Title

Embedded coloniality in Hong Kong: from flower cultivation to

culture-led urban renewal in Mong Kok FlowerMarket

Advisor(s)

Szeto, MM; Marchetti, G

Author(s)

Ho, Kar-yin;

Citation

Issued Date

URL

Rights

2012

http://hdl.handle.net/10722/173877

The author retains all proprietary rights, (such as patent rights)

and the right to use in future works.

Abstract of thesis entitled

Embedded Coloniality in Hong Kong: From Flower Cultivation to
Culture-led Urban Renewal in Mong Kok Flower Market
Submitted by
Ho Kar Yin
for the degree of Master of Philosophy
at The University of Hong Kong
in March 2012
According to the Urban Renewal Authority (URA) preservation project
launched in 2009, the vibrant Flower Market in Mong Kok, a long-time industry
production, wholesale and retail hub, is going to be remade into a heritage
consumption area. The economic network of an entire industry is drastically
re-commodified into consumable heritage space, with disregard to the
socio-economic necessity of the Flower Market as a place for quotidian culture
and economy, and flower cultivation as a significant part of agriculture in Hong
Kong. Although the preservation project launched by the URA is still in land
acquisition process by the time this dissertation is completed, gentrification
around the Flower Market has already started. Business environment in the
market is increasingly difficult because of this kind of urban renewal in the name
of cultural preservation, without real regard for quotidian tradition, culture and
way of life. Government policy and previous scholarship have paid little
attention to the needs and contributions of producers and sellers in the flower
industry in understanding the Mong Kok Flower Market heritage preservation
project, which this research aims to rectify.
This dissertation studies the history, operation and transformation of the
Mong Kok Flower Market and flower cultivation in Hong Kong. Through
investigating the power dynamics between ordinary people, local elites and the
government in the process, this research discovers a kind of subjugated
knowledge, purposely neglected, but is in fact of great importance to the
understanding of how coloniality (colonial mentality) is embedded in the daily
operations of power in colonial and postcolonial Hong Kong. This implies that
the official end of colonialism does not automatically allow for the end of

coloniality, which this research discovers to be still evidently embedded in Hong

Kongs governmentality. In fact, coloniality can be glimpsed through
discovering its embedded operations in the daily operations and transformations
of the Mong Kok Flower Market and flower cultivation in Hong Kong.
My thesis engages in a process of decolonisation, which aims to explore
embedded coloniality as a method of disclosing unarticulated and unconscious
values and mentalities hidden in institutional practices that have been used to
govern Hong Kong. The government has implanted this mentality in a process in
which social injustice becomes institutionalised into well-accepted values in
daily practice, and in this way, coloniality becomes normalised and legitimised.
The government had deployed unjust social relations into executive protocols,
bureaucratic procedures and laws governing the government and
semi-governmental bodies affecting everyday life.
The theoretical framework of this study is principally drawn from Gayatri
Chakravorty Spivak and Ranajit Guhas subaltern studies theories, which
articulate the nature of subaltern people and their power dynamics vis--vis the
elite. This study is structured through an examination of three aspects related to
the flower industry: the first emphasises the dissipation of flower cultivation in
the New Territories in relation to the collaboration between the government and
the rural elites; the second highlights law enforcement patrols in the flower
market wherein the government uses street management tactics rather than
responding to the industrys requests for a permanent wholesale market; and the
third examines the heritage preservation of several buildings in the market and a
revitalisation project in the vicinity as a way of beautifying the area, yet in these
projects the government failed to engage the people in the industry in a
democratic process of decision-making to determine the future of the market.
My research explores three key issues relating to subaltern studies: (1) how
coloniality is negotiated, articulated, forced and infused into the flower industry;
(2) the impact of coloniality imposed on the flower industry through analysing its
historic and cultural context; and (3) to what extent does the government use
public policies (i.e. land policy, hawker control policy, heritage preservation
policy) to facilitate the economic progress of the city.
This study adopts a qualitative approach, using multiple methods such as
textual analysis, ethnography including participant observation in the flower

market, and semi-structured in-depth interviews with workers in the flower

industry, including farmers, wholesalers, retailers and floral designers, etc. I
performed participant observation through working as an assistant in a retail
flower shop before Valentines Day which allowed me to gain first-hand
information about flower shop operation and the customers perception of
flowers. Through these approaches and methods my thesis explores the flower
culture of Hong Kong and the power dynamics between the government, elites
and ordinary people.
The findings of the thesis reveal that the government often adopted
negotiation as a means of governance. For instance, the government used various
methods to incorporate local resistance as a way to facilitate development, but at
the same time, ignored the needs of the flower industry, such as the need (1) to
relax land administration rules which would have allowed larger pieces of land
for flower cultivation, (2) to offer an appropriate site for a permanent flower
market, and (3) to widen the pavement to solve the problem of street obstruction.
Instead, the government managed peoples request for a permanent flower
market. Law enforcement officers were employed to control the street and limit
illegitimate use. I found that a hegemonic decision-making process prevailed,
and the government tended to value professional advice but refused to seriously
consider the voice of the people. These findings reveal the unwritten power
dynamics between the government, elites and ordinary people and add variations
to subaltern studies which merely focus on the agency of subalterns.
This research is one of the first few local attempts to study the flower
industry through its historical and cultural formation. By exploring the point of
view of subaltern people vis--vis the power dynamics between the government
and local elites in executive protocols, bureaucratic practices and laws, this
research aims to adopt subaltern studies in understanding quotidian culture, and
to make a significant contribution to postcolonial studies and urban studies.

Embedded Coloniality in Hong Kong:

From Flower Cultivation to Culture-led
Urban Renewal in Mong Kok Flower Market

by

Ho Kar Yin
B.A. H.K.

A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for

the Degree of Master of Philosophy
at The University of Hong Kong.
March 2012

Declaration

I declare that the thesis and the research work thereof represents my own work,
except where due acknowledgement is made, and that it has not been previously
included in a thesis, dissertation or report submitted to this University or to any
other institution for a degree, diploma or other qualifications.

