In the 19th century the territory of Hong Kong became a colony of the United Kingdom. Hong Kong Island was acquired in 1842, Kowloon Peninsula in 1860 and the New Territories were leased in 1898 for 99 years.
It was considered to be impossible to divide the territory after 99 years and the People's Republic of China anyway considered the status of Hong Kong as illegitimate due to it being a consequence of the "unfair and unequal treaties", so negotiations between the United Kingdom and China began.
It was decided that a Special Administrative Region would be created and that Hong Kong's previous capitalist system and its way of life would remain unchanged for a period of 50 years. This became known as "One Country, Two Systems" principle.
On 1st July 1997, 20 years ago, the United Kingdom handed over Hong Kong to China.
The Golden Bauhinia Square is a public area named after the giant statue of a golden Bauhinia blakeana, the flower on Hong Kong's flag. It is located outside the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, where the ceremonies for the handover of Hong Kong and the establishment of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region were held. Every day a flag is raised ceremonially on the square.
No comments:
Post a Comment