Material Conditions in Hong Kong

Paper Summary:

In this article, the writer discusses that Hong Kong has had one of the most diverse political histories in East Asia. The writer notes that one of the most dramatic political developments in Hong Kong was its occupation by the Japanese during the Second World War. The writer examines why material and social conditions in Hong Kong declined so quickly during the Japanese occupation. The writer argues that these declines appeared to be the result of a Hong Kong's low strategic value and the fact that the Japanese disdain for prisoners and captive populations resulted in neglect or active brutality.

From the Paper:

"On the other hand Japanese ideology could have exacerbated this problem. In particular the Japanese saw themselves as superior to people form other countries. The Japanese also had a fundamentally different conception of prisoners of war and how they should be treated."
"To a large degree it can be argued that some of the problems experienced in Hong Kong were the result of Hong Kong's low strategic priority. Mainland China seemed to be a far greater threat then Hong Kong. In particular an alliance between China and the United States seemed particularly problematic for the Japanese."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Liu Shuyong, "Hong Kong: A Survey of its Political and Economic Development over the Past 150 Years" in The Chinese Quarterly, No.151, Sept.1997: 583-592.
• Ming K. Chan, "Hong Kong: Colonial Legacy, Transformation and, Challenge" in Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Sciences, Vol.547, Sept.1996: 12.
• Charles G. Roland, Trying to Cope with Too Little Food" in Long Night's Journey into Day, Wilfrid Laurier University Press, Waterloo, 2001: 127-135.
• Philip Snow, The Fall of Hong Kong, Yale University Press, New Haven and London, 2003.
• Harish Kapur, "The Eagle-Dragon Alliance: America's Relations with China in World War Two" in The Historian, Vol.55, no.4, Summer 1993: 776-777.

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