel y rare. Th e decline i n the occurrenc e o f adult death s als o means a decline i n earl y widowhood, which ha s a positive effec t o n fertility. Th e numbe r o f childre n bor n ha s probabl y increased slightly due to improved fecundity (relate d to diet and medical care) and the decrease i n widowhood. This i s difficult t o discern, however, because o f the fac t tha t children born since the Occupation have virtually all survived, resulting in very large families fo r women who bore children between and The pattern has no w been altered b y the fac t that modern means o f birth control became readily availabl e in about Before that time, one or two village women were sterilized and one used a diaphragm, but most used abortion or nothing. Since about 1965, contraception ha s become not only available, but also known and accepted, so that many (although no t all) younger women are choosing to bear no more than about four children. This means that man y household s wil l not hav e th e larg e numbers o f children characteristi c o f those in which the children are presently reaching adulthood; but low mortality means that virtually all will be assured o f having the number o f children they wish. There i s therefore les s need to adopt children into the household than there was in the past, as the need to adopt would result only from sterility (or possibly from failure to bear sons) rather than fro m chil d mortality. A 'small daughter-in-law ' wa s a young gir l growin g u p i n he r husband-to-be' s family, having bee n give n awa y i n marriage b y her own parent s at an early age.

55 338 Society Demographic changes have meant that the general pattern o f household chang e has been: (a) Befor e 1940, most larg e households wer e joint, forme d b y the postponemen t of division. There were many small households, nuclear in structure, consisting only of a coupl e (o r widow ) an d a small number o f children. Seve n o f eighteen household s had mor e adult s tha n children, whe n 'children ' i s define d a s unmarried peopl e les s than 30 years of age. (b) B y about , there wer e many households which wer e larg e becaus e large numbers o f children ha d bee n bor n an d wer e surviving, an d the proportio n o f adults was relatively low. (c) Many families are now limiting the number of children born, so that althoug h there wil l b e mor e childre n tha n i n th e pre familie s (onl y tw o household s o f nineteen have more adults than children) ther e will be fewer i n the stage (b) familie s and the proportion o f adults will gradually increase. There i s now emerging the potential fo r the formation o f many joint household s in the village, as most households have more than one male in the younger generatio n (see Table 7.2). Whether an d i n which households this occurs depends on a complex of other factors. Table 7. 2 Survival of More Than One Brothe r to Adulthood, by Househol d Household Ag e les s than 30* Ag e Ag e yes - yes - yes yes no yes yes yes yes no no yes yes yes yes no - no no yes yes no yes yes - no no no no no - yes yes no yes yes no no yes yes yes no no yes no? no yes no yes yes - yes yes no

56 Crisis and Consolidation, (2) Change s i n Propert y an d Economy. With th e urba n developmen t o f Tsue n Wan, th e econom y o f Kwan Mu n Ha u ha s change d profoundly. Befor e abou t 1960, household subsistenc e derive d a t leas t i n part fro m agriculture. Befor e rice an d vegetables wer e grown an d pig s raised; the surplu s o f these products, and pineapple s and pine trees, provided a source o f cash income. Later, ric e ceased to be grown an d households either switched to growing vegetables or abandoned agriculture altogether, except fo r the raisin g o f pigs and chicken s fo r subsistenc e an d cash. The bul k o f th e agricultural work was done by women, who also earned cash income a s labourers (eg o in household 19, who als o ran small businesses), employees i n shops, government, o r business; or worked a s managers o f small businesses, or large ones. By the 1930s, men no longer went abroad to work. Most households therefore drew part of their subsistence from their commonly-held agricultural property, but also depended on cash, earned by men an d wome n i n outsid e employment. Thi s i s probably typica l o f th e Hakk a i n South China. I do not know enough about Kwan Mun Hau agricultur e to be sure what kind o f household structur e migh t b e mos t functiona l i n thi s situation.... I t ma y b e tha t agricultural activitie s wer e mor e easil y carrie d ou t b y a grou p o f women tha n b y a woman working alone. According to one woman (ag e 60, household 4): Although we were three daughters-in-law in my family, it was still not enough to do all the farm work. The older one did agricultural work, one looked afte r the cows, and I carried pig food. She wen t o n t o sa y that th e olde r wome n i n th e househol d di d th e housework. I t would have been virtually impossible for a woman at that time to manage the