Hong Kong Diary

The Hong Kong Diaries

Diary of the Last Governor of Hong Kong

A five-year anniversary commemorating the 25th anniversary of Hong Kong's return to China



"Serving as Governor of Hong Kong has been a very important part of my public service, arguably the most important office I have ever held. I believe that what happens in Hong Kong in the coming years will be of vital importance to all of us. We must continue to care about Hong Kong, speak out for Hong Kong, and demonstrate that we share the values ​​for which its people have fought so bravely for freedom and democracy. As we have learned from what has happened in Hong Kong, we cannot take the survival of these values ​​for granted. Hong Kong is fighting for freedom, individual rights, and dignity, and this is what we all fight for." - Chris Patten



Over a century ago, Britain acquired most of Hong Kong's land (the New Territories) from China during the late Qing Dynasty under a lease agreement. In July 1992, Chris Patten arrived in Hong Kong as the last British-appointed Governor, preparing to hand over Hong Kong's sovereignty to China in 1997, rather than granting it independence as had been the customary practice for other British colonies in previous decades. Over the next five years, Patten wrote these diaries during his governorship, detailing Hong Kong's operation as a British colony and the events leading up to the handover.



The diary offers unprecedented insights into the negotiations with Beijing, the strengthening of Hong Kong's (belated) democratic institutions, and how Patten sought the appropriate degree of autonomy that would allow Hong Kong to function sustainably after 1997. Surprisingly, opposition to Patten's political reforms was not limited to the Chinese Communist Party; some British businessmen and senior government officials were also deeply unhappy with his actions. For these individuals, maintaining good relations with Beijing seemed more important than Hong Kong's political freedoms and the rule of law.



Published in English on the 25th anniversary of Hong Kong's handover, this book reflects on the author's experiences with Beijing, both past and present. The concluding essay, "Hong Kong's Destruction," describes developments in Hong Kong since 1997 and offers an authoritative assessment of the setbacks suffered by the city in recent years.



Recommended by all walks of life



Akio Yaita︱Director of Taipei Branch of Sankei Shimbun

Wang Hao | International Political and Economic Expert

Li Zhide | Senior journalist

Wu Jiemin | Researcher, Institute of Sociology, Academia Sinica

Wu Ruiren | Associate Researcher, Institute of Taiwan History, Academia Sinica

Lin Chang-tsao | Legislative Yuan member, lead singer of Chthonic

Tao Jie | Hong Kong famous writer and senior media person

Cao Xingcheng | Renowned entrepreneur and founder of UMC

Chen Jianmin | Visiting Professor, Department of Sociology, National Chengchi University

Zhang Jieping | Founder of Enclave Bookstore

Yan Zeya | Publisher and Writer

Luo Yongsheng | Cultural Studies Scholar

Nathan Law | Former Hong Kong Legislative Council Member

(Arranged by the number of strokes in surname)



“Patten writes his Hong Kong Diary from his own experience as a political insider, filled with the feeling of daily battles with the mythical Hydra… Reading it in 2022 has an inescapable poignancy: it captures a singular moment at the end of an empire and reveals an extraordinary society that thrived on a brief period of democratic freedoms, only to fade.” – Isabel Hilton, Times Literary Supplement



"Lord Patten spent much of his time in Hong Kong navigating the relationship between British officials and local dignitaries. These people argued that there was no need to try to force Beijing to grant Hong Kong greater democracy before the handover, let alone unilaterally expand democracy without China's consent. This rich book is particularly fascinating in its details, particularly those related to the tensions between Patten and Beijing. ... The author's vivid prose makes the people, events, and situations recorded in the diary come alive." - The Economist



"Patten's five-year diary details his daily struggles with the Beijing authorities... It is a remarkable story, and will be of great interest not only to sinologists but also to historians of all kinds. In fact, these stories record the lingering glory of the British Empire... At times, the diary reads like a novel... Patten's conversational and casual style makes it particularly easy to read." - Simon Murray, British businessman, Daily Telegraph



"Because Hong Kong people are not treated as they should, this diary is full of anger and fascinating, crude but not inappropriate." - British journalist Stephen Vines, Literary Review



