Hong Kong and Taiwan - Catalysts to China's Modernisation
Christine Loh, CEO, Civic Exchange
February 6, 2004
11 a.m. - 12 noon
Perrault Hall, Fuller Labs
Abstract
Hong Kong and Taiwan are small societies at the extreme south of China. They have had and are continuing to have an abnormally large influence on modernizing China. Their effect comes from the fact that they have evolved differently from Mainland China because of their separation from Mainland politics. They have also become strong economies despite their size.
Hong Kong became a British colony in 1842 although it returned to Chinese rule in 1997. While Hong Kong never enjoyed a democratic system of government as a colony, its people enjoyed personal freedom and the city had an open economy and a strong rule of law system. Political reform is the talk of the town today after more than 500,000 people protested on 1 July 2003 and more than 100,000 marched on 1 January 2004 demanding better governance.
Taiwan was a Japanese colony from 1895 to 1945. For a brief period, Taiwan became formally a part of China again. After the defeat of the Nationalists by the Communists, the Nationalists fled to Taiwan (1948-1949) and governed there up until 2000, when the presidency was won by a pro-independence party, the Democratic Progressive Party. With the next presidential election scheduled for March 2004, relations between Mainland China and Taiwan remains a daily topic of debate both in Taiwan and in Beijing. Cross-strait relations is all about the prospects of reunification between the Mainland and Taiwan.
Loh's lecture will explain what roles Hong Kong and Taiwan play in China's modernization.
Maintained by webmaster@cs.wpi.eduLast modified: September 25, 2006 15:56:26