agricultural work without a woman in the senior generation to look after the household and children. I heard o f one case in which a woman had no mother-in-law and had to lock her small son i n th e hous e al l da y whil e sh e farmed. Hi s devian t personalit y (h e i s the wife - beater described in Chapter 4* ) may in part result from thi s treatment. Thus, from th e women's point o f view, the stem family household, a t a minimum, wa s essential. From th e poin t o f vie w o f men, mos t wer e s o dependent o n cas h incom e fro m outside employment that I see no functional advantag e in joint household organizatio n except i n thos e case s i n whic h famil y propert y an d th e earning s o f member s wer e sufficient t o form and develop large family businesses. The only example of this in the sample and, t o m y knowledge, i n the villag e i s household 3 (an d possibl y househol d 14). To keep such businesses undivided has a clear functional advantage ; but in term s of household structure, there i s no reaso n why the joint owner s should not divid e t o live, as they have i n fact done. Likewise, in the present Kwa n Mun Ha u economy, I see no apparen t functiona l value t o th e join t household. Man y household s deriv e thei r principa l suppor t fro m * No t include d her e - Ed.

57 340 Societ y rents, whil e i n som e o f thes e an d al l other s me n wor k a s employees, labourers, o r managers o f smal l o r larg e businesses. Th e time-schedul e demand s o f outsid e employment (job s hel d mainl y b y poore r me n an d highly-motivate d wealth y ones ) may mea n tha t me n ar e not availabl e i n the househol d t o handl e crise s o r manag e affairs, (on e man, household 11, mentioned this as a problem) but as they work nearby this doe s no t see m t o b e a proble m seriousl y affectin g famil y unity. Wome n ar e accustomed t o takin g charge. Som e youn g an d middl e age d wome n no w wor k i n factories; others, and older women, sta y at home to manage the household. The ste m family househol d ha s functiona l valu e i n thi s situation. Residen t grandmother s ca n readily care for the children o f working mothers. It ha s been argue d tha t durin g th e urbanizatio n process, a s households becom e dependent o n outsid e earning s rathe r tha n o n th e exploitatio n o f thei r commo n property, conflicts may develop between brothers in a joint household because of their differential earnin g powe r an d contributio n t o th e household. Tw o informant s mentioned thi s a s a problem. In the past, we maintained joint households because we respected the senio r members o f the famil y wh o wante d everyon e together, an d th e incom e o f labourers was similar to that of others so there were no disputes over finances. Now incomes vary a lot, so those who earn more are not willing to benefit th e others. So for selfish reason s brothers prefer t o separate. So, now i t means t o earn a living separately but to keep the property intact. In the past, the fathe r usually collected al l the income s and managed the finances. (man, ag e 56, household 8 ) In th e pas t everyon e di d far m work. They di d th e sam e wor k fo r th e sam e income. But now they do different work. The younger generation have better education so they have many different profession s and different income s which lead to different idea s within the same generation, so sons must live separately. (man, ag e 34, household 12 ) I know of no households in which this is presently a problem, but there i s only one joint household. It may have been the cause of disputes which led to divisions in other households. Kwan Mun Hau households have for years been dependent on cash earned elsewhere, but there probably was less possibility in the past for large differentials amon g brothers' earnings. From my observations, I would say that differential earnin g capacity at present result s primarily fro m abilit y and/o r persona l choice, rather than a choic e on th e par t o f th e famil y t o educat e on e so n bette r tha n another. Girl s ar e ofte n supported les s than boy s i n thei r education, but a s far a s I could se e boys ar e offere d fairly equa l opportunities, unles s the y ar e unable o r choose not t o stud y longer. Th e norm i s strong for older siblings to contribute their earnings to the household and help support the education o f younger siblings. The nature o f property owned by Kwan Mun Hau households has changed, wit h the developmen t o f Tsue n Wan, fro m agricultura l land, hous e land, houses, an d

