Hong Kong

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Hong Kong

The region of Hong Kong, which had long been a haven for coastal

pirates was occupied by the British during the Opium War (1839-42).

The colony prospered as an east-west trading center, the commercial

gateway to, and distribution center for, South China. It was

efficiently governed, and its banking, insurance, and shipping

services quickly became known as the most reliable in Southeast Asia.

In 1921 the British agreed to limit the fortifications of the colony,

and this contributed to its easy conquest by the Japanese. It was

reoccupied by the British on Sept. 16, 1945.

After 1949, when the Communists took control of mainland China,

hundreds of thousands of refugees crossed the border, making Hong

Kong's urban areas some of the most densely populated in the world.

Problems of housing, health, drug addiction, and crime were the target

of aggressive governmental programs, and Hong Kong's long-standing

water problem was eased by the construction of an elaborate system of

giant reservoirs and the piping in of water from China.

In May, 1967, Hong Kong was struck by a wave of riots and strikes

inspired by China's Cultural Revolution. The government reacted

firmly, and, although the Chinese retaliated by briefly stopping the

piping of water and by attacking British representatives in Beijing,

relations between Hong Kong and China soon resumed the surface harmony

that had existed since the late 1950s.

After several years of negotiations, on Dec. 19, 1984, Britain and the

People's Republic of China agreed that Hong Kong would become a

special administrative region of China as of July 1, 1997, when

Britain's lease expir...

... middle of paper ...

...rs will look to new capital intensive

markets. Furthermore, the high prices existing in Hong Kong make it a

less attractive place to live than the emerging 'business cities'

which offer all existing advantages at lower cost. Today, the

political aspect of the region seems more stable and less uncertain

than the economic one. Autonomy and lifestyle will remain the same,

what will happen to the economy.

Bibliography

http://www.info.gov.hk

http://www.geocities.com/tokyo/towers/2464/hist.htm

http://www.info.gov.hk/hkbrief/ahke.htm

http://www.tdctrade.com/main/economic.htm

http://www.tax-news.com/story/story.asp?storyname=9443

http://www.encyclopedia.com/

http://strategis.ic.gc.ca

http://www.info.gov.hk/censtatd/eng

http://www.anz.com

http://www.csis.org/asia/hkupdate/hk141hc.html

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