2007-10-11

Class Next Week

Just a reminder that we do have class next week (17 October) because I have to make up for cancelling the lecture on 21 November (sorry, I erred earlier: the cancelled class is 21 November; we do have class on 28 November). We will focus on the media - media perceptions of Hong Kong and the role of the media in the SAR. We will also have tutorials as usual. I'm sorry for the inconvenience. Of course, if you are unable to make it due to prior Reading Week plans, travel, or any other reason, that's fine. But I hope you can attend.

The Chief Executive's Policy Address: "We have to see Hong Kong from the perspective of our country's future"

As you know, Chief Executive Donald Tsang Yam-kuen delivered his policy address yesterday. You may wish to read the entire speech for yourself.

Pertinent to our discussion of Hong Kong's role in the world is paragraph 126:
"To free ourselves from doubt and confusion, we have to see Hong Kong from the perspective of our country's future. Only in doing so will we be able to cultivate the right niche for ourselves in our own nation. Over the past three decades, we have contributed substantially to our country's economic growth. Hong Kong's businessmen were the earliest investors in the Mainland when our country began to reform and open up. Our professionals followed suit and headed north to embark on new ventures. In the coming decade, Hong Kong will remain a balanced, pluralistic, stable and advanced city. We play by the rules of a free market while stressing corporate social responsibility. We embrace modern values while upholding the core values of the traditional Chinese family. We promote democratic development without compromising social stability or government efficiency. We pursue economic growth, and care about environmental protection and cultural conservation. We cherish the personal freedom of individuals and pluralism, and we have a shared sense of national identity. Ours is a Chinese city, as well as a global city. Hong Kong will continue to serve the country in our unique way. We will also lay an even more solid foundation to maintain our own long-term prosperity, stability and development."
Here, the CE gets at the nub of what we have been looking at so far this semester. As Hong Kong pursues its various roles - as a an international financial and business center, a frontline actor in the global fight against infectious diseases, a regional leader in setting rule of law and governance standards, an advocate for China to the rest of the world, and a bridge between China and the U.S. - the SAR's confidence and success in meeting these various international goals and responsibilities is really predicated on its ability to find "the right niche for ourselves in our own nation." To establish its position in the world, Hong Kong has to carve out an appropriate and meaningful place for itself in China's growth and development. The question is: what is that "right niche"?

If you have any reactions to the CE's policy address, feel free to share them.

2007-10-09

A Word About Posting - and the Final Exam

We have had excellent comments posted; thank you for contributing. Please keep it up.

For those still holding back, don't feel that you have to write anything very long. You don't need to have a lengthy, finely crafted exposition, just make your point or points - 100 or 200 words will do. By all means, however, if you have a lot to say, then that's fine too. As I have mentioned, I would like everybody to contribute at least three times during the semester. More frequent contribution will help in your assessment in this part of the course, but quality is certainly more important.

My ulterior motive, I should note, is to get you primed for the final exam (at least those of you who have to take one). The final will likely consist of two or three fairly general questions, requiring replies in the form of a short essay of a few hundred words each, not unlike the comments you are posting on the blog. Posting on the blog is therefore good practice for the exam. I'm hoping that you will combine references to what you have heard in lectures with what you have read to provide focused and well thought out answers.

When posting on the blog or when taking the final, don't be too concerned about the correctness of your English, though you should try to write as clearly as you can and with your best effort at grammar and spelling. What counts more are the arguments - and your critical thinking about what you have heard, what you have read and what you already know.

2007-10-08

(Yet Another) Question of the Week: Does Hong Kong Have a Role in Fostering Good Relations Between the U.S. and China?

As a lead-in to Wednesday's class and the discussion with Jack Maisano, I thought I would post one more Question of the Week: Does Hong Kong have a role to play as a bridge between the U.S. and China? More generally, should Hong Kong play the role of advocate for China to the rest of the world to improve the understanding of China and its policies? If so, is this a role that Hong Kong has a responsibility to play?

You might recall that, over the years, many members of the Hong Kong community, including several pro-democracy politicians, worked hard to lobby American legislators and policymakers to support the granting of "most-favored nation" (MFN) trading status (later referred to as permanent "normal trade relations", or NTR) to China and then to agree to China's accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO), which finally happened at the end of 2001. Look at this speech entitled "Facts Versus Frictions: A Role for Hong Kong in the Sino-U.S. Economic Relationship", which was delivered by Vincent Cheng, Chairman of the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corp., at HKU nearly two years ago. Note that he specifically limits his discussion to "the Sino-U.S. economic relationship".

(Another) Question of the Week: What is the Impact of Mother-Tongue Instruction in Hong Kong Schools?

Inspired by some of the comments that have been posted, I thought I would pose another Question of the Week: What is the impact of mother-tongue instruction on Hong Kong's overall competitiveness? Should Hong Kong shift back to favor English in schools?

What do you think?

Take a look at this article on the shortage of places at international schools and this summary of the controversy over the use of Cantonese in schools. You might also look at this overview of the issue in the "Hong Kong Stories" section of the website of the University of Hong Kong's Journalism and Media Studies Centre.

2007-10-07

American Perspectives on Hong Kong

On Wednesday, as you know, our guest will be Jack Maisano, the President of the American Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong. In advance of the class, you may want to read this speech that Jack delivered in Los Angeles in 2006. I expect that we will again be discussing the environment, particularly since AmCham recently published its second annual Environment Survey. The study found, not surprisingly, that air pollution has become a factor in recruiting professionals to come to live and work in Hong Kong. Here is a press release summarizing the results of the report.

I have uploaded to the WebCT site a pdf of the U.S. Congressional Research Service (CRS) report on Hong Kong since the handover, which was published in June. It provides quite a good summary of the key issues of the past ten years and offers a bipartisan U.S. perspective on American relations with Hong Kong. The study is intended for an American audience. You can find here a summary of the report and a link to download it directly.