58 Crisis and Consolidation, businesses t o house s i n th e village, building s i n th e city, urba n buildin g land, an d businesses. Some families still have farm land, but it is generally unused or occupied by squatters and will yield no income until it is sold. When the village moved, agricultura l and house land were exchanged fo r houses in the new village and, for those who had a surplus, fo r buildin g lan d i n th e city. Almost hal f th e villag e familie s di d not hav e enough land to cover the full cost of their new houses, and had to take ten-year interest - free loan s fro m th e government. I n som e cases, the house s obtained ma y have bee n sufficient fo r their needs and the loans taken to meet the cost of additional houses, but in most such cases the families would not only have to pay off the loans but also would have no extr a houses to rent out. Those who did not tak e loans are at an advantage, not onl y because they have had no loan s to pay of f but als o because most have extr a houses t o rent ou t o r lan d o n which t o buil d rent-producin g buildings. This proces s must have increase d economic differentiation i n the village. Families with more tha n one so n an d onl y th e hous e i n whic h the y liv e a s property, havin g give n u p thei r agricultural land, will have nothing to divide among their sons but that house. Thus, certain o f the wealthiest households now have a large property base which produces income for members and can be divided among the family sons. The poores t families have only their own houses, but no income-producing property, and nothin g to divide. I would expec t th e propert y t o b e a unifying forc e i n wealthy households, although this would not prevent the brothers from dividing to live unless used by their father a s a threat o r inducement t o stay together, his economic power reinforcing hi s authority. I f a divisio n o f propert y wer e desired, urba n lan d an d building s (bu t no t businesses) coul d probabl y b e mor e easil y divide d amon g brothers, wit h les s los s o f efficiency, tha n could agricultural lan d in the past. (3) Housin g Space. A variabl e directl y relate d t o propert y ownershi p i s th e availability of housing space. Shortage of housing space can either force or prevent th e development o f joint households. One informan t (man, ag e 32, household 19 ) sai d the latter was a problem i n the old village, while another cited the former problem : In the old village we wanted to divide to live but had no more space. We were not allowed to build more houses or add a floor a s the government planned t o move the village... We divided to live when the village moved. Many divided then becaus e ther e i s a lot o f room here. For example, one brother ca n liv e upstairs and on e downstairs. Brothers liv e close together. I n the ol d village, all the family member s crowded int o one house. (man, ag e 56, household 8 ) Now housing space i s presently a problem for some families and potentially a problem for most. It is not possible either to add on to present houses (which are built accordin g to a common plan) or to build new houses in the village, because the village owns only the land occupied by the houses and that immediately surrounding it, i.e., the terrace s and sidewalks. Those poorer families who own only one floor or one house now generally have enoug h spac e t o live, althoug h som e d o not. Househol d 1 6 di d no t afte r th e

59 342 Society second brother married. Some ar e very crowded, with ten o r twelve people livin g o n one floor. I f a household own s only one floor, i t cannot be partitioned into more tha n three rooms, or four at the very most, and each nuclear family must have its own room, at a minimum, a s well as allowing a common room for eating. As sons from th e ofte n numerous familie s i n thes e household s marry, the y mus t eithe r sta y togethe r unde r extremely crowded conditions, rent adjacent housin g (i f they are fortunate enoug h t o find som e available) an d continue to eat together, o r divide to live, with one or more nuclear families renting or buying housing either in the village or in the city. I saw one family fac e thi s crisi s a s the oldes t so n married. The famil y own s on e floo r an d ha s three son s and tw o daughters. The mothe r looke d desperatel y fo r nearby housin g t o rent an d wa s finally abl e to rent a floor i n a house tw o doors away, so the famil y wa s able to continue t o eat together. The so n moved int o the famil y home with hi s wif e and some o f his siblings moved t o the rented quarters. Wealthier families (or at least those with more property, although their cash income might be low), may have enough space to form joint households, i f the houses owne d are adjacent. This would mean that they have to stop renting these houses to tenants, and thu s los e a sourc e o f income. Househol d 6, whic h i s not wealth y bu t ha s tw o houses, lives on three floor s o f two adjacent house s and thus has an adequate numbe r of bedrooms a s well as a large living room. I f the houses owned ar e not adjacent, thi s may prevent the development o f a joint household, althoug h there i s sufficient spac e for all brothers. The marrie d son s of ego in household 3 live elsewhere in the village, although th e childre n o f one liv e with ego. His second hous e i s not adjacen t t o th e first. He said : In the past the Hung lived in joint households because