Signed .
Ho Kar Yin

Acknowledgments
I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to my supervisor, Dr. Mirana
May Szeto, for her care, guidance and inspiration, and not just on the academic
level but also in many aspects of my life as well.
I am indebted to my friends, colleagues and teachers in the Department of
Comparative Literature at the University of Hong Kong. To name a few Dr.
Esther Cheung, Mary Ann King (Gumgum), Desmond Sham, Clayton Lo,
Helena Wu, Fiona Law, Natalie Wong, Yan Tsui and Joseph Tang. I owe a debt of
gratitude to my academic fellows in Hong Kong and Taiwan for their
encouragement, help and constructive comments during the research, including
Yun-Chung Chen, Chloe Lai, Huang Shu-mei, Eric Cheng and Lung. My
gratitude also goes to Joanne Choi who generously helped me to edit the
Chinese-English translations in certain passages. Her expertise helped me to get
through the classical Chinese that is difficult to translate. During the final stage
of thesis-writing, Camille Lam taught me how to use Photoshop software to
show distribution of ground floor shop in the market.
My deepest appreciation and gratitude go to my informants in the flower
industry in Hong Kong, who spent their invaluable time with me, introduced me
to a fantastic industry and patiently responded to my tedious questions. They are
the flower cultivators, retailers, wholesalers and flower designers. Without their
support and generosity, I would not be able to carry out my interviews. All of my
informants deserve my special thanks for their interesting stories and wisdom.
Also, I also need to thanks the owner and the manager of the retail shop where I
did my ethnographic work before Valentines Day. Their patience in teaching me
how to deal with customers gave me a strong sense of what it is like to work in
the industry. Flowers are beautiful, but flowers are more than beauty. We should
acknowledge various parties who devote their efforts and hard work before the
flowers arrives to the end-consumers, which sometimes might be a painful
process for the workers.
I must show my heartfelt gratitude to my family, especially my grandmother
and my mother, for their support, tolerance and encouragement in these years.

ii

I borrow the title of an article written by a respectable Taiwanese writer

Xinglingzi (): Give Thanks to Thorny Rose (). All the
ups and downs of thesis writing are like roses thorns, helping me to become
more perseverant and humble.
This thesis is a record of the life of working class. When I was doing
fieldwork, I heard that two flower cultivators were chatting, the conversation was
very touching. He says, I dont need Donald Tsang to give me candies. I wish
he could distribute one seed to every Hong Kong citizen so that people could
paddle their own canoe. (
) This quotation inspires me to think of the distance
between government policy and the local needs. I wish my thesis could give
voice to ordinary people that are rarely studied and paid attention to in the
mainstream society.

iii

Contents

Declaration
Acknowledgements
Table of Contents
Lists of Figures
Lists of Tables
Lists of Maps
Lists of Appendices
Abbreviations

i
ii
iv
x
xiv
xv
xvi
xvii

Chapter 1 CONTEXTUALISING EMBEDDED COLONIALITY

IN HONG KONG
1.1
The Aims of the Thesis
1.2
Research Question
1.3
The Meaning of Embedded Coloniality
1.4
Approaches to Revealing Embedded Coloniality
1.4.1
David Faure on Coloniality
1.4.2
John Carrolls Coloniality as Collaboration
1.4.3
Chen Kuan Hsings Historical Materialism as a
Method of Decolonisation
1.4.4
Alan Smarts Revisionist Perspective on History
1.4.5
Ranajit Guhas Awareness of Questioning
Universalist Assumptions
1.4.6
Law Wing Sangs Collaborative Colonialism
1.4.7
Ranajit Guhas Hegemony of Colonisers
1.5
Always Historicise! An Awareness of the
Political Unconsciousness
1.6
Subaltern Studies
1.6.1
Gayatri Chakravorty Spivaks use of the
Subaltern Class
1.6.2
Ranajit Guhas Concept of the Coloniser and the
Elite Class
1.7
Michel Foucaults Concept on Genealogy
1.8
Michel Foucault and Subaltern Studies
iv

1
4
5
7
8
14
17
19
23
25
28
34
40
44
47
49
51

1.9
Subaltern Historiography
1.10
My Theoretical Approach
1.10.1
Type 1: Colonial Elites E(C)
1.10.2
Type 2: Local Elites E(L)
1.10.3
Type 3: Subaltern class (S)
1.11
Organisation of the Thesis
1.12
Methodology
1.13
Contribution of the Thesis
Chapter 2 THE FLOWER INDUSTRY AND THE FLOWER
MARKET
2.1
Chapter Introduction
2.2
The Culture of Flowers
2.3
Cultural Meanings of Flowers in Hong Kong
2.4
The Cultural Meaning of Flowers in Festivals
2.4.1
Chinese New Year
2.4.2
Religious Rituals: Ching Ming Festival, Chung
Yeung Festival and the first and fifteenth day of
each month
2.4.3
Valentines Day
2.4.4
Mothers Day
2.4.5
Christmas
2.5
Other Cultural Meanings of Flowers in a Persons
Important Dates
2.5.1
2.5.2
2.6
2.6.1
2.6.2
2.6.3
2.6.4
2.7
2.8

Weddings
Deaths
The Background of the Mong Kok Flower Market
The Flower Market as a Traditional Chinese
Market
Geographical Location
History of Mong Kok
The History of the Mong Kok Flower Market
The Hong Kong Tourism Board Version
Embedded Coloniality in Preserving Mong Kok
Flower Market
A Brief History of Mong Kok Flower Market in
Hong Kong

54
58
60
60
63
65
67
70

72
73
75
79
81
83

85
88
89
90
90
93
96
98
102
103
105
108
114

2.9
2.9.1
2.9.2
2.9.3
2.9.4
2.9.5
2.10
2.11
2.12
2.13
2.14
2.15

A Subaltern Historiographical Reading of the Flower

Market
Stage 1: Flower Market on the Boundary
between Kowloon and the New Territories
Stage 2: Squatter Fire in the Fa Hui Village
Village
Stage 3: Street Trading along Boundary Street
Stage 4: The Urban Council and the Flower
Market at the Volleyball Court at Fa Hui Park
Stage 5: Development of Shops on Flower
Market Road and Enhanced Corporatisation
The Existing Situation of the Flower Market
Daily Operation of the Flower Market
Government Attitudes Towards the Flower Industry
The Flower Sector as Green Leisure Activity
Future Possibilities of Hong Kongs Flower Industry
Chapter Summary

Chapter 3 EMBEDDED COLONIALITY OF FLOWER

CULTIVATION IN THE NEW TERRITORIES
3.1
Chapter Introduction
3.2
Cultivation as the Origin of Culture and
Development in the East and the West
3.3
Genealogy of Flower Cultivation in Hong Kong
3.4
Technological Aids for Farmers
3.5
Survival of Flower Cultivation in Contemporary
Hong Kong
3.6
Available Land for Flower Cultivators
3.7
3.8
3.9
3.10

