Elsevier

Journal of Historical Geography

Volume 42, October 2013, Pages 180-192
Journal of Historical Geography

Feature: Historical Geographies of Moral Regulation
Shanzheng (善政) and gongde (公德): moral regulation and narratives of ‘good government’ in colonial Hong Kong

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhg.2013.02.002Get rights and content

Highlights

  • The legitimacy of Hong Kong's colonial rule depended on a narrative of ‘good government’.

  • This narrative invoked certain moral constructs that were pre-existing in the Chinese cultural world.

  • Transplantation of these constructs on colonial soil was enabled by the work of many social actors across multiple scales.

  • Colonial urban projects were closely tied to emerging political discourses and translocal governing practices.

Abstract

While ‘good government’ has long been hailed as a defining feature of colonial Hong Kong, this paper argues that it should be seen as an epistemological ordering frame whose existence relied upon constant processes of moralization undertaken by many actors across multiple scales. Central to this was the invocation of certain ways of thinking about the roles of government and citizens implicit in Chinese historical experience. These moral constructs, transplanted and transformed within the colonial milieu, became central elements in the way many British officials and Chinese residents came to express themselves, and by doing so constituted themselves as governing subjects upholding colonial rule. To explore the role of these constructs in particular situated practices and broader strategies of colonial governance, this paper focuses on two case studies concerning the improvement of public health amidst growing threats of epidemics between 1900 and 1908. Although these efforts were not successful in containing the spread of diseases, the emphasis on self-help and revival of ‘local traditions’ for encouraging people to improve their neighborhoods helped engender a sense of pride and solidarity amongst the Chinese residents and propagated the idea that Hong Kong was an orderly, ‘civilized’ Chinese society superior to that of mainland China itself. Although both case studies are drawn from particular sites, it is clear that the initiation, implementation and effects of the projects were not confined to the local scale, but were tied to larger shifts in the forms of governance and emerging political discourses beyond Hong Kong. They thus highlight the ‘networks of multiple scales’ and the translocal processes through which competing conceptions of Hong Kong and its relations to the world were actively being constructed by different actors under colonial rule.

Section snippets

Private interests versus public goods: the regulation of health and the protection of ‘Hong Kong interests’

It is not accidental that the narrative of ‘good government’ in Hong Kong arose amidst growing concern over the threat of epidemics across the British Empire in the nineteenth century. The emerging belief that health and productivity of populations could be optimized by positive environmental settings provided new impetus for urban reforms, most notably in the expansion of urban services and introduction of building standards that would impart new ‘sanitary norms.’24

Cultivating ‘public spirits’: Henry Blake's plague prevention campaign

The outbreak of the bubonic plague in 1894 precipitated one of the most severe political and economic crises in Hong Kong's history. As in other cities hit by epidemics at this time, the outbreak led to widespread speculation over the causes of disease and much finger pointing at those held responsible for the catastrophe.51

Advocating justice: the inquiry into the administration of the Public Health and Building Ordinance

At the same time that Governor Blake was being commended for his work in the improvement of sanitation and public health, there was, curiously, a concurrent series of investigations into corruption involving government officials at the Public Works and Sanitary Department.89

Localism, nationalism and the narrations of ‘civility’

In hindsight, the irregularities uncovered by the Commission should not have surprised anyone familiar with Hong Kong's context because, as the Commission report itself acknowledged, these practices had long been well known. Nevertheless, the wide publicity of the report incited new public debates over urban improvement, the protection of property rights and accountability of the government. While the English press used the occasion to condemn ‘officialdom’ and push for the establishment of a

Acknowledgment

I would like to thank Stephen Legg and Michael Brown for offering me the opportunity to contribute to this special issue. I am indebted especially to Stephen Legg for his close reading and critical comments, which have been crucial in helping me to improve the paper. I would also like to thank Felix Driver and the anonymous referees for their helpful suggestions. Finally, my deepest gratitude goes to Mishko Hansen for his unfailing support for my work.

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