the houses were large. My old house had te n rooms, with the three brothers together, but now th e houses are small so we must separate. If so many people were together it would be like a chicken coo p or a pigeon cage. (man, ag e 55, household 3 ) The process of dividing to live is made relatively simple by the fact that each floo r of the new houses was built with it s own kitchen and bathroom. No new kitchen ha s to be built, as it would have been in traditional houses, although the family may decide to build a stove in the new kitchen. Thus ego in household 7 and his brother divide d easily because each floor o f their house was already a complete livin g unit. In summary, restrictions on building new housing and shortages of housing spac e will make i t imperativ e fo r mos t poore r familie s t o divid e t o liv e a s sons marry. Al l except perhaps one son will have to leave the parental home and possibl y the villag e to fin d housing. Wealth y familie s ma y no t b e shor t o f space, bu t th e fac t tha t th e houses the y ow n ma y not b e adjacen t ma y necessitate dividin g t o live. Becaus e th e houses readily divide into separate livin g units the process i s facilitated. (4) Lega l change s an d governmen t intervention. Withou t governmen t intervention, an d th e villag e leadership' s respons e t o the governmen t offe r t o mov e

60 Crisis and Consolidation, the village, Kwan Mun Hau would almost certainly be dispersed by now. Its location i n a rapidly-growin g cit y mean s tha t ther e hav e bee n restriction s o n lan d us e an d o n building since the development plan was first made, however. Inability to expand village housing may in the not too distant future result in the dispersal of many village families, as they find housing elsewhere in the city. The villagers are unable to use their increasin g wealth to build new or bigger village houses to accommodate joint families, a s did ego in household 3 while i n the old village. Informants mentioned that many families divided to live at the time of the move, although I knew o f only one such case. A number o f divisions o f property-household s took place at that time, however, at the urging of the District Office, in order to simplif y the problems o f compensation fo r house and agricultural land. Some informants asserted that Hong Kong law is at variance with village customary law, whic h complicate s propert y division. Ther e i s no wa y tha t peopl e ca n avoi d involvement o f the government i n property division, a s all land transactions mus t b e registered with the Distric t Office. Accordin g to one man : If brothers get along well, they can negotiate a settlement themselves, asking for help from elders or the village head. Now even if it is settled that way they must g o to the Distric t Offic e t o register it. But Britis h la w states that eac h brother shoul d hav e a n equa l share, s o thi s ma y lea d t o conflic t betwee n brothers, o r between brother s and th e law. Therefore ther e ma y be dispute s either becaus e th e brother s ar e not friendl y o r because the y want t o follo w law rather than custom. This can become very complicated, an d can lead t o a loss of friendship betwee n brothers. (man, ag e 32, household 1 ) If such problems are common, they may delay the division of property-households, but would not prevent brothers from dividing to live. Present Hong Kong law makes it possible to go against customary law in the inheritance o r division o f their property i f they so wish. They are now able to write wills and designate heirs. Ego in household 3 has done so. I suspect this may be to limit o r cut of f the inheritance o f one son, wit h whom he allegedl y has had conflicts. In one respect, the absence of government intervention may foster the development of more comple x households. There i s no governmen t pensio n pla n i n Hong Kong, and socia l securit y provision s fo r thos e withou t suppor t ar e minimal Ther e ar e fe w nurseries for the care of the children of working mothers, and the quality of care is not uniformly good. I n thi s situation, th e ste m famil y provide s valuabl e service s fo r dependent famil y members. In foreign countries there are pensions for old people but in Hong Kong there are none, so usually children are responsible for their parents. Also, the concept of the famil y i s more important fo r Chinese people. (man, age 41, household 9 )

