The Effects of Returning Hong Kong to China

Lim-Che Yan
Level 6
2/27/08
The Effects of Returning Hong Kong to China
Change is always occurring. Most people think a change might do them good, but some people consider a change might bring bad effects. One day on December 1984, I read in a newspaper that Britain and China had signed a historical agreement in Beijing whereby Britain agreed to return Hong Kong to China on July 1st 1997, and China agreed not to alter Hong Kong’s capitalist and free way of life for at least fifty years. Also, the governments of China and Britain negotiated on solving the major issues of Hong Kong’s problems during the period from 1984 to 1997 -“the transitional period.” I grew up, was educated, lived with my family and worked in Hong Kong for more than fifty years. I knew Hong Kong like the back of my hand; it was part of me. After I read the news, I felt both happy and worried. Happy for all the Chinese people in Hong Kong would return to their homeland, China no longer ruled under the sovereignty of Britain, yet I was worried about some changes in the transitional period that might have negative effects on Hong Kong. Since the news was announced, people from all walks of life have had different perspectives on the future of Hong Kong, but by then I still worried that such change would have a great impact on the economy, law and my lifestyle.
The first effect from the transitional period was on the economy. The financial condition of the government would affect the daily lives of people. It went from good to worse. In the first ten years of the transitional period, the economy grew rapidly. The housing and stock markets were prosperous like a woman in love. Everybody enjoyed this good economic period. However, in the last three years of the transitional period the prices of homes house and stock share prices dropped down dramatically. As a result, most people lost money and suffered its consequential adverse effects on them. A friend of mine lost a lot of money in the stock market and he was unable to repay his bank loan, so he went bankrupt. I felt sad because I had bought an apartment almost at the peak of the market. The price was insufficient to repay the mortgage loan if I sold it at the difficult economic time, so I was an unlucky victim of the transfer.
The second effect was on the law. Hong Kong had a stable society by virtue of its good judicial systems. China is a communist country where freedom of speech, press and remitting money to foreign countries were to a certain extent restricted or controlled by the government. In China, it was against the law to criticize publicly the Chinese Government on the press and the internet. They imposed strict censorship on the press as well as the internet so that the freedom of speech was limited. In contrast, Hong Kong had the freedom of speech as provided by its laws. Most people were worried that the new government would deprive the existing freedoms, such as freedom of speech and press. They were also worried that the new government would impose new restrictions on remitting money to foreign countries. However, it ended up that the new government did not make any changes relating to freedom of speech or press nor were there restrictions on remitting money. By looking back on the matter, I probably overreacted.
The third effect was on my lifestyle. A sweet home is very essential for everybody. My family lived happily and used to have family gatherings to celebrate my mother’s birthday, Chinese New Year and other important holidays. My mother celebrated her birthday every year. On her birthday, my whole family got together and spent the whole day at home. We had a birthday cake and gifts for my mother. My brother, my sister and I would play Majhong with my mother. My family gatherings were always so much fun. Now, my two brothers and my sister have immigrated to Canada, and I immigrated to America because of the transfer. My mother remained in Hong Kong. As a result, our family is now scattered. At one time, my house was full of laughter and happiness, but since my siblings and I immigrated, my mother has been left alone. I often miss them and feel lonely myself.
Now almost eleven years later, Hong Kong basically remains unchanged. The predicting effects on the economy and law, except my lifestyle, are very remote because China has kept its promises. In fact, today’s China is in all respects improving, including, but not limited to the economy, law and lifestyle of people. Surprisingly, China really did a successful job, and it has surpassed my expectations. Maybe, one day, I will consider returning to Hong Kong.