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March 8, 2014 |
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In the 1970s, Hong Kong underwent many changes that were to shape the future of the city. Economically, it reinvented itself from a manufacturing base into a financial centre; its future political status for the first time became an issue, a worrying one, after nealy a whole century; many corporations familiar to every Hong Konger today also start their business during this speical period of time. Talks over the Sovereignty of Hong Kong
In the early 1970s, the New Territories land lease agreement, which would last until 1997, came to the surface. Facing a lease that would end within 27 years, the United Kingdom|British Government had to decide what to do with the future status of the colony. In the first few years of the decade, Murray MacLehose began to visit Beijing, talking about the future of Hong Kong with leaders of the People's Republic of China (PRC). This was the start of a long battle, which would eventually involve Margaret Thatcher and other high-level PRC leaders. It was envisioned by the British Government that they would be able to obtain a deal that would either permanently extend the land lease agreement, or extend it for many more years, thus solving the problem (Hong Kong's status) easily, or at least shelving it for a long time. The fact was far from the vision, as the British and the PRC were engaged in a long and uncompromising negotiation. What was once a negotiation on extending the land lease deal at last became one on a timeframe for Hong Kong's return to China and its post-colonial government framework. Anti-corruption campaign Image:Image-17.JPG|thumb|200px|Norman Whitely (right), a Hong Kong policeman who joined the ICAC. In the 1970s, corruption was a way of life in Hong Kong, being an institution in all major public safety departments. Policemen would often extract a bribe (popularly called "tea fee") before they investigated a crime, as did firemen before they rescued people and put out fires. Many ethnic Chinese|Chinese detective superintendents amassed incredible wealth from their corrupt dealings with triads and corporations. Their names have been seared into the memories of the older generations, their stories adapted into several popular movies in the 1990s, such as To be Number One (跛豪) of 1991. In 1974, Hong Kong Governor MacLehose of Beoch|Lord MacLehose of Beoch, realizing the seriousness of the problem, founded the Independent Commission Against Corruption (Hong Kong)|Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC). The investigations and arrests of many police officers created a furor among the police, who protested against the ICAC and even tried to overrun the headquarters in one protest. The governor, who was afraid of a police strike or even a rebellion, at last issued a pardon, preventing arrests in cases committed before a certain date. However, the pardon was not extended to higher-level detective superintendents. Those high-level Chinese officers, famous for their riches, left for exile to Republic of China|Taiwan, which had no extradition treaties with Hong Kong. The efforts of the ICAC in time changed the habits of an entire population and turned Hong Kong into one of the least corrupt cities in the world. Defend Diaoyutai Islands campaigns In 1970, the American government returned the sovereignty of Ryukyu Islands to Japan, at the same time giving the Diaoyutai Islands to it. The act stirred up campaigns for defending the Diaoyutai Islands among Chinese societies all around the world. People in Hong Kong also reacted. The Hong Kong Federation of Students (香港專上學生聯會) requested to hold a protest at the Victoria Park in Causeway Bay on July 7 1971. Having been frightened by the Hong Kong 1967 riots, the Police were not to allow that to happen. The authority informed the students that the protest could not be held on just the day before the event. However, the students decided to have their way. The protest was held, but was eventually bloodily suppressed. The unnecessary violence adopted by the Police, regarded as a violation of democracy, was unanimously criticised by the society. The arrested students were released soon; the British police officer who led the suppression was sent back to England, though he went unpunished. Protests concerning the defence of Diaoyutai Islands were held in the following months. The waning industry image:HKmade_toyguns.jpg|thumb|250px|Toy guns made in Hong Kong during the 1960s, exhibited in the Hong Kong Museum of History. In the early 1970s, the industries of Hong Kong, especially the making of clocks and watchs, clothes and toys, continued to bloom. However, during the second half of the decade, as the land price kept rising, those with handsome capital found that buying and selling lands would be a more profitable business. As a result, the lands originally used as factories were sold for building houses or shopping malls. The factories were gradually re-located to the mainland China, where both land price and wages are low. At the same time, other rapidly developing economies such as Singapore, South Korea and Taiwan underwent developments similar to those of Hong Kong, thus producing similar and competetive products. The competetiveness of Hong Kong products thus fell greatly. Moreover, many countries started adopting protectionism to shelter their local industries and products. Measures were set up to limit imports from other countries, including those from Hong Kong. All these contributed to the decline of Hong Kong industries. Stock rush and market crash Hong Kong people grew richer entering the 1970s. Not surprisingly, people started to look for some means of investment. Soon the stock rush began. New stocks were on sale every day; brokage houses mushroomed; some people quitted their own jobs to become full-time investers, suffering a kind of urban disease which the doctors simply name "stock illness". It is said that the investers during this period numbered to 500,000. The market was hot. The Hang Seng Index kept soaring, but not for long. Partly thanks to the foreign manipulators, the stock market prices plummeted, in March 1973. Many people were left bankrupted. Urban legend had it that the psychiatric hospital at Castle Peak became full-house at once after the market crash. The Hong Kong economy recovered only slowly over the next few years. Emerging businesses image:northdistrict_003.jpg|thumb|250px|An old See Dor in Shek Wu Hui, Sheung Shui. Wellcome, the first supermarket in Hong Kong, was opened in Central