61 344 Society (5) Authorit y patterns. Th e maintenanc e o f a join t househol d demand s th e presence of a strong authority figure in the senior generation who can command respec t and obedience, accordin g t o severa l informants. Althoug h olde r peopl e ar e stil l respected, the y n o longe r hav e th e powe r withi n th e househol d whic h the y hel d a generation ago, and relationship s ar e more egalitarian. One reaso n ma y b e tha t th e household propert y i s less important a s a source o f support tha n i t was, and i n som e cases is nonexistent, except for the house in which the family lives. It is more difficul t for a household head to control income that is derived primarily from members' earnings, although unmarrie d members, a t least, normall y contribut e thei r income s t o th e household. Most younger men (except those who live primarily off the family property) have the potential ability to separate from the household because of their own earning power. In th e pas t w e respected ou r parents an d ha d t o liv e with them. I f not, w e would be gossiped about. People would say: 'He cares only for his wife and not for his parents.' Now a s people find jobs outside they may live separately, bu t still must support their parents. (man, ag e 40, household 6 ) In the pas t the youn g people had t o obe y any decision o f the ol d and coul d never reject i t because the ol d people kept the money and the property. Bu t now the y hav e learne d a lo t an d ca n ear n a lot o f money an d prefe r t o d o what they want, not what the old people like. We can't do anything about it. Times have changed. Bu t I don't lik e the change. (man, ag e 67, household 15 ) Not having seen the previous situation, I cannot make this comparison, but I saw no evidence o f any rebelliousness amon g the younger men, not muc h desir e to leav e the parenta l househol d o r the village. Nor wa s I aware o f any flagran t violation s o f parental authority. Instead, parent s see m t o hav e voluntaril y cede d som e o f thei r authority. Fe w would presum e t o attempt t o arrang e a son's marriage, fo r example. I asked th e me n i n th e intervie w sampl e whethe r the y woul d choos e thei r sons ' occupations, and without exception the y said that thi s choice should be made by the sons in accordance with their interests. I wouldn't force my son. We will see what his interests are. I will wait until he is in middle school to discuss it with him. (man, ag e 34, household 12 ) My sons should follow the occupations they like. They shouldn't g o into m y business i f they don't want to. (man, ag e 55, household 3 ) Thus, the present relationship of the old to the young is not heavily authoritarian. The ol d are treated with respect but, because of changing values and the los s of much

62 Crisis and Consolidation, of their former control over their sons' livelihood, they neither ask nor expect complete conformity t o their wishes. (6) Attitud e change. On e woul d expec t tha t traditiona l value s regardin g th e household might be undermined by the fact that villagers now receive modern education and associate with outsiders in school and at work, as well as in the village itself. They also receive heavy doses of Western values through the omnipresent television, although this i s a very recent development. There i s considerable diversity of opinion as to the desirability of joint households, and as to personal preference fo r stem or joint households. I asked informants whethe r they woul d lik e t o liv e wit h thei r son s afte r the y marry. O f nin e me n (thre e i n th e interview sample are already living with sons), two would like to live with their married sons. It's best to separate people a s far apart i n age as my grandmother an d myself. The ol d learned everythin g i n the past ; the youn g know new things. I don't want t o live with old people but I would lik e to liv e with m y sons after the y marry. But it depends on them. Lots of disputes can arise from age differences. I prefer thre e generations together, not marrie d brothers together. (man, ag e 34, household 11 ) Six men woul d not lik e to live with their married sons. I prefer tha t m y son separate afte r marriag e becaus e his way of thinking wil l be different. I lik e th e ide a o f livin g separatel y bu t eatin g together. I f th e father doesn't have enough houses, they must be bought or rented. I prefer t o eat together, because it then seem s like a better family relationship. (man, ag e 34, household 12 ) We agricultura l Chines e mus t giv e hel p t o ou r parent s an d suppor t them. The bes t way i s to live separately, perhaps giving one o r two children t o th e old people so it won't be so quiet. I prefer that my son live separately, although I have only one. He could perhaps return once a week to eat. The generations' ways of thinking are different. Dispute s could easily arise between mother-in - law and daughter-in-law, especiall y when the men work outside the house. (man, ag e 45, household 7 ) This latte r informan t sai d that he an d his wif e disagre e on thi s issue, a s his wif e wants to live with their only son. Three men mentioned disputes between women as a possible sourc e o f conflict i n a joint o r ste m household. On e sai d that wome n no w prefer to separate because they ar e better educated than i n the past. One informan t ca n se e goo d reason s bot h fo r remainin g wit h hi s son s an d fo r living separately from them. I never thought about whether m y sons should live with me but my wife sai d