Flower Market: A Place Related to Flower

Cultivation and Flower Consumption
Reasons for the Changes in the Flower Industry in
Hong Kong
Colonial Developmentalism in Hong Kong
Chapter Summary

vi

120
120
120
122
126
128
129
133
142
147
153
156

158
160
162
169
173
178
185
188
192
204

Chapter 4 EMBEDDED COLONIALITY IN THE FLOWER

MARKET: A STUDY IN THE CONTROL OF LAW
ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS
4.1
Chapter Introduction
4.2
Colonialism and the Use of Space
4.3
Law Enforcement Officers in the Mong Kok Flower
Market
4.4
Tension between Residents and Flower Shop
Operators
4.5
Management of the Flower Market in the Era of the
Urban Services Department
4.6
Separation of Flower Growers and Flower Traders
Conducting Import Trade
4.7
Existence of Embedded Coloniality in Urban
Services Departments Intervention
4.8
Opposition to Urban Services Departments Law
Enforcement and the Governments Response
4.9
Governments Failure to Create a Permanent Flower
Market in the Colonial Era
4.10
Management of the Flower Market in the Era of
Food and Environmental Hygiene Department
4.11
Florists Reasons for Street Obstruction
4.12
Local Community Leaders Misunderstood Florists
Needs
4.13
Legislation of Hygiene and Street Obstruction
4.14
Difficulty in the Enhancement of Local Culture as a
Result of Law Enforcement
4.15
Frequent Confrontations between Florists and Law
Enforcement Officers
4.16
Serious Tensions and Protest in the Flower Market
before Chinese New Year
4.17
Unfeasible Florist Self-management
4.18
Governments Failure to Respond to a Permanent
Flower Market in the Postcolonial Era
4.19
Contemporary Role of Flower Cultivators and
Flower Traders

vii

206
208
209
211
211
216
219
220
221
224
225
227
228
231
232
235
241
243
249

4.20

4.21

Temporary Relocation of Flower Cultivators

Reveals the Governments Irresponsibility toward
Flower Growers
Chapter Summary

Chapter 5 EMBEDDED COLONIALITY IN THE FLOWER

MAREKT: THE CASE OF HERITAGE
PRESERVATION AND REVITALISATION
5.1
Chapter Introduction
5.2
Heritage from Below
5.3
Culture and Heritage
5.4
Polemical Relations of Development and
Conservation in Hong Kong
5.5
The Conservation Arguments for Flower Trading
Heritage
5.6
Heritage Conservation and Urban Development by
the Urban Renewal Authority
5.7
The Urban Renewal Authority Heritage Preservation
Project for a Cultural-led Flower Market
5.8
Florists Use of Space in Tong Lau buildings
5.9
Non-transparent Consultative Procedures in
Government
5.9.1
Non-transparent Consultative Procedures with
Urban Renewal Authoritys Initial Consultation
5.9.2
Non-transparent Consultative Procedures with
Planning Department and Urban Renewal
Authority
5.9.3
Non-transparent Consultative Procedures with
the People at the Town Planning Board
Meeting
5.10
The Revitalisation Project in the Flower Market
5.11
Gentrification: The Consequence of Urban Renewal
in the Flower Market
5.11.1
Urban Renewal and Change of Nearby
Landscape The Case of No. 1 Flower Market
Road
5.11.2
Gentrification around the Flower Market: No.
179 Prince Edward Road West
viii

251

257

261
264
268
271
274
278
285
297
302
303
310

313

318
328
332

336

5.12
Chapter 6
6.1
6.2
6.3
6.4
6.5

Chapter Summary

340

CONCLUSION
The Necessities of Acknowledging Embedded
Coloniality
Negotiation between Government and Elites
Ignorance of the Needs of the Flower Industry
Public Policies as a Tool for Facilitating Economic
Progress
Complexity of an Agency

Geographical Names
Glossary
Appendices
Bibliography

345
346
347
349
350

352
354
356
386

ix

Figures
Figure 1.1
General configuration of power

29

Figure 1.2
Relational mapping of between Elite, Subaltern (in Guhas
sense) and Subaltern (in Spivaks sense)

59

Figure 2.1
Flower trading on Flower Market Road before Chinese New
Year in 2011

83

Figure 2.2
Backyard of a flower shop preparing Valentines Day flower
bouquets

86

Figure 2.3
Flower bouquets and floral gift for Valentines Day

87

Figure 2.4
Christmas tree, poinsettia, flower wreath and garlands

90

Figure 2.5
Venue decoration and bridal bouquets from a flower designer

92

Figure 2.6
Sympathy stands used in funerals

94

Figure 2.7
Sign introducing the flower market and bird garden
Figure 2.8
A picture illustrating the value of Tong Lau buildings in Mong
Kok in the conservation report. The picture is of a parade
celebrating the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II passing a
section of Nathan Road between Mong Kok Road and Argyle
Street, 1953
Figure 2.9
Customers selecting gladiolus and chrysanthemum in flower
market in the past

108
110

117

Figure 2.10
Fire hazard in the Fa Hui Village in 1955

121

Figure 2.11
A wide road outside Fa Hui Park to accommodate street traders

123

Figure 2.12
Flower trading inside the volleyball court of Fa Hui Park
Figure 2.13
Goods are unloaded directly on the road in front of the flower
shop occupying public space

127
134

Figure 2.14
Goods are unpacked and put in buckets directly in front of shops

134

Figure 2.15
Different kinds of leaf branches sold in the flower market

135

Figure 2.16
Staff members distribute flowers ordered to their customers

135

Figure 2.17
Flower shop occupies parking area and pedestrian pavement in
the flower market

139

Figure 2.18
Officers of Food and Environmental Hygiene Department to
clear the pavement along Flower Market Road and Sai Yee Street

140

Figure 3.1
A peach blossom grows for three years in a flower farm in Mui
Wo, Lantau Island

164

Figure 3.2
The flower cultivator in Mui Wo is cutting a peach blossom and

164

prepares to sell it in a periodic flower market in Cheung Chau

Figure 3.3
Lucky bamboo field in Pat Heung, Yuen Long

168

Figure 3.4
Gladiolus field in Yuen Long

169

Figure 3.5
Flower cultivation with the technological aids from the
Agriculture and Fisheries Department of irrigation sprinklers and
water pipe
Figure 3.6
Potted Plants in a greenhouse in Pat Heung, Yuen Long
Figure 3.7
Visual illustration by volunteers supporting the farmers clearly to
demonstrate glaring difference between the governments
extremely outdated compensation rate and the actual market
price of the same crops today
xi

171

172
177

Figure 3.8
Relational mapping of colonial government, ordinary indigenous
inhabitants and non-indigenous inhabitants
Figure 4.1
Commodity chain of cut-flower and potted plants
Figure 4.2
Banners of flower hawkers during the slow-drive protest in
1989. The slogans read The activity of the Flower Market will
not be stifled! and the History of the Flower Market must not
be ignored

204

218
221

Figure 4.3
Florists blocked the road of the FEHD vehicle and argued with
the officers who removed florists property in 2004

233

Figure 4.4
Tense atmosphere during a struggle between flower shop owners
and FEHD officers in 2010

