The Hong Kong Diaries

The diaries of the last British Governor of Hong Kong, published on the 25th anniversary of the handover, provide unprecedented insights into how Hong Kong was run as a British colony and the negotiations leading up to the handover. Chris Patten's book highlights the strengthening of democratic institutions and his efforts to ensure self-government in Hong Kong. However, his opponents included British businessmen and civil service mandarins who prioritized keeping on the right side of Beijing. The book concludes with an account of Hong Kong's past and present, assessing recent events and Patten's reflections on dealing with China.

Format: Hardback
Length: 560 pages
Publication date: 21 June 2022
Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd

The diaries of the last British Governor of Hong Kong, published on the 25th anniversary of the handover

In June 1992 Chris Patten went to Hong Kong as the last British governor, to try to prepare it not (as other British colonies over the decades) for independence, but for handing back in 1997 to the Chinese, from whom most of its territory had been leased 99 years previously.

Over the next five years he kept this diary, which describes in detail how Hong Kong was run as a British colony and what happened as the handover approached. The book gives unprecedented insights into negotiating with the Chinese, about how the institutions of democracy in Hong Kong were (belatedly) strengthened and how Patten sought to ensure that a strong degree of self-government would continue after 1997.

Unexpectedly, his opponents included not only the Chinese themselves, but some British businessmen and civil service mandarins upset by Patten's efforts, for whom political freedom and the rule of law in Hong Kong seemed less important than keeping on the right side of Beijing.

The book concludes with an account of what has happened in Hong Kong since the handover, a powerful assessment of recent events and Patten's reflections on how to deal with China - then and now.

About Chris Patten

Chris Patten is Chancellor of Oxford University. When MP for Bath (1979-92) he served as Minister for Overseas Development, Secretary of State for the Environment and Chairman of the Conservative Party.

He was Governor of Hong Kong from 1992 until 1997, Chairman for the Independent Commission on Policing after the Good Friday Agreement in 1998 and European Commissioner for External Relations from 1999 until 2004. The Observer has described him as 'the best Tory Prime Minister we never had'.

Weight: 988g
Dimension: 165 x 240 x 40 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780241560495