Hong Kong Overview

According to abbreviationfinder, Hong Kong is a special administrative region located in eastern China, near the delta of the Pearl River and consists of a peninsula and several islands. Today it is one of the most influential cities in Southeast Asia. Its more than 7 million residents in just 1,000 square kilometers make up one of the most densely populated regions on the planet.

With a still recent colonial past, since it ceased to depend on the United Kingdom in 1997, Hong Kong is one of the five most populous Chinese cities and also one of the most westernized. This is largely due to the close contact it has maintained with European and British culture as a result of its colonial character. Despite this, many Chinese traditions are maintained in the city, one of the two regions of the country, together with Macao, as a special administrative region. See Hong Kong facts.

History

Historically, the Hong Kong region has been occupied by the Chinese since the Neolithic era. Initially these formed a small fishing community, being the refuge area for pirates and opium smugglers. In the seventeenth century, the region witnessed the struggles between the Ming dynasty and the Ping dynasty, participating in the history of China itself.

It is after the First Opium War when the island of Hong Kong occupies a place in history by being ceded, indefinitely, by China to Great Britain through the Treaty of Nanking of 1842. After the Second Opium War and the Convention of Peking of 1860 new assignments remember to Britain: part of the Kowloon Peninsula and the island of Stonecutters. The area of the colony increased significantly with the incorporation of the New Territories, part of the Kowloon Peninsula and Lantau Island, leased to Great Britain for 99 years from July 1, 1898 to June 30, 1997.? Following the establishment of the ROC in 1912, Hong Kong became for the first time a political refuge for Chinese exiles from the mainland. In 1937, during China’s war with Japan over Manchuria, it again became a place of asylum for hundreds of thousands of Chinese displaced by the Japanese invasion.

During the Second World War it fell into the hands of the Japanese who transformed it into the military center of their campaign in Asia. The British took Hong Kong back in 1945 after Japan’s unconditional surrender. The civil war between nationalists and communists in China brought back waves of Chinese who took refuge in the territory before and after the communist victory of 1949.

In the 1950s, during the Korean War, the United States banned trade with Communist China, hurting Hong Kong’s business activity and slowing its economic progression. The continued influx of Chinese from the mainland provided cheap labor that enabled rapid growth, especially in manufacturing. The ensuing economic development transformed Hong Kong into one of the richest and most productive regions in Asia, and as a consequence, during the 1970s, the influx of refugees from the continent increased. In the early 1980s, large numbers of refugees began arriving from Vietnam.

In 1982, given the proximity of the end of the British lease on the New Territories (July 1, 1997), talks between China and Great Britain about the future of Hong Kong began. By the Joint Declaration signed by China and the United Kingdom on December 19, 1984 in Beijing, China promised that under the “one country, two systems” policy, China’s socialist economic system would not apply in Hong Kong, committing to respect the existing legal system in Hong Kong prior to the transfer of sovereignty for a period of 50 years, until the year 2047. China would take charge of foreign policy and defense of the territory.

After 1997 Hong Kong would also give a constitution that would be known as Basic Law drafted by a committee convened in Beijing which would be attended by representatives of the British colony. In 1989, after the Tiananmen events, work on the new constitution was suspended and Britain refused to consider a possible renegotiation of the Joint Declaration. In April 1990, the Chinese Parliament approved the new constitution, the so-called Basic Law, which even allowed some seats in the future Legislative Council to be elected before 1997.

Relations between China and Britain over Hong Kong deteriorated during 1991 due to disagreements over the financing of a new airport on Lantau Island, on which an agreement was finally reached in November 1994. Another source of friction with China was given by the late British governor Chris Patten when carrying out democratic reforms in the last years of British sovereignty not well seen by communist China. Hong Kong also experienced a delicate moment in May 1992 ] when the government of the region initiated the forcible repatriation of all Vietnamese refugees.

On 1 July as as 1997 Hong Kong became a Special Administrative Region of China as, regime which will end in 2047 with full integration into China. Today Hong Kong has become one of the world’s major tourist, industrial, financial and commercial centers, playing the role of a springboard for mainland China’s trade and investment.

Geography

The Hong Kong region is made up of a peninsula and 236 islands, of which the best known is Hong Kong Island proper.

Islas

Hong Kong Island

Taken by the English in 1840, Hong Kong Island is the most modern area and concentrates most of the companies in the administrative region of Kong Kong. In the north of the island is Victoria Bay, where the most famous buildings in Hong Kong are located: the Bank of China Tower, the Two International Finance Center, the Central Plaza and others. In addition to the financial district, we will find two points of great interest: Victoria Peak and Aberdeen Bay.

Kowloon

It is the most densely populated area in Hong Kong with a density of 43,000 residents per square kilometer. It is located to the north of Hong Kong Island and is the most residential and chaotic area of Hong Kong. In the south of Kowloon is the Tsim Sha Tsui area, where you can get the best views of Victoria Bay.

Lantau Island

It is the largest in Hong Kong and where the Hong Kong International Airport, the Hong Kong Disneyland theme park and the Po Lin Monastery are located, where you can see the tallest Big Sitting Buddha in the world with 24 meters of height. The whole island is very different from the rest of Hong Kong. Lantau Island is a natural place that offers relaxation and tranquility.

New Territories

It is the northernmost part of Hong Kong and its widest area. More than 3 and a half million people live in its almost 1,000 square kilometers.

Climate

Hong Kong has a subtropical climate with clearly differentiated seasons. Typhoon season runs from May to November. Weather according to the season:

• Spring (March – May) It is characterized by rising temperature and humidity. Nights can be cold.
• Summer (June – August) It is characterized by heat, humidity and sun, with occasional showers and storms.
• Autumn (September – November) It is characterized by lots of sun, light breezes and very pleasant temperatures. For many people, this is the best time of year to travel to Hong Kong.
• Winter (December – February) It is characterized by cold, dry and cloudy weather, with occasional cold fronts. The temperature can drop below 10ºC in urban areas.

Economic development

Its financial importance (it is one of the 20 most important financial centers in the world), based on its great commercial activity, has also made it one of the Chinese cities with the highest percentage of foreign population, although its almost seven million residents (data 2002 of the Hong Kong Tourism Board) are mainly Chinese, and the most widely spoken language, Cantonese, although the use of Putonghua is growing.

Sightseeing

More and more tour operators include Hong Kong as a stop on their China combo packages or as a main travel destination. Traveling to Hong Kong can be a fascinating experience, due to the seductiveness of the center – more cosmopolitan – and the calm of its surroundings. The large number of leisure options available, its nightlife and its combination of Chinese tradition with Western modernity make it, without a doubt, a unique place.

Social development

Education

In terms of education, Hong Kong still shows traces of its colonial occupation in its educational system, while it takes some of its characteristics from the British model.

Its universities include the University of Hong Kong (University of Hong Kong), the Chinese University of Hong Kong (Chinese University of Hong Kong), the City University of Hong Kong (City University of Hong Kong), the University of Science and Technology of Hong Kong (Hong Kong University of Science and Technology) and the Polytechnic University of Hong Kong (Hong Kong Polytechnic University).

Idiom

In it, traditional Chinese languages coexist (Mandarin and Cantonese are sometimes mixed) with English, the second official language and widely used in the region.