63 346 Societ y it i s better fo r the m t o mov e ou t an d b e independen t an d lear n mor e fro m society. Furthermore, friction s migh t arise... I reall y woul d lik e a join t household. A n ol d perso n like s hel p fro m hi s descendents. I don' t kno w whether t o consider my sons' future o r myself. (man, ag e 54, household 14 ) Several informants, both men an d women, suggeste d that i t would be beneficia l to thei r son s to separat e fro m th e household, a s they woul d the n hav e t o tak e mor e responsibility; o r tha t th e fac t tha t the y ha d separate d woul d prov e tha t the y wer e capable o f managing. Conversel y I suspec t tha t on e reaso n wh y househol d 6 stay s together i s that tw o o f it s members see m incapable o f earning a living on their own. The second son is unmarried and works irregularly at some marginal occupation, while the firs t has not worked fo r ten years, apparently becaus e o f his illness. Their mothe r complained bitterl y about thei r incompetence. The family' s onl y cash income, apar t from rents, i s that earne d b y th e firs t son' s wif e an d b y th e thir d son, althoug h hi s remittances ar e intended onl y to support his wife and children. Of twelve women informants (tw o not asked), five are already living with married sons. Of the remainder, four would like to live with their sons, although one o f these is rather uncertain. My son could live with me o r move out. It doesn't matter. When yo u take a daughter-in-law, yo u would lik e her t o liv e with you, but no w many Hakk a people liv e separately. I t depends whether the y lik e old people o r not.... I would lik e my sons to stay but I will have to se e how they are. I don't kno w how they will be. If they are capable they can move awa y with their wives. (woman, ag e 32, household 11 ) One sai d that thi s i s the genera l Hakka custom. Two women sai d definitely tha t they would not lik e to live with their sons, one because she fears conflicts. The othe r said: I don't prefe r t o live with married sons. I f they move away, it shows they ar e capable. I prefer that they separate. Married sons will have their own families. They should care for them more than their parents. (woman, ag e 44, household 16 ) One woman (ag e 51, household 8) has no opinion, saying it is too far in the futur e to say. When aske d whether a joint household i s good, fou r men sai d that i t i s not an d five that i t is. I don't like a joint household. It is held together by the old people and cause s disputes betwee n brother s an d betwee n thei r wives. Yo u must hav e a larg e

64 Crisis and Consolidation, house, which i s impossible now. Now w e don't lik e it. (man, ag e 41, household 9 ) I prefer a joint household. The old people can help with the children and the young people can work. Old people prefer to stay with their sons and grandsons. But now the young people afte r marriag e want to separate. (man, ag e 67, household 2 ) One ma n wa s apparentl y referrin g t o a joint property-househol d rathe r tha n a residential household. I lik e a joint household, i n whic h th e familie s liv e an d ea t separatel y bu t come together when they wish. (man, ag e 45, household 7 ) Interestingly, tw o men wh o expresse d a preference fo r th e join t househol d sai d they preferred no t t o liv e with their married sons. They wer e evidently referrin g t o a general value favouring th e joint family, rather than thei r personal preference. Of nine women aske d this question, tw o do not favou r th e joint household. The joint household i s not good, a s lots of conflicts occur. It i s very hard fo r the old people. Therefore i f I had several sons I would separate them. Usually the sisters-in-la w don't ge t along well I f there i s work to be done, they wai t for others to do it... I f I had several sons I would live with whichever daughter - in-law wa s best. I t i s customary i n th e villag e that a t propert y divisio n th e widow gets a share, so mine would go to whomever I live with. Without that, who would want to live with old people? (woman, age d 48, household 9 ) Seven do favour the joint family household, although most qualified their answers by saying that i t i s good i f it i s harmonious o r i f there i s a strong household head. A joint household i s good. If the relationship between the men i s good, tha t between th e women wil l be. Then yo u wil l have peopl e t o tal k with o f th e same experience and age. (woman, age d 62, household 1 ) In summary, informant s ar e divided i n their expresse d preferences. Opinions ar e far from unanimous that joint households are good, or that it is best to live with married sons. Many informants perceived a change to values favouring the stem or even nuclear family household; but most expressed the expectation or at least the hope that even i f their sons live separately they would continue to give them financial support and help. This wa s sometime s expresse d i n stron g normativ e terms, a s an importan t Chines e value.

