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Chapter 5: EXPANSION
- Hong Kong University Press, HKU
- Chapter
- Additional Information
67 Chapter 5 EXPANSION ___________________ Hong Kong entered a new era after the Second World War partly because forces unleashed by the war caused faster changes worldwide and partly because the closing of China to most of the outside world gave this imperial outpost a new stimulus for development. Until the communists came to power in China in 1949, and effectively closed its border with this British colony the following year, Hong Kong existed mainly as Britain’s gateway to China. Its heavy reliance on the entrepôt trade between China and the rest of the world ended after the United Nations and United States imposed embargoes on China in 1951 following Chinese intervention in the Korean War in late 1950. Hong Kong had to survive in this changed world and sought to do so by rapid industrialization. With trade restrictions in place, particularly those imposed by the USA, the colonial government found itself having to certify that goods manufactured in this British capitalist enclave were neither produced on the neighbouring communist mainland nor used their raw materials. When a certificate of origin was developed to meet this requirement, it was taken very seriously because a failure to give it credibility could have derailed Hong Kong’s transformation from an entrepôt to an industrial centre. Through developments like these, the scope and span of government had to expand in Hong Kong. As its overwhelmingly Chinese population settled down and grew, roughly adding a million to the size of the population each decade, the colonial government also had to increase its size to cope with the new demands. The old prewar attitude that the Chinese could largely be left to their own devices so long as they did not break the law and upset good order had to be, and was, replaced. Following the end of Governing Hong Kong 68 the myth of the invincibility of the British Empire and the rise of Chinese irredentism during the war, the government in Hong Kong decided to set about building a constructive partnership with the local people.1 This meant that the government had to provide and proactively maintain a legal, political and social infrastructure that could sustain economic prosperity and social stability – the substance of good governance from the perspective of the colonial administration at the time. Given the cadets’ elite status and reputation as generalist officers who could deal with any issue, they remained the core of the civil service to which the government relied on to face up to the new challenges of the postwar era. As the 1950s unfolded, the colonial government felt the need to expand to meet the new demands, but the financial restraints the colony faced limited any expansion. As a crown colony, Hong Kong could secure financial autonomy from metropolitan Britain only by persuading London it would not become a charge on the British exchequer. Because of the war and Japanese occupation Hong Kong was put back under Treasury control, which did not end until it proved it could be financially self-sustaining again in 1948.2 As a result, the colonial government had no option but to adhere to a very prudent or conservative policy with regard to financial management. Any sign that Hong Kong could become a financial liability on Britain, particularly in the light of the severe weakness of the postwar British economy, would have caused alarm in London.3 The Hong Kong government was fully aware of this situation and did all it could to maximize the scope of its own financial autonomy.4 This meant any expansion of the civil service had to be fully justified and financially sustainable. The increase in cadets was consequently modest even though the span of government was already increasing steadily and quickly. Once the tensions caused by the rise of a communist regime in China and the Korean War had eased, the 1950s saw a steady change in attitude. Practices that before the war had seemed positive and appropriate in this outpost of the colonial empire were no longer automatically embraced. Grand old institutions with quaint names that used to evoke reverence and respect were given new, modern sounding titles with clear descriptions of what particular institutions were meant to achieve. And, needless to say, the venerable title of cadets soon became a victim of this sweeping current of change. [3.239.119.159] Project MUSE (2024-03-28 19:34 GMT) Expansion 69 From cadets to administrative officers While the colonial administration...