In 1997, the status of Hong Kong will change. Hong Kong has been one of two Chinese areas -- the other being Macao -- under the control of foreign powers. The Chinese see these as "problems left over from history," and they were the result of imperialist aggression and incompetence on the part of Chinese rulers in the nineteenth century. Hong Kong has been under British control as the result of three treaties with the Chinese from the last century, but in the mid-1980s China concluded formal agreements with Britain for the return of Hong Kong in 1997. The Hong Kong area, fearful of being returned to Red Chinese dominion, has been given a high degree of autonomy in the agreement with Britain, and it will be considered a "special administrative region" of China. From the standpoint of the Chinese, return of Hong Kong to their control has been an important issue of nationalism and sovereignty. The British came to Hong Kong in the last century and have administered it with varying degrees of control eve since. This control was challenged at various points in this century. It was challenged strongly by the government of Chiang Kai-Shek, the government that eventually ended up separated from mainland China and in power only on Taiwan. The British were adamant in their refusal to return Hong Kong to Chinese control. After World War II, the Chinese Communist government was less interested in the return of the territories, at least at that time. The issue is to what degree did Britain make use of propaganda techniques to retain control of Hong Kong, and in the sense that the term was used in the war and alter in the cold War, Britain did little to engage in propaganda. What Britain did do was shape its message to be clear and to show a response to various Chinese overtures both when Britain was in difficult circumstances because of the war and when Britain was exhibiting a more traditional expression of national power.
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