History of Hong Kong Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

History of Hong Kong - Research Paper Example A distinctive Hong Kong identity detached from that of the mainland China has remained intact, as Gordon Mathews affirms who is a professor and an anthropologist at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. 94% of Hong Kong people are ethnic Chinese, but the unique aspect about Hong Kong people is that they do not feel a love for mainland China. 20 – 25% of Hong Kong people do, but the majority of them do not. They might utter â€Å"I love China, but it is the people I love and not the country†. Political organization Hong Kong is among the 2 specific administrative expanses of the Republic of China, the Macau being the other. It is a city-state located on the south coast of China and encircled by South China Sea and the River Pearl Delta. It is recognized for its expansive, deep natural harbor and skyline (Carroll, 2007). With a land mass reaching 1,104 (km2) and a 7 million population, Hong Kong remains one of the most densely populous areas in the world. The population of Hong Kong is 95% ethnic Chinese and 5% coming from other groups (Carroll, 2007). Hong Kong's Han Chinese mostly originates from the cities of Taishan and Guangzhou in the neighboring province of Guangdong (Carroll, 2007). Hong Kong got colonized by Britain after the 1st Opium War. Originally cramped into Hong Kong Island, the boundaries got extended to Kowloon Peninsula in stages in 1860 and later the New Territories in around 1898. It got occupied by Japan shortly after the start of the Pacific War, but the British Empire resumed control till 1997, when China took sovereignty (Carroll, 2007). The region adopted minimum government interposition under the code of positive non - interventionism on the colonial era. The period appreciably influenced the present Hong Kong culture, often called "East meets West", and an educational system that used to loosely monitor the system in England till reforms got implemented in 2009 (Carroll, 2007). Under the "one country with two systems" prin ciple, Hong Kong has a diverse political system from China. Independent judiciary of Hong Kong works under the common law structure. Hong Kong Basic Law remains constitutional document, which lays down that Hong Kong, shall possess "a high degree of autonomy" under all matters except military defense and foreign relations, which governs the political system (Carroll, 2007). Although it has a growing multi - party system, a trifling - circle electorate controls a half of its legal system. That is, the Hong Kong Chief Executive, head of government, gets chosen by an Electing Committee with 400 to 1,200 total members (Carroll, 2007). Socio - Cultural structure The Hong Kong culture can best be defined as a foundation that started with China, and developed being more influenced by British colonization. Despite the 1997 sovereignty transfer to the China Republic, Hong Kong continues to embrace an identity of its own culture. Given that the demographic preponderance of Hong Kong people, t hey are ethnically Chinese and naturally lean towards eastern type of culture, but with a dense western influence too. Majority of people in Hong Kong contemplate themselves as "Hong Konger" or "Hong Kongese" instead of "Chinese" for they feel like if they say they are Chinese, people would deliberate they are from central China, which, for many explanations, they do not like