234

Figure 4.5
A flower shop owner arguing about the selective enforcement of
FEHD officers in 2010

234

Figure 4.6
Hawkers protest against the action of hygiene officers

238

Figure 4.7
Hawkers protest against the action of hygiene officers

339

Figure 4.8
Newspaper describing the hawkers protest against the hygiene
officers

239

Figure 4.9
Local flower growers selling flowers along Prince Edward Road
West before Chinese New Year

250

Figure 4.10
Relocation of the temporary flower market for local flower
cultivators outside Boundary Street Sports Centre No. 1

256

Figure 4.11
Temporary Flower Market for local flower cultivators
Figure 4.12
Relational mapping of the law enforcement officers, flower
importers and flower farmers in the flower market

xii

256
257

Figure 5.1
Buildings (Modern Flat) along Prince Edward Road just
before Yuen Ngai Street in early 1930s

286

Figure 5.2
Contemporary verandah-type shophouses before the Urban
Renewal Authoritys preservation plan

287

Figure 5.3
Illustration of the future verandah-type shophouses after the
Urban Renewal Authoritys implementation of preservation plan

290

Figure 5.4
Potted plants hanging along a pole suspended between two
columns

298

Figure 5.5
Florists tied wires along Tong Laus column to expand area of
goods display

298

Figure 5.6
Plastic bags are hanging on the column of Tong Lau for sale of
goods

299

Figure 5.7
Tong Lau veranda forms a covered arcade

299

Figure 5.8
Proposed revitalisation work by the Associated Architects
Limited, an officially appointed consultancy firm

322

Figure 5.9
Mong Kok street-based revitalisation scheme (First Draft)
produced by the URA and Associated Architects Limited

323

Figure 5.10
Illustration of the proposed flower market after the
implementation of the Urban Renewal Authoritys revitalisation
scheme

323

Figure 5.11
Mechanism of the rent gap in gentrification

330

Figure 5.12
Honda display room before 2010

333

Figure 5.13
Market bazaar of No. 1 Flower Market Road

334

xiii

Figure 5.14
Middle-class shops behind the market bazaar of No. 1 Flower
Market Road
Figure 5.15
Existing Tong Lau building at No. 179 Prince Edward Road West

334

339

Figure 5.16
Illustrations for the future of No. 179 Prince Edward Road West
heritage preservation development

339

Figure 5.17
Relational mapping of the Urban Renewal Authority and flower
traders in the flower market

340

Tables
Table 1
The hierarchy of the understandings and meanings of flowers,
from high culture to everyday culture in Hong Kong
Table 2
Flower culture in Chinese and Western festivals in Hong Kong

78

81

Table 3
Estimated local production and importation of flowers in Hong
Kong in 1995-2001

165

Table 4
Ground floor commercial activities within the Urban Renewal
Authoritys Preservation Area

301

Table 5
Survey Result in the Urban Renewal Authority initiates
area-based revitalisation plan for Mong Kok conducted by
Associated Architects Limited, an officially sanctioned
consultancy firm

xiv

302

Maps
Map 1
Location of the Mong Kok Flower Market on a map of Hong
Kong
Map 2
Map of flower market and its neighbourhood
Map 3
Area of trading before Urban Council opened Fa Hui Park for
florists in 1982. The area lies on the boundary of three districts
Yau Tsim Mong district, Sham Shui Po district and Kowloon
City district

103

131
216

Map 4
Map of Cheung Sha Wan Vegetables Wholesale Market and Fa
Hui Park volleyball court

222

Map 5
Map of the old and new proposed flower market the Mong
Kok Flower Market and the Chai Wan Flower Market

246

Map 6
Map of proposed relocation of the temporary flower market by
the Home Affairs Bureau for flower cultivators in 2010 from the
Mong Kok Stadium to Jade Market
Map 7
Urban Renewal Authority Prince Edward Road West/Yuen Ngai
Street development scheme plan with a highlight of shophouses

253

288

for commercial and/or cultural use

Map 8
The URA revitalisation area in the flower market
Map 9
Map of No. 1 Flower Market Road and No. 179 Prince Edward
Road West

xv

319
332

Appendices
Appendix 1
Semi-structured Interview Guidelines

356

Appendix 2
Interview List

360

Appendix 3
Timeline of Development of the Mong Kok Flower Market

364

Appendix 4
Ground Floor Distribution of the Mong Kok Flower Market

367

Appendix 5
Agricultural Land Utilisation

373

Appendix 6
Number of Members in Hong Kong & Kowloon Flower and
Plant Worker General Union
Appendix 7
Farm Working Population by Industry

375

376

Appendix 8
Summary of Agricultural Production Estimated Values (Crops
Only)

377

Appendix 9
Summary of Agricultural Production Estimated Quantities
(Crops Only)

379

Appendix 10
The Rise of Rural Elites

381

Appendix 11
The Number of Prosecutions Instituted by the FEHD Against
Illegal Occupation of Pedestrian Walkways or Obstruction of
Public Places by DC District
Appendix 12
The Strength of Health Inspectors, Cleansing Foremen and
Hawker Control Teams of the FEHD by DC Districts

xvi

384

385

Abbreviations
AAB
ADC
AFCD
AFD
AMO
CE
CNY
DC
DevB
DSP
FEHD
Flower Union
HKRS
HKTA
HKTB
HYK
LCSD
NT
NTO
OU
R(A)
TPB
UC
UNESCO
URA
URAO
USD
XRL

Antiquities Advisory Board

Hong Kong Arts Development Council
Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department
Agriculture and Fisheries Department
Antiquities and Monuments Office
Chief Executive
Chinese New Year
District Council
Development Bureau
Development Scheme Plan
Food and Environmental Hygiene Department
The Hong Kong and Kowloon Flower and Plant Workers
General Union
Hong Kong Record Series Number
Hong Kong Tourist Association
Hong Kong Tourism Board
Heung Yee Kuk
Leisure and Cultural Services Department
New Territories
New Territories Ordinance
Other Specified Uses
Residential (Group A)
Town Planning Board
Urban Council
United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural
Organisation
Urban Renewal Authority
Urban Renewal Authority Ordinance
Urban Services Department
Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link

