Nationalism at Bay: The Chinese Nationalist Policy towards Hong Kong, 1946–1949

Abstract

The Chinese Nationalist government's Hong Kong policy appeared to be successful from 1946 to 1949. While its official principle was to shelve the matter until civil conflicts ceased, the government adopted tough rhetoric and actions in dealing with any troubles deriving from the colony, which underlined the uncertain political future of Hong Kong that the British could not ignore. However, this tactic was a result of the Nationalists' failure to strike a balance between the public's and local authorities' clamour for the colony's immediate retrocession and the central government's postponement policy. As a result, not only did the matter of Hong Kong remain unresolved but the public discontent against the government escalated and the Sino-British relationship reached its nadir. Yet the “unintended claim” that the failure in balancing caused posed a serious threat to British rule in Hong Kong and encouraged the latter to rethink the colony's future and how to administrate the colony peacefully in the post-war era.