in 1970. It was called "Gweilo market" by some locals, as most customers were westerners during the initial period of its operation. Hong Kong people were soon to embrace this new kind of store, though. By 1975, more than 200 big- and small-scaled supermarkets could be found in the city. These new stores eliminated most traditional rice dealers (米舖), and many local Baan Gwun (辦館) and See Dor (士多, transliteration of "store"). Baan Gwun and See Dor are local types of grocery; they differ in the fact that the former sells more costly items like wines. Wellcome and PARKnSHOP didn't take long to captive the market, which they keep dominating to date. The front- and full-page ads of these two sellers, familiar to every Hong Konger today, also began to appear during the seventies. The first McDonald's restaurant in Hong Kong was opened on Paterson Street, Causeway Bay in 1975. The fast food tycoon was not the first hamburger seller (but Burger King) in Hong Kong; but it was the first successful one, quickly eliminating other smaller competitors. Image:XHT-1970s.jpg|thumb|150px|The area around the entrance of the Cross Harbour Tunnel at Hong Kong Island|the Island side in the 1970s, when the tunnel was being contructed. Image:Habour_Tunnel_2005.jpg|thumb|250px|Entrance of the Cross Harbour Tunnel at Tsim Sha Tsui in 2005. Hong Kong's first underground railroad, the Mass Transit Railway (MTR) was opened in October 1979. The first line served eastern Kowloon from Shek Kip Mei to Kwun Tong. In December services were extended to Tsim Sha Tsui and by 1980 it was possible to ride from Kwun Tong to the central business district in Central on the other side of the harbour on Hong Kong Island. The Cross-Harbour Tunnel, the first underwater tunnel in Hong Kong, opened in 1972. For the first time in the history of Hong Kong, people could travel between Hong Kong and Kowloon without taking ferries. As a result, the "small electrical boats" (小電船, sampans with electrical motors), also know as "walawala" by the locals for the sound produced by the vehicle, were gradually eliminated. As the mainland China shut down its water supply to Hong Kong during the Cultural Revolution, the colonial government built the then largest desalination plant in the world at Lok On Pai, Castle Peak in 1975. The construction, contracted by a Japanese company, costed more than HKD$400 million. However, when the High Island Reservoir was finished in 1978, the plant stopped its operation. It was officially closed in 1982 and pulled down in 1992. Metrication Metric system|SI is put forth in Hong Kong during the 1970s. Television advertisements saying "1 feet equals 3 feets" (一呎等如三尺), as the Chinese term for metre literally means metric feet, are common. Education The Hong Kong government introduced the 6-year free compulsory education in 1971, and expanded it to 9-year in 1978. Housing To improve the quality of public housing and relieve overcrowded conditions, the government announced the Ten-year Housing Program (十年建屋計劃) in 1972, with the goal of providing quality housing for 1.8 millions people in ten years. The Hong Kong Housing Authority was thus formed to spearhead the program. The government also introduced the Home Ownership Scheme (居者有其屋計劃) in 1976, building houses and selling them at below-market prices to help people own property. Entertainment Image:ThePrivateEyes.png|thumb|250px|VCD cover of The Private Eyes Hong Kong people continued to enjoy television as their major entertainment, following the trend in the 60s. The television channels were all free at that time, which was one of the major reasons of the popularity of television even in the still-developing living standard. In September 7 1975, Commercial Television (佳藝電視) was established and it provided competition for the other two television companies, Rediffusion Limited (麗的呼聲有限公司) and Television Broadcasts Limited (電視廣播有限公司). However, it failed to compete against the others, and closed down in August 22 1978, after only about three years. The long TV serial dramas, from 80 to 120 episodes, were created in 1976. These dramas, usually broadcasted at 7:00 P.M., captivated the whole Hong Kong population. The theme songs of these dramas helped to revived the Cantonese music - the term Cantopop was indeed coined during this period of time. The anime series Ultraman (ウルトラマン, known as 咸蛋超人 in Hong Kong) was introduced from Japan into Hong Kong in 1975. The children were fascinated. Kids tried to "fly" in the air, imitating their heroes. Two of them, who were brothers, one three-and-half years old another four-and-half, attempted a flight from a seven-storey flat in Kowloon City on July 26 1975. The younger brother was killed on the spot, while the elder was miraculously saved. The broadcast of the anime was suspended for some time after the accident. The martial arts films starred by Bruce Lee, including The Big Boss (《唐山大兄》) of 1971 and Fist of Fury (《精武門》) of the following year, were sensational. Cornered for some times by Western and Mandarin flims, Cantonese films were much revived in the 1970s, with the great success of The Private Eyes (《半斤八兩》) of 1976 (directed and starred by Michael Hui), which is said to remain the all-time box-office king of Hong Kong cinema when inflation is taken into account. The 1970s was also the beginning of the golden age of Hong Kong football, as the professional league, the first of its kind in any Asian country or region, was set up in the 1968-69 season. Natural disasters In August 1971, Typhoon Rose came to Hong Kong and brought along disasters, even forcing the hoisting of Hurricane Signal, No. 10 on August 16. 5,664 people, belonging to 1,032 families, were homeless afterwards. This typhoon destructed 653 wooden huts, and damaging 24 buildings, among with 6 are beyond repair. (See the full report of Hong Kong Observatory http://www.hko.gov.hk/informtc/no10/rose/rose.htm here) In June 1972, torrential rains caused two serious landslides in Sau Mau Ping and the Mid-levels respectively. The Mid-levels case happened at Kotewall Road. A large area of a slope collapsed, crashing into an apartment block downhill and demolished several flats on the top floors. In the Sau Mau Ping case, shanty town dwellers refused to evacuate despite warning. Together there were over 150 deaths, 110 injured and more than 5000 people were left homeless. Tsang Tsou Choi, or the Kowloon Emperor, began his career of calligraphy graffiti in 1970. category:History of Hong Kong|70s This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "1970s in Hong Kong".
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