xvii

CHAPTER 1
CONTEXTUALISING EMBEDDED
COLONIALITY IN HONG KONG

1.1

The Aims of the Thesis

Hong Kong has a unique status in the history of the British Empire. No

other colony had economic growth comparable to Hong Kong during British
colonial rule. A smooth transition to Chinese sovereignty in 1997 is also
emphasised by the government, and surely economic prosperity is the most
important element to preserve in the transition from the colonial to postcolonial
era. However, as a result of this smooth transition to Chinese sovereignty, the
postcolonial government primarily adopted the power formation and political
structure from the colonial period. Thus, the present Hong Kong government is
still working out of a political structure embedded in the previous colonial set-up.
The underlying assumption in my research is that coloniality does not only exist
in the colonial era, but also continues to affect a region unless a true decolonising
process has taken place in a society. Complicating this assumption is that there
are many hierarchies within colonised people, in which collaboration between
British colonisers and Chinese business and community elites has been well
studied by scholars. Nonetheless, previous scholars present us with a puzzle that
has been repeatedly neglected: for example, what are the roles and contributions
of local people in terms of power formation? What is the reason for there being
so few occurrences of resistance despite the colonial governments short term
vision for solving problems, for instance in land policy, and lack of a

comprehensive plan to contend with negative consequences? Existing

scholarship has paid relatively little attention to politics among ordinary people
and local culture but focused more than flower design and flower arrangement,
such as Chan Ki Sin Indoor Flower Arrangement in Hong Kong (Chan Ki Sin b)
and Floral Art Appreciation (Chan Ki Sin a), Hui Shun Wahs The Art of Flower
Arrangement (Hui) and Solomon Leung and Fong Fongs Solomons Blooming
Chic (Leung, and Fong). My thesis aims at investigating the interaction between
local culture and ordinary people as it has been affected by colonialism. A
historiography of the Mong Kok Flower Market ( ) and flower
cultivation in Hong Kong sheds light on the intricate and dynamic interplay
between political-economic factors and cultural identity politics in Hong Kongs
development and urbanisation from the colonial to postcolonial period. The
transformation of colonial legacies into the postcolonial present in Hong Kong
implies an even more complicated form of transformation, where postcolonial,
colonial, national and local desires, assumptions and intents interact and battle
over the meaning and future of our citys heritage. The explanation of flower
cultivation and the flower market has relevance than extends beyond an
exclusively local importance. My thesis aims at disclosing the ideologies
embedded in executive protocols, bureaucratic practices and laws governing
government and semi-governmental bodies and organisations, and to present a
method through which to reveal the implicit mentality which normally can only
be seen with great difficulty.

This chapter starts by introducing the overall research questions of the

thesis. I then provide a literature review of research on Hong Kong colonialism
and Hong Kong identity politics, such as David Faure, John Carroll, Alan Smart
2

and Law Wing Sang. Chen Kuan Hsins theory on colonies in Asia is also useful
to understand in relation to this literature. My research fills a gap in the previous
scholarship by offering a detailed discussion of Hong Kong stories told from
ordinary peoples perspective. I will make use of Indian postcolonial subaltern
studies to fill the afore-mentioned research gap, and to offer a theoretical
framework to analyse the issue. I will discuss my methodology and limitations in
the later part of this chapter, and I move on from there to present several case
studies that illustrate how to use subaltern studies as a framework to understand
quotidian culture and a tool for the decolonisation process.

A key move I make in this chapter is to coin the term embedded

coloniality as a way to expose the unarticulated and unconscious values and
attitudes in institutional practices used to rule Hong Kong in the colonial and
post-1997 era. I will examine the case studies of the Mong Kok Flower Market
and flower cultivation to illustrate how coloniality has been embedded in
institutional practices. Quotidian culture is easy to overlook and might be seen as
too trivial in relation to questions of governance, but I want to argue that the
hidden logic of coloniality can only be revealed through studying these details
carefully. The chapters final section highlights the arguments of each chapter in
the thesis. This research aims at negotiating and unfolding the complex notions
of Hong Kongs coloniality in terms of government and semi-government
institutions in the post-1997 era. My major argument in this thesis is that a
process of decolonisation starts only when an appreciation of culture and
recognition of local history begins.

1.2

Research Question
This research is based on an integration of cultural studies and globalisation

studies, which is a necessary theoretical integration for the study of Hong Kong
as it is often seen as a global city that emerged in the passage from colonial to
postcolonial status. However, despite the political changes involved in becoming
sovereign, colonialism has never been challenged or seriously discussed in Hong
Kong. The internalisation of coloniality in Hong Kong is so ingrained, from the
level of governance down to mainstream cultural experience, that it remains
embedded in an overall way of life and in the operational logic of public
administration. The case studies of this research are focused on flower
cultivation and the Mong Kok Flower Market. Transformation of the flower
industry in Hong Kong is closely related to the flower market itself. My thesis
aims at answering the following questions:

Using the transformation of flower cultivation and the Mong Kok

Flower Market in Hong Kong as examples, what was the historic and
cultural background for the way coloniality shaped the flower industry?
In what way is coloniality manifest and materialised in strategies and
policies? In recent developments, how have the policies (e.g. land policy,
hawking control policy and heritage preservation policy) been used to
facilitate an economic growth of the city?

1.3

The Meaning of Embedded Coloniality

Colonialism is defined as the conquest and control of other peoples land

and goods. But colonialism in this sense is not merely an expansion of various
European powers into Asia, Africa or the Americas from the sixteenth century
onwards; it has been a recurrent and widespread feature of human history
(Loomba 2). By coloniality, I am referring to colonial mentality. Following Law
Wing Sangs reminder, this dissertation believes that we should move beyond the
mere political and material dimension of understanding colonialism to cater also
to the socio-cultural aspects, whose effects are in fact far more long-lasting. As
coloniality is a network formation, we should use a concept of colonial cultural
formation to more fully understand it. Law argues:

I would also like to underscore the need to look further than revealing the
political dimension of colonial rule. As a political critique of colonialism is
premised on a narrow conception of power, which confines ones attention
to uncovering the changing strategies of colonial rule, it tends to treat
colonial power as no more than an instrument for the willful domination of
the colonisers over the colonised. What is missing is a perspective that can
reveal how colonial power exists and operates as an impersonal force
through a multiplicity of sites and channels, through which the impersonal
forces may still linger in the absence of a discernable coloniser. Failing to
conceive of colonial power as a network of relations, a political critique of
colonialism may run the risk of perpetuating a monolithic, universal
definition of colonialism that can account for neither related transformations
nor spaces of possible resistance (Law Wing Sang 3, emphasis added).

Laws understanding of coloniality reveals it as a network of power

relations that do not exist only in political dimension, but infiltrates into all
cultural practices, such as executive protocols and bureaucratic practices through
which law enforcement controls ordinary people. More insidiously, the people
are sometimes controlled by these forces without even realising that coloniality
continues to function in their mentality and operational logic far into the
postcolonial era.

Embedded refers to the way an object is fix[ed] firmly and deeply in a

surrounding mass, implant[ed] (an idea or feeling) so that it becomes ingrained
within a particular context. Embedded is an adjective which means to design
and build (something) as an integral part of a system or device (Stevenson a).
According to the etymology of the word, embedded refers to fast[ing]
(something) in place. A figurative sense of the word, to remain permanently in
mind, was popularised in the 14th century (Harper a).