65 348 Society g. Th e New Poo r In 1980, unemploymen t stoo d a t 3. 8 percen t o f th e wor k forc e i n Hon g Kong.* Wage s wer e rising ; wh o remaine d poo r bu t th e age d an d th e handicapped? Th e case was mos t strongl y mad e b y photograph s reprinte d in the Hon g Kon g newspaper s o f elderl y me n livin g i n be d space s fence d by meta l wire. Socia l benefit s bein g introduce d b y th e Hon g Kon g government i n the 1970s went some way to alleviate their distress, but mone y could no t bu y the isolatio n fel t b y the poo r an d elderl y who ha d migrate d from hom e int o a competitive society. DOCUMENT VILgl : The livin g conditions o f the poor and elderly (source : Dr Ho Kam-fai, Addres s i n th e Legislativ e Council, 2 3 October 1980, Hong Kong Hansard, Reports of the sittings of the Legislative Council of Hong Kong, Session 1980/81. Hon g Kong: Government Printer ) A join t surve y conducted b y the Hong Kon g Council o f Social Servic e an d th e Social Welfar e Departmen t estimate d tha t b y 1979, 67,500 elderl y peopl e woul d b e living i n 'substandar d an d ofte n inhuma n livin g conditions' that is, 16,20 0 livin g i n bed spaces, verandahs an d staircas e landings ; 4,500 livin g i n roo f shacks, basement s and attics ; 9,50 0 livin g i n othe r non-domesti c housing ; an d 31,000 i n temporar y structures. In 1978, a survey undertaken by a group of Chinese University students projecte d that about 10,00 0 people were living in boarding houses in various parts of Hong Kong and Kowloon, includin g Tsue n Wan. Abou t 40 % o f the inhabitant s wer e abov e 60 years of age. They lived on three-decker bunks, which were fenced i n by chicken wire, and the y wer e sensationall y know n a s 'cage d men'. Th e averag e boardin g hous e measured 90 0 squar e feet, includin g kitche n an d toilet, an d wa s occupie d b y 6 3 inhabitants, thu s the averag e livin g are a per person wa s about 1 5 square feet. Livin g conditions wer e appalling: over-crowded, unventilated, squali d an d dark. Almos t half o f the elderl y inhabitant s suffere d fro m varyin g degree s o f physical an d menta l disorder. Roughly 80% of the elderly lodgers came to Hong Kong before 1960 ; a great majority o f them di d not have relative s here and live d on public assistance. To make matters worse, thes e lodger s wer e no t protecte d b y th e Landlor d an d Tenan t (Consolidation) Ordinance, becaus e th e boardin g house s wer e registere d fo r non - domestic use. The curren t boo m i n rea l estat e migh t heighte n thei r fear s o f bein g evicted, becaus e th e landlord s ma y tak e procedur e t o reposses s th e propertie s fo r redevelopment. Lok-sang Ho, The Hon g Kon g economy: a 1985 review / i n Alex Y.H. Kwan, ed. Hong Kong Society, Hon g Kong: Writers and Publishers'Cooperative, 1989, p. 51, citing Hong Kong government statistics.

