Hong Kong Handover

Changes in Hong Kong Since 1997

Since the Hong Kong handover in 1997, not much has changed in Hong Kong. The British left in place the Basic Law, to protect Hong Kong’s ‘way of life’ and capitalist system for at least fifty years. However, some largely symbolic changes related to royalty and Britishness have taken place. See the list below for the Hong Kong handovers superficial changes.

1.Goodbye Queen Liz

Queen Elizabeth II’s portrait that graced banknotes and postage stamps has been withdrawn. The flower of Hong Kong, the Bauhinia has replaced her highness in most cases. Many coins from before 1997 are still in circulation.

2.Lowering the Flag

All state buildings now fly the flag of the PRC, often alongside the flag of Hong Kong, rather than the Union Jack.

3.Happy Holidays

Public Holidays were revamped, many British standards like the Queen's birthday were dropped, while more traditional Chinese ones, such as Buddha’s Birthday have taken their place. Hong Kong still celebrates Christmas and Easter.

4.No More Royal

Organisations such as the Royal Society for the Protection of Animals were forced to drop the Royal from their title. The only organization exempted was the Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club.

5.Lingua France

The official languages of Hong Kong remain Cantonese and English, however the government now pursues a tri-lingual policy, inclusive of Mandarin. One interesting change is the Hong Kong subway, the MTR, where Mandarin swapped with English as the number two announcement.

6.Green Changes

The traditional British red post boxes were replaced by the Hong Kong posts green ones.