Throughout my thesis, I will argue that the British colonial government

implanted coloniality firmly in Hong Kong society through a sophisticated
network of relations in the daily operational logic and practice of the city. Thus,
it was and still is, often hard to be aware of this coloniality. Consequently,
embedded coloniality is a process in which injustice becomes institutionalised
into societys well-accepted values and its daily operational logic (as common
sense), and thus, becomes normalised and legitimised. This injustice is also
active in executive protocols, bureaucratic practices and laws directly shaping
government and semi-governmental bodies and organisations and therefore,
indirectly affects the general public. These practices imply that a colonial
6

mentality is practiced in daily life, in the activities which people are habituated
to, and thus, they do not question its ramifications. This mentality is not just a set
of ideas, but occurs in daily life practices. Coloniality, as similar to other political
ideologies, is integrated into cultural practices that make people follow the logic
unconsciously.

1.4

Approaches to Revealing Embedded Coloniality

This research aims at examining coloniality embedded in the power

structures of the ruling class. Arif Dirlik points out that postcolonial criticism has
not seriously considered the way in which postcoloniality today is necessarily
shaped by the operations of capitalism both the way in which capitalism
globalises, drawing various local cultures and economies into its vortex, and how
it weakens older boundaries and decentres production and consumption (Dirlik
cited in Loomba 250). In recent years, the awareness of postcoloniality as an
issue has been intensified in our daily life. Although ordinary people might not
use the language of postcolonialism to explain the phenomenon, embedded
coloniality imposes tremendous influence in the city, as was made apparent in
social movement articulations such as actions and slogan of the movement to
preserve Star Ferry Pier and Queens Pier (I will briefly discuss this in Section
5.6). As a result, these issues are now becoming more and more recognisable to
the public. The work of previous scholars ideas on Hong Kongs colonialism
provides a solid ground for this research and gives me an important set of tools
to investigate the meaning of colonialism in Hong Kong.

1.4.1

David Faure on Coloniality

I will begin by discussing coloniality in the work of David Faure, a

historian researching the history of Hong Kong and the related local history in
China. Faure argues, in brief, that coloniality appears in society because the
Chinese people were dependent on the colonial government. However, beginning
with the Hong Kong Governor Sir David Trench from 1964 to 1971, a
decolonisation process in Hong Kong started when the colonial government
stood on the side of local Hong Kong interests leading to disputes between
British colonisers in Britain and the colonial government in Hong Kong. Faure
argues,

My general thesis in these chapters is that Hong Kongs decolonisation

began from the time of Sir David Trench, who served as Governor of Hong
Kong from 1964 to 1971, and that it came about not because of changes in
Hong Kong but because, since the Suez Crisis of 1956 1, the British people
had lost a taste for colonies and the British government had lost the
financial ability to maintain a Colonial Office with which to keep a close
watch on Hong Kong (Faure 1).

However, Faures argument mainly focuses on a macro history of

dependency of Hong Kong people on the local colonial government. The micro
dynamics of peoples discontent and resistance against the colonial governments
in Hong Kong and Britain is ignored in such an analysis. However, we could not

The Suez Crisis of 1956 was a war between Egypt on one side, and Britain, France and Israel
on the other. An underlying motive of the British government in the Suez Affair was its concern
with the decline of the British imperial power; it was an attempt to restore British authority in the
Near East (Gilbert, and Large 408).
8

dismiss the importance of local peoples oppositional voice created in social

movements. The so called obedience of the population is just a result of their
failure to fight for the needs of ordinary people, despite having put up an active
fight. Therefore, Faures interpretation that assumes passivity (or active choice of
acquiescence) of the colonised in colonialism might not be able to see and
describe the power dynamics of different hierarchies of society adequately, such
as the power dynamics among ordinary people. David Faure investigates
colonialism with case studies on the imposition of quotas on Hong Kongs cotton
industry, the treatment of Hong Kong as Britain joined the Common Market, and
the devaluation of the pound sterling in 1967 with which the Hong Kong dollar
was tied. Faure intends to prove that

[w]hen the home governments interests were at odds with Hong Kongs, to
its credit, the Hong Kong government stood up for Hong Kong. The
decolonisation process began from that time, with a great awareness that
Hong Kong had a position to defend and that Hong Kong people could be
effective within the Hong Kong government (ibid 5).

Faures understanding of decolonisation focuses on the deviation of the

colonial government in Hong Kong from the agenda of the British government.
In his picture, the sole active agents of history are the colonisers, both in Hong
Kong and in Britain. Yep Kin Man Ray, a local social scientist, holds a similar
view point. Yep argues that when the colonial governor David Trench firmly
suppressed communists in the 1967 Riots, he did so by ignoring the suggestions
made by the British diplomats in Beijing (Yep 138). Faure further argues that
people are by their nature dependent and have to be taught their sense of
9

individuality. In the Hong Kong context, this argument surfaces not in a

discussion of racial difference, but with a focus on the Chinese family (Faure
12). Faure immediately quotes Lau Siu Kais work 2 to illustrate his own
argument about dependence on the government:

Closely related to the primacy of familial interests is the conception of the

sociopolitical environment of Hong Kong as a setting wherein individuals
and their familial group actively pursue their own best interests. Passive
adaptation to the existing institutional structure is the norm, and efforts to
transform the social order are frowned upon, particularly if they lead to the
disruption of social stability. Conflicts or trouble with outsiders are to be
avoided as far as possible, even at the cost of some loss for the family. The
government is perceived primarily as the guarantor of political and social
stability, so that a peaceful environment can be created from familial
operations. There is a general feeling of social and political powerlessness
and alienation among the Hong Kong Chinese. These attitudes further
2

According to the original essay, Lau Siu Kais utilitarianistic familism theory exhibits how
locals, such as Lau Siu Kai himself, after being administratively absorbed into the ruling elite,
help the ruling elite to explain why Hong Kong could develop economically without democracy,
and thus, explain away the need to accelerate democratic development in Hong Kong. According
to Lau, this situation happens not because of colonial and local elite deterrence, but rather is a
result of the essential conservative character of the native Chinese culture, which considers
democracy as neither an urgent issue nor the best solution to effective colonial rule. Rather,
economic utilitarianism is more important to the natives. Lau Siu Kais overall argument on
utilitarianism familism is described in the following way: The thesis of the whole study, briefly
put here, is that in a society undergoing dramatic social change, the inability of that society to
generate a relatively high level of socio-cultural and political integration, together with the low
capacity of public institutions and organisations to cater to the needs of a majority of the people,
would foster the emergence of the ethos of utilitarianistic familism and other similar versions of
it. The emergence of utilitarianistic familism in Hong Kong signifies, in turn, the elasticity of the
Chinese family as a principle of human organisation, meaning that the interrelationship among
the constituent organisational components of such an ascriptive-particularistic group can be
transformed and their relative weightiness modified. This process of metamorphosis is largely
guided by changes in the larger social environment and proceeds in the direction of maximizing
the amount of resources that can be controlled and manipulated by the group and by the
individuals in it. Though this metamorphosis is not forged by any explicit consciousness among
the Hong Kong Chinese, the whole process can still be objectively interpreted as being rational in
nature (Lau 4).
10

reinforce the primacy of the familial group and the adoption of a suspicion
and somewhat hostile attitude towards society and the government (Lau
74-75 cited in ibid 12).

