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Hong Kong in the 1970s underwent many changes that shaped its future, led for most of the decade by its longest-serving and reform-minded Governor,Murray MacLehose. Economically, it reinvented itself from a manufacturing base into a financial centre.
Political talks about theSecond Convention of Peking resurfaced in the early 70s. TheNew Territories land lease agreement would end within 27 years in 1997. MacLehose began visitingBeijing to talk about the future of Hong Kong withPRC leaders.
The British and the PRC governments began a long negotiation process that would ultimately lead to theHandover of Hong Kong in 1997.
UnderSir Murray MacLehose, 25thGovernor of Hong Kong (1971–82), a series of reforms improved public services, the environment, housing, welfare, education and infrastructure. MacLehose was the longest-serving governor and, by the end of his tenure, had become one of the most popular and well-known figures in the Crown Colony. MacLehose laid the foundation for Hong Kong to establish itself as a global city in the 1980s and early 1990s.
A number of MacLehose's most significant policies included:
With the rising public service provision came a clampdown on the free flow of refugees from mainland China that had powered the growth of Hong Kong since the Second World War. In 1974, the 'touch base' was introduced, under which only those immigrant arrivals who reached the urban areas were allowed to stay. Six years later, it was replaced by a policy of repatriation for all illegal arrivals.[3]
TheMetric System was adopted under the 1976Metrication Ordinance. Subsequently, many of thewet markets andtraditional Chinese medicine shops used theold Chinese system for at least another decade.
The Hong Kong government introduced six years of freecompulsory education in 1971, and expanded it to nine years in 1978.[4] Companies were also seeking well educated employees for complex projects. Seventy-two percent of overseas graduates between 1962 and 1976 would come back to Hong Kong to take on highly skilled domestic positions.[5]
On 7 September 1975,Commercial Television was established. It provided competition for the other two other companies:Rediffusion Television andTelevision Broadcasts Limited. Unable to compete, Commercial TV closed down on 22 August 1978 after only three years of operation.
The 1970s was when Hong Kong gained daily news broadcasts. News programmes ranked in the top 10 continuously for a decade. Other segments of theratings included TV dramas, which averaged 80 to 120 episodes, usually broadcasting at 7:00 pm. 66% of the population tuned in regularly covering 2 to 3 million viewers nightly. Popular series finales would empty streets and restaurants. Most series did not contain much if any Chinese traditionalism.[6] The theme songs of these dramas also helped revive Cantonese music - indeed the termCantopop was coined during this period.
Hong Kong also found itself at a unique geographical and cultural crossroads. Many of the western artists likeElvis Presley andThe Beatles were getting exposure in the music industry. Toys from Japan have arrived in Hong Kong via random and inconsistent shipments in the past. But the first big waves of Japanese products with staying power in the market place were mainlysuper robot toys.Gordian Warrior andBaxinger were some that were commonly available.
The 1975 Japanese seriesUltraman was aired, and was named as such since the protagonist had eyes resembling eggs. The children were fascinated. Kids tried to "fly" in the air, imitating their heroes. Two kids (aged 3½ and 4½) attempted a flight jumping off a 7-storey building inKowloon City on 26 July 1975. The younger brother was killed on the spot, while the elder was miraculously saved. The broadcast of the series was suspended for a while after the accident.
Themartial arts films starred byBruce Lee, including the 1971The Big Boss (唐山大兄) andFist of Fury (精武門) the following year, were sensational. Cornered for some times by Western and Mandarin films, Cantonese films were much revived in the 1970s, with the great success of 1976The Private Eyes (半斤八兩), directed byMichael Hui, which is said to remain the all-timebox-office king ofHong Kong cinema wheninflation is taken into account.
The James Bond filmThe Man with the Golden Gun in 1973 was filmed in Hong Kong. The film featured the wreck of SSSeawise University and that of the famous former Cunard Ocean linerRMSQueen Elizabeth.
In August 1971,Typhoon Rose passed over Hong Kong causing extensive damage, forcing the hoisting ofHurricane Signal No. 10 on 16 August. A total of 5,664 people from 1,032 families became homeless. The typhoon also destroyed 653 wooden huts and damaged 24 buildings, six beyond repair.[7]
In June 1972,torrential rains caused two serious landslides inSau Mau Ping and theMid-levels respectively. Around 150 were killed and many buildings were destroyed.
In August 1979,Typhoon Hope reached Hong Kong but has weakened considerably from the 150 mph wind earlier.
In the 1970s, corruption was a way of life in Hong Kong, being the norm in all government departments. Policemen would often extract bribes (popularly called "tea fee") before they investigated a crime, as did firemen before they rescued people and put out fires. ManyChinese detective superintendents amassed incredible wealth from their corrupt dealings withtriads and corporations. Their names have been seared into the memories of the older generations, their stories adapted into several popular movies such asTo be Number One (跛豪) in 1991. That is not to say British officers were entirely clean in their dealings.
