e world of Suzie Wong

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influenced the current culture of Hong Kong, often
described as “East meets West.” Under the principle
of “one country, two systems,” Hong Kong has a
different political system from mainland China, with
a fair degree of judiciary independence. Boasting one
of the world’s highest per capita incomes, Hong Kong
has a service economy characterized by low taxation
and discreet banking, and its dollar is the eighth most
traded currency on international markets. It has
developed from what was once known as “Sampan
City” to a center for modern architecture with a
public transport travelling rate exceeding 90%, the
highest worldwide. According to estimates from both
the UN and WHO, Hong Kong had the longest life
expectancy of any region in the world (in 2012), and
the highest average IQ score in 81 countries. Despite
having at least another 34 years of administrative
freedom, the campaign for full democracy has been a
major issue for China in its special relationship with
Hong Kong, as hundreds of thousands of residents
demand fair and free elections and some even
propose outright independence from Beijing.
GENERAL PHOTOGRAPHIC AGENCY / GETTY IMAGES
S 1891: Officers of the
Argyll and Sutherland
Highlanders stand
behind the decapitated
bodies of the Nomoa
Pirates in Kowloon,
Hong Kong Territories.
The officers were there
to supervise the
executions.
Having gone from a pirate cove to one of the world’s
most important financial hubs, Hong Kong has a rich
and fascinating history, which inspired the 1957
novel The World of Suzie Wong, by Richard Mason,
and the 1960 film featuring William Holden and
Nancy Kwan. Situated on China’s south coast in the
Pearl River Delta spilling into the South China Sea, it
is known for its expansive skyline and deep natural
harbor. With a landmass of 1,104 km2 and a
population of seven million people, Hong Kong is
one of the most densely populated areas in the
world. Its population is 93.6% ethnic Chinese and
6.4% from other groups. Its Cantonese-speaking
majority originates mainly from neighboring
Guangdong province, where many of them fled from
China to escape wars, famine and Communist rule
from the 1930s to the 1960s. A colony of the British
Empire for over 150 years it has retained a fair degree
of independence as a SAR (special administrative
region) since the handover in 1997, when China
resumed sovereignty. The ethos of positive noninterventionism during the colonial era greatly
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FAN HO
by marco mona
S December 17, 1937:
British sailors march in
Hong Kong in a show
of power in the face of
the Japanese invasion
threat to Southern
China, which saw the
first ever British loss of
a colony.
HULTON ARCHIVE
e world of Suzie Wong
Q An inlet of Hong
Kong Harbor, known as
“Sampan City,” circa
1935, where some
150,000 Chinese lived
in floating homes.
Q Coolies and
hawkers in a Hong
Kong street wait for
work. 1958.
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HULTON ARCHIVE/GETTY IMAGES
THREE LIONS/GETTY IMAGES
R Soup served on the
streets of Hong Kong
to feed Chinese
refugees whose homes
had been devastated
by a typhoon, circa
1955.
P Sidewalk barber
shop, 1960
RICHARD HARRINGTON/THREE LIONS/GETTY IMAGES
S A worker carries a
bucket beside fruit
drying in large
containers above a
shack settlement and
the blocks of flats of
Shek Kip Mei refugee
community at Kowloon,
circa 1960.
RICHARD HARRINGTON/THREE LIONS/GETTY IMAGES
S The sprawl of
eclectic buildings in
Kowloon, circa 1955.
FAN HO
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R Street cars in Hong
Kong, 1960s.
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P Hundreds of people
gather onto Kai Tak
Airport’s rooftop carpark to capture a
momento of planes
making their last
approach toward the
runway before the
airport closed in 1998
to make way for the
new Chek Lap Kok
airport.
JASON REED / REUTERS
FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP/GETTY IMAGES
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Q June 18, 1997. A
member of Scotland’s
Blackwatch regiment
stationed in Hong
Kong, surveys the
sprawling Chinese city
of Shenzhen from the
Crest Hill lookout post
in the hills high above
the border, 14 days
before the handover to
China.
S Hong Kong during
the 1997 Handover
ceremony’s fireworks
display.
S Traders at work in
JACK BLACK AERIAL VIEWS
BRUCE DALE/NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC/GETTY IMAGES
SERGE ATTAL//TIME LIFE PICTURES/GETTY IMAGES
the Hong Kong stock
exchange, 1986.
P Construction
worker leans on
bamboo scaffolding on
Victoria Peak high
above Hong Kong.
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ANTONY DICKSON/AFP/GETTY IMAGES
P A fisherman sells
fresh seafood on his
boat in the port.
ULF BERGLUND /SCANPIX/CONTRASTO
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Q Downtown Hong
Kong’s commercial
district.
S Blocks of flats
stand on a 10,488
square meter plot close
to Victoria Harbour in
Hong Kong.
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MIKE CLARKE/AFP/GETTY IMAGES
JACK BLACK
P On June 12, 2013 a
new terminal opened
on the site of the
former Kai Tak Airport,
capable of
accommodating the
world’s largest cruise
ships in the hopes of
transforming the city
into Asia’s cruise hub.
PHILIPPE LOPEZ/AFP/GETTY IMAGES
P Fa Yuen Street,
Mong Kok in Hong
Kong.
PATRICK LOVE/REDUX/CONTRASTO
s Night view of Hong
Kong’s skyline.
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