In other words, Faures colonialism emphasises the force of patriarchal

society, and his view lacks an account of the agency of local people. Faure
believes that Chinese people are powerless socially and politically, and they
would depend on the colonial government to make decisions. Faure also quotes P.
J. Cain and A. G Hopkinss British Imperialism: Crisis and Deconstruction,
1914-1990 to elaborate the power of the Chinese elite. The Chinese elite who
rose to prominence were based largely on economic power, with a small portion
of them grounding their status on the mastery of Western knowledge (Faure 15).
Faures patriarchal idea of local Chinese is not restricted to the colonial
government but also includes Chinese elites. Ordinary people are absent in his
analysis on coloniality.

Faure also makes the assumption that colonialism is the empires decision to
help native people, and it was beneficial to the extent that the natives have come
to develop a dependency on the British civilising mission. His more revisionist
reading offers another explanation on how colonisation depended on the natives
dependency, and also how that dependency was imposed, institutionalised
and maintained. Developing this logic further, Faure explains how dependency
has been reduced due to decolonisation initiated even during the colonial period;
but this process of decolonisation is explained as an initiative of the colonial
government and not driven by the agency of the local population. This colonial
mentality described by Faure is true in a certain sense, since it explains the
11

colonial governments expansion through incorporating more Chinese elites as a

means of indirect governance. However, this idea only explains activities on an
elite level in terms of issues affecting government decisions.

However, I want to argue that a true decolonisation process, in a

postcolonial 3 sense, should also involve ordinary people. Without involving the
population at large, the so-called decolonisation process would become
superficial. At the same time, Faures argument is rather different from Leo
Goodstadt, the director of the Central Policy Unit of the last colonial governor,
Christopher Patten 4. Goodstadt acknowledges the resistance of the local people
and their effort to democratise and decolonise, and how the colonial
administration was forced to react to changing local agencies and power
dynamics. Goodstadt argues,

In fact, of course, Patten could not have ignored the political realities of
Hong Kong even if he had been aware of the full contents of past
discussions between Chinese and British diplomats. He could not have
resisted the communitys insistence on its right to be heard, or its demands
that control of negotiations about its post-colonial arrangements should be
located in Hong Kong and not in London. This relocation of policy-making
Patten could achieve because of his special relationship with the British

There is a discrepancy about how to spell the word post-colonialism: with a hyphen (i.e.
post-colonialism) or without (i.e. postcolonialism). To be clear, I will use the single word without
a hyphen. There is a particular reason for this choice of spelling. The word post-colonialism
emphasises a particular historical period or epoch, which means after colonialism, after
independence or after the end of Empire. However, postcolonialism in my view is not just
about a strict historical periodisation, but about forms of representation, practice and values.
These forms could be passed on from the period between colonial rule and independence.
Postcolonialism is never a clear category of historical periods or dates. (McLeod 5).
4
Chris Patten is the last governor of colonial Hong Kong between 1992 and 1997.
12

Prime Minister and the Foreign Secretary. But he made this autonomy more
than his personal prerogative. He entrusted a great deal of the management
of relations with Beijing to his team of Hong Kong civil servants
(Goodstadt 87).

Goodstadt re-states the importance of common people and the insistence of

their rights which affected government decision making. This contrasts with
Faure, who seems to exaggerate the hegemony of the British colonisers, and
understates the agency of ordinary people since they are not as dependent as
Faure argues. Goodstadts argument further marginalises Faures idea about the
dependence of Chinese people in Hong Kongs colonialism. Goodstadt explains
that the Chinese business elites were a group of independent-minded people with
a power to influence the public in a way that competed with the established
network built by the government. As Goodstadt further elucidates:

Indirect rule and the recruitment of the business elite into the political
system helped to minimise the conflict between the Chinese identity of the
local population and the alien character of its colonial rulers. But co-option
of the elite offered the colonial administration a further advantage. The
previous chapter explained how expatriate officials suffered from a
pervasive insecurity about the Chinese population fuelled by a profound
ignorance about its attitudes and aspirations. By acting as intermediaries for
the expatriates, the co-opted elite formed a boundary between the colonial
rulers and the Chinese community to keep the menacing majority at a safe
distance. Expatriate officials valued this reassuring barrier and were anxious
to retain it. The colonial administration fought hard to present the
13

emergence of independent-minded groups with sufficient public influence

to compete with its chosen elite for political credibility among the
community. In consequence, criticism from any organisation, no matter how
well-informed or well-intentioned, was regarded as a danger to British rule
(ibid 36).

Goodstadts understanding of colonialism assumes that the colonisers and

the Chinese business elites had a close relationship, and those elites could affect
the governments decision making process. Goodstadt looks at the impact of the
conflict between the British colonial government and the Chinese elites over the
way that Hong Kong was governed and the consequence for the community as a
whole, as well as examining how competition between different groups affected
the distribution of political and economic power. Nonetheless, Goodstadt
provides a valuable perspective to look at colonial dynamics on a high level of
decision making, and the ways political and economic forces impact on society
in general. However, ordinary peoples perspectives are not his focus. I want to
argue that local peoples life is important because an unconscious political
ideology is embedded in institutional practice and legal terms that informs
everyday life, and therefore these practices impose tremendous effects. Therefore,
understanding quotidian culture is crucial in understanding processes of
colonisation and resistance.

