New China
New China
This chapter discusses China's condition after the Japanese invasion, after the civil war between the Nationalists and Communists, and after the establishment of the People's Republic of China. In this chapter, the account of the so-called emerging New China is told and narrated through the visit of Stanley Kwan to his native homeland. Embarking on a journey back to his homeland, Kwan saw a stark contrast between the People's Republic of China and the British colony of Hong Kong. While Hong Kong's economic conditions improved after the war, the so-called New China was in stagnation, frozen in time even after the efforts to revive the economic conditions of China. While China had began to forge friendships with other countries, particularly with the U.S. who was in good relations with the government of Taiwan (the ousted China's government), China had on a few occasions struggled to fight the diminished yet still proliferating Cultural Revolution. When the Cultural Revolution was finally contained, China began to pave its path as one of the leading manufacturing places in the world. With Britain's lease about to expire and with the increasing ties of Hong Kong to mainland China, many of the businesses in Hong Kong started to return to their mainland roots. Combining the economic development of China and the China-Britain initiated talks that would return Hong Kong to its motherland, several businesses moved to China. This posed a great problem for the Hang Seng Bank. With its affiliation with the Americans and British and with its “keep China at a distance” policy, Hang Seng was caught in a tug of war; between its relations with foreigners and with its need to forge relations with the now developing China. Despite an uneasy situation between Britain and China, Hang Seng celebrated its Golden Jubilee in 1983.
Keywords: China, People's Republic of China, New China, Cultural Revolution, Hong Kong, Hang Seng Bank, Britain
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