In 1974,Hong Kong GovernorMurray MacLehose, realising the seriousness of the problem, founded theIndependent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC). The investigations and arrests of many police officers created a furore among the police, who protested against the ICAC and even tried to overrun the headquarters in one protest.
The Governor, concerned to avoid a possible police strike or even rebellion, at last issued a pardon, preventing arrests in cases committed before 1977. However, the pardon did not extend to higher-level detective superintendents. These high-level Chinese officers, famous for their riches, left for exile to Taiwan, which had no extradition treaty with Hong Kong. In time, the efforts of the ICAC changed the habits of an entire population and turned Hong Kong into one of the least corrupt cities in the world.
In 1970, theAmerican government returned to Japan the sovereignty ofRyukyu Islands andDiaoyutai Islands (known as the Senkaku Islands within Japan and the international community). The act stirred up Chinese nationalist campaigns which defended thePeople's Republic of China's rights to the Islands in Hong Kong.[citation needed] The "Hong Kong Federation of Students" (香港專上學生聯會) requested to protest atVictoria Park inCauseway Bay on 7 July 1971, but because ofthe riots four years prior,[citation needed] the police tried to reject the proposal. Nevertheless, the protest ended up happening and violence erupted,[citation needed] leading to the arrests of some of the students protesting.Pro-CCP media criticised the police intervention for its violation ofthe general will.[citation needed] The police officers involved were then returned to the UK.[citation needed] However, protests concerning Chinese sovereignty over the Diaoyutai Islands continued to be held the following months.
Many factors contributed to the decline of manufacturing in Hong Kong. The late 1970s saw increases in land prices. Along with the opening up of global trade with China via the 1978economic reforms, factories were gradually relocated to the mainland, where labour costs were lower.
At the same time, Singapore and Taiwan underwent similar developments to those of Hong Kong. The competitiveness of manufacturing similar products led toprotectionism to shelter local companies. As a result, there was less demand for Hong Kong goods.
Following decades of immense and sustained immigration, the shortage of housing in the territory became acute. Many lived in squatter settlements or boats, where they were susceptible to typhoons, fires and landslides. To improve the quality ofpublic housing and relieve overcrowded conditions, the government announced the Ten-year Housing Programme (十年建屋計劃) in 1972, with the goal of providing quality housing for 1.8 million people in 10 years. TheHong Kong Housing Authority was formed to spearhead the programme. The government also introduced theHome 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.
Wellcome, the firstsupermarket in Hong Kong, was opened inCentral in 1970. It was called "Gweilo market" by some locals, as most customers were westerners during the initial period of its operation, but Chinese citizens would soon embrace this new kind of store. 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), wine shops (辦館) and convenient stores (See Dor) (士多).Wellcome andPARKnSHOP did not take long to capture the market. The front and full-page ads of these two mega franchises aided in their increase in popularitywhere smaller traditional stores couldn't. The firstMcDonald's restaurant opened on Paterson Street,Causeway Bay in 1975.[8]
Hong Kong's first modern rapid transit, theMass Transit Railway (MTR) was opened in October 1979. The first line served eastern Kowloon fromShek Kip Mei toKwun Tong. In December, services were extended toTsim 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.
TheCross-Harbour Tunnel, the first underwater tunnel in Hong Kong, opened in 1972. For the first time in the region's history, people could travel between Hong Kong and Kowloon without taking ferries. As a result, small electrical boats likesampans (小電船) were gradually eliminated.
Kai Tak Airport was expanded in the first half of the 1970s to handleBoeing 747s, despite the limited land space and proximity to nearby hills.
People grew richer entering the 1970s. Not surprisingly, people started to look for some means of investment. The passing ofBanking Ordinance of 1964 would begin the tightening up of banks. A minimum capital of HK$5 million andliquidity ratio of 25% and limitation on loans and investments became the new requirements to operate legally.[9] People began to have more trust in their banks, and the accumulation of savings led to people's willingness to invest.
Soon, the stock rush began. New stocks were on sale every day; brokerage houses mushroomed; some people quit their jobs to become full-time investors, suffering a kind of urban disease that doctors called "stock illness". It is said that the investors during this period numbered to 500,000. TheHang Seng Index kept soaring, but thencrashed in March 1973, leaving many people bankrupt. The Hong Kong economy recovered only slowly over the next few years.
In 1976, a "Deposit-taking Companies Ordinance" was also passed to enforce non-licensed bank institutions to register with the government. A minimum paid up capital requirement of HK$2.5 million was also required.[9] The strategy was to mirror theDeposit Trust concept in the United States.
As a result of the water shut-down by mainland China during theCultural Revolution riots in Hong Kong, the government responded with adesalination plant at Lok On Pai,Castle Peak in 1975. TheHigh Island Reservoir construction went from 1969 to 1979, and was expected to be the same size asPlover Cove. The construction, contracted by a Japanese company cost more than HK$400 million.[10]
Tsang Tsou Choi, or the "Kowloon Emperor", began his career of calligraphy graffiti in the 1970s.