Going out under the shadow of Red China: the geopolitical origin of Hong Kong’s international status
Asian Education and Development Studies
ISSN: 2046-3162
Article publication date: 13 February 2019
Issue publication date: 28 March 2019
Abstract
Purpose
Many scholars would agree that the international status of Hong Kong is one of the crucial factors that contribute to the continued success of Hong Kong. However, few of them explain the origin of Hong Kong’s international status. The purpose of this paper is to fill this literature gap through the case study of Hong Kong’s admission to an international organization – the Asian Development Bank (ADB) – in the late 1960s.
Design/methodology/approach
Based on declassified archives, a historical approach has been adopted to trace the origin of Hong Kong’s international status.
Findings
The findings suggest that Cold War geopolitics, both local and regional level, explain why Hong Kong, even though remained as a dependent territory of Britain, became a member of an international organization independent from the British influence. While geopolitics at local level incentivized the colonial government to “go out” for external support, geopolitics at the regional level provided an opportunity for Hong Kong to acquire membership of the ADB.
Originality/value
This paper is among the first academic study on the origin of Hong Kong’s international status.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
The finding of this paper was presented at the Conference on the 20th Anniversary of Hong Kong SAR in May 25, 2017, at The Education University of Hong Kong, organized by Department of Social Sciences, Resource Center for Interdisciplinary and Liberal Studies of The Education University of Hong Kong, and Hong Kong Political Science Association. Both authors contributed equally, and would like to thank Seanon Wong Si-Lon, Nelson Lee Ka-Kiu, Li Hak-Yin and Kenneth Chan Ka Lok for their advice and constructive comments on this paper. The authors would also like to thank Melody Chuh Andrea, Karen Wong Ka Wun and Pang Ming Hin for their generous support for doing this research. The authors are also grateful to the two reviewers’ constructive comments on this paper. All errors in this paper, of course, are the authors’ own.
Citation
Fung, C.K.C. and Fong, C.S. (2019), "Going out under the shadow of Red China: the geopolitical origin of Hong Kong’s international status", Asian Education and Development Studies, Vol. 8 No. 2, pp. 173-185. https://doi.org/10.1108/AEDS-02-2018-0033
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2019, Emerald Publishing Limited