66 h. A s The y Kep t Comin g Crisis and Consolidation, Gradually, but only gradually, Hong Kon g had to put a limit on the numbe r of immigrant s fro m Chin a wh o woul d b e allowe d t o stay. Lockin g ou t ] prospectiv e immigrant s did no t stem the flow, bu t i t must have reduced it s i size. It must also have given a new meaning to being a Hong Kon g resident,, indicate d b y the possessio n o f a n identit y car d issue d b y the Hon g Kon g government that from al l Hon g Kon g residents were require d b y la w to carry. Peopl e continue d t o come, bu t some were no w lega l an d other s illegal. They could hav e made yet another ne w underclass. DOCUMENT VILgl: Locking out illegal immigrants (source: South China Morning Post 24 October 1980 ) This appears to be the first time Hong Kong has resorted to a total lock-out of all illegal immigrants from China. Until the early 1950s people were free to come and go between China and the Colony. This tradition of free movement dated back to the Treaty of Nanjing, which secured Hong Kong for Britain in In the Hon g Kon g Government reluctantl y bega n restrictin g th e flo w o f people by making it necessary for people to possess valid exit documents from Chin a before the y could enter the Colony. On the other sid e of the border, the authoritie s also exercised exit controls. But many people entered Hong Kong by clandestine means. The population increased from 1. 8 million in to 2.3 million in By the late 1950s the Government described the numbers of illegal immigrants mostly arriving by sea as a 'serious' problem. The proble m turne d int o a nightmare i n April when ther e wa s a sudden relaxation of controls on the China side of the border. Hundreds and then thousand s of people swarmed across the border each day. It was a time of widespread famine i n China following the disastrous agricultural policies of 'the great leap forward.' Hunger and the search for a better lif e propelled the would-be settlers across the border. The influx reached its peak on May 23, 1962, when 5,620 immigrants were arrested in the frontier area. Hong Kong's hard-pressed security forces sent back to China as many illegal entrants as they could catch, after questioning them, giving them a meal and allowing them to rest. There was strong public sympathy for the hungry captives returned by truck and train to famine-stricken Guangdong province and New Territories villagers made several attempts to set them free. At the end of May, the Chinese authorities reimposed normal border controls as suddenly as they had relaxed them six weeks earlier. In that period 62,400 people had been repatriated but an estimated 60,000 had succeeded in sneaking illegally into Hong Kong... For the next 1 3 years if illegal immigrants successfully got past guards on China's side of the border, they were allowed to stay in Hong Kong unless they were suspect

67 350 Society politically. There was little or no attempt at repatriation. If people were caught entering illegally they were usually charged with an immigration offence, detained for a week or so and then set free. By the lat e 1960s, however, th e number o f legal and illega l immigrants enterin g Hong Kong began to worry the Government once more. Among the new arrivals were former overseas Chinese who had rallied to an invitation in the 1950 s to 'return to the motherland.' They were now disillusioned with lif e i n China an d wanted to get bac k to their old homes in Southeast Asia. China wa s allowing them to leave. The numbers of legal arrivals soared from about 10 0 a day in the late 1960 s to 500 and 60 0 a day i n I t wa s estimated, moreover, tha t fo r ever y person enterin g legally three or four were arriving illegally giving a total of about 2,000 people a day. The Governmen t mad e representations t o China. On Decembe r 1, 1974, Hon g Kong reversed its 'open door' policy and began sending back illegal immigrants captured while trying to enter the Colony. For illegals, the one major loophole was that i f they managed to 'touch base' t o reach thei r familie s i n Hon g Kon g the y wer e allowe d t o sta y permanently. Th e loophole has meant, a t a conservative estimate, that Hong Kong has at least 200,000 extra people today. The Government's announcement yesterday amended the six-year-old repatriation policy t o clos e th e loophole. The tid e o f public sympath y s o evident whe n hungr y illegal immigrants were rounded u p and repatriated i n 1962, has apparently turned.