"Christine Patten's diary, kept during his turbulent five-year governorship of Hong Kong (1992-1997), has been published. It chronicles his struggles with Communist Party members, business tycoons, skeptical British cabinet officials, and high-ranking Chinese officials. As you might expect, his diary can range from gentle to sarcastic, but it's always a fascinating read." …His plan included increasing Hong Kong's voting rights and democratizing local government. The result shocked Hong Kong's elite, horrified its diplomats, and after just one round of talks in Beijing, the democracy-hating Chinese Communist Party leaders decided to ostracize and discredit Governor Patten… Yet, Patten's attempt was courageous and honorable, and his efforts and actions will be recorded in history." —Michael Sheridan, The Sunday Times



This book chronicles events from Patten's appointment in April 1992 to the handover of sovereignty more than five years later. The content has never been published before, making it both fascinating and highly readable. In the book's afterword, Patten offers a powerful perspective on Hong Kong today. It is a passionate polemical essay, revealing how the Beijing authorities are subverting and undermining the promises made by China and Britain regarding Hong Kong's future, and in increasingly barbaric and brutal ways. Patten's condemnation of Xi Jinping's crackdown on Hong Kong is forceful and forceful. Twenty-five years later, as nationalism has grown in the global order and nations have shifted their focus inward, the diary bears witness to one thing: despite Patten's limited achievements in political reform, his perspective on the current situation in Hong Kong is far more profound than that of Edward Heath. Heath, Geoffrey Howe, and Stephen Harrow have provided relatively accurate and conscientious predictions." —Martin Kettle, The Guardian



“In his diary, we see a host of visitors to his sitting room in Governor’s House: from Mother Teresa to Margaret Thatcher… Eschewing the traditional feathered hats, uniforms, and hollow praise associated with governing Hong Kong, an outpost of the British Empire, he did not hesitate to conduct a series of community walks, hold question-and-answer sessions, and explore solutions for the redistribution of wealth. He also made no secret of his sympathy for the pro-democracy camp.” —Chris Mullin, The Spectator



"This book closely examines how China has broken its promises to Hong Kong—beginning with covert tactics and progressing to overt and sudden, brutal deprivations of Hong Kong people's freedoms—and traces the impact of these actions on their lives... The diary covers Chris Patten's tenure as Governor of Hong Kong from 1992 to 1997, a period that was frustrating but also fruitful... In the years before the handover, Patten was a genial and A genial and self-deprecating companion... Reading his diary, we see that Britain, or any other country, will gain nothing politically and gain no commercial advantage by abandoning its principles of freedom and repeatedly compromising with the CCP's demands. He cites trade and investment data from the final decades of British rule in Hong Kong, demonstrating that there is virtually no correlation between kowtow to the Beijing government and tangible commercial returns. —Victor Mallet, Financial Times



“In ‘Hong Kong Diary,’ Chris Patten details his struggle to revitalize the dying years of British rule during his last term as governor. His conviction that sowing the seeds of democracy would make Hong Kong more resilient after the handover to Chinese sovereignty will continue to be debated by historians, and this book will serve as fodder for their research. We should also cherish the book’s brilliant and passionate concluding essay, which highlights how Beijing’s recent crackdown on Hong Kong has destroyed its way of life. As Patten puts it, ‘Hong Kong’s fight for freedom, individual rights, and dignity is our shared struggle.’”—Peter Ricketts, Engelsberg Ideas Books of the Year



“‘Hong Kong Diary’… details Chris Patten’s tireless but ultimately unsuccessful efforts to ensure the continuation of Hong Kong’s freedoms… Despite Patten’s best efforts, Hong Kong becomes the ‘canary in the coal mine,’ and we witness the consequences of allowing the Chinese Communist Party to have its way.” —L. Gordon Crovitz, Wall Street Journal



"Rome wasn't built in a day, and neither was Hong Kong today. The diary of Chris Patten, the last British Governor of Hong Kong, reveals how the Chinese and British governments gradually "facilitated" the "One Country, Two Systems" policy during the final days of British rule in Hong Kong, as well as how the people of Hong Kong viewed and responded to the transfer of sovereignty. By reading about the past, we understand Hong Kong's present and, in turn, reflect on how we can avoid repeating the same historical tragedies in the future." — Lam Cheung-cho (Legislative Councillor, lead singer of Chthonic)

2023-05-04

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