1.4.2

John Carrolls Coloniality as Collaboration

John Carroll, another historian researching on Hong Kong history, looks at

colonial mentality in Hong Kong in terms of collaboration between British
colonial elites and Chinese business elites. Carroll explains that the colonised
14

Chinese were securing positions in order to survive during the colonial era.
Carroll describes his project:

In this book, I address some of Hong Kongs paradoxes and incongruities

by examining Hong Kong as a political and cultural encounter between a
declining Chinese Empire and the ascendant British Empire. I focus on the
relationships between the British colonial elite and the leaders of the
Chinese bourgeoisie. In the century after the Opium War (1839-1842),
upper-class Chinese collaborated with their British rulers to build a place
that these Chinese came to consider their own. This collaboration resulted
not from colonial governance but from the initiative and endeavour of the
rising Chinese bourgeoisie, whose leaders worked in the spaces opened by
colonial inconsistency, neglect, and often incompetence, and shaped by
Hong Kongs strategic geographical, political, and cultural position at the
edge of the Chinese and British empires. The relationship between the
colonial government and the Chinese elite was neither domination nor
resistance, but confluence of vision as well as at times conflict of interest.
Although the two communities wanted a successful and stable commercial
centre, the Chinese elite and the British colonialists led largely separate
lives and built parallel clubs and associations. Their economic and political
collaboration thus coexisted with a system of social segregation (Carroll 2).

Carrolls interpretation expresses the collaborative nature between the

British coloniser and Chinese elites as their relationship is bounded by
maximisation of gain (either personal gain or how to carry out their planned
development). This understanding paves a way for our later discussion on how
15

the coloniser makes use of Chinese elites to indirectly manage rural areas, and
later incorporate them in governments administration as a way to reduce
oppositional voices towards its planned development. John Carroll further argues
that

I explore the fissures in British colonial rule that left room for local Chinese
elites. The gulf between government and governed, the governments failure
to provide adequate medical facilities for its Chinese subjects, and its ability
to provide a secure business environment that helped Chinese merchants
obtain recognition by providing services to the local Chinese population and
the government. Similarly, organizing festivities in honor of British royalty
and contributing to British imperial and war funds helped the same
merchants gain status from the colonial government. Colonies were not just
about exploitation; they were also about how people learned to work within
the cracks (ibid 9-10).

John Carroll focuses on the collaboration between British colonialists and

Chinese elites, and how the elites found cracks to survive in colonial political
settings. Carroll argues that the relationship between the Chinese elites and the
British colonial government was a way to deal with conflict of interest. Carrolls
understanding implies that the colonial operational logic was a way for the elites
to negotiate with the government and to extract what they wanted. However,
Carroll did not answer how and why local people accepted decisions that did not
respond to their concerns, such as the expropriation of land which took away
their homes and farmland through which they earned a living. Furthermore, rural
protests against exploitative terms and practices that challenge the legitimacy of
16

collaboration are not addressed in Carrolls analysis. I want to argue that colonial
dominance is very sophisticated, and these processes are only apparent through a
careful reading of events and practices. I will provide a more complex
understanding of hegemony through considering the Indian postcolonial scholar
Ranajit Guhas Dominance without Hegemony. I will offer Guhas insights in
Section 1.4.7 because his idea is useful to counter the arguments of other
scholars that I will introduce in the following sections.

1.4.3

Chen Kuan Hsings Historical Materialism as a Method

of Decolonisation

Chen Kuan Hsing, a Taiwanese cultural studies scholar, provides a clear

framework of the decolonisation and deimperialisation of colonial mentality,
which is useful in my research since my thesis attempts to reveal colonial
mentality as a way to decolonise a place. Chens research offers a historical
perspective on decolonisation, which expands the starting point of my research
as discussed in the first paragraph of this chapter the way the colonial era
continues to affect a region unless a true decolonisation process has been
initiated. Chen summarises his argument:

This book makes the theoretical and political argument that decolonisation
and deimperialisation could not have unfolded until the emergence of an era
of globalisation. By decolonisation, I do not simply mean modes of
anticolonialism that are expressed mainly through the building of a
sovereign nation-state. Instead, decolonisation is the attempt of the
previously colonised to reflectively work out a historical relation with the
former coloniser, culturally, politically, and economically. This can be a
17

painful process involving the practice of self-critique, self-negation, and

self-rediscovery, but the desire to form a less coerced and more reflexive
and dignified subjectivity necessitates it (Chen Kuan Hsing 3).

In other words, Chen asserts decolonisation as a conscious reflection on the

relationship between the colonised and the former coloniser in different aspects,
including the cultural, political and economic. This kind of relation is not only
about the current condition, but also involves a historical perspective because it
enables the colonised people to navigate and trace how current practices have
been implicated. My research borrows Chens historical perspective because, as
previously stated, a careful reading of colonial practice is important for
decolonisation. A careful historical reading allows people to understand the
development of policy and executive measures in relation to how the identity of
a place was developed. In other words, a historical perspective offers a way to
decolonise Hong Kong and to understand how current practice can be
transformed.

Chen further elaborates his idea of historical materialism as a means of

decolonisation. Chen argues:

A methodology specific to the colonised and their world is needed. The

formulation proposed here is based on historical materialism, an approach
which informs much cultural-studies research, but locates historical
materialism in geographical space. To highlight the importance of
geographical space is to emphasise the specificity of dynamic local
histories that is, how local history, in dialectical interaction with colonial
18

and historical forces, transforms its internal formation on the other hand,
and articulates the local to world history and the structure of global capital
on the other (ibid 65).

For Chen, understanding colonialism and imperialism requires seeing the

conduct, motives, desires and consequence of the colonisers. His analysis of
decolonisation implies an understanding of a colonial mentality that is consistent
in reasoning and action, and that the practice is a result of colonialism. Chens
theoretical parameter emphasises the role of the coloniser, and does not give
enough voice to ordinary peoples views of those colonial conducts and motives,
and how they respond to them. My research aims to fill the gap in Chens
analysis in terms of ordinary peoples agency and their understanding of the
impact of colonialism on quotidian culture.

1.4.4

Alan Smarts Revisionist Perspective on History

Alan Smart, an anthropologist researching Hong Kongs housing,

challenges a widely accepted understanding in the society. His idea is important
in my research because decolonisation occurs when we challenge a seemingly
flawless logic. Smart re-examines a widely accepted argument about the colonial
government that it built simple, low-cost public housing to meet emergency
needs as a result of the squatter fire in Shek Kip Mei in 1953, and challenges this
over-simplified story. This method is important to my research because it uses a
historical perspective to reconsider a well-accepted understanding of policy
practice. He explains:

19

I describe this story as a myth not simply because I think that in many
important ways it is wrong, or at least inadequate, but also because it has a
mythical quality in the more positive sense: a narrative that effects
identification within the community that takes it seriously, endorsing shared
interests and confirming the given notion of order The Shek Kip Mei
story condenses, simplifies and intensifies a much more complicated history,
as do all good myths. It expresses an important truth, but the antagonist that
had to be responded to by the colonial culture hero was not a single fire, but
a whole series of large squatter fires that plagued Hong Kong throughout
the 1950s (Alan Smart 2).

Smarts research project makes an intervention into the well-accepted story

of Shek Kip Mei. It is a way to break a single event into smaller parts for an
analytical process in order to understand and examine the constitutive
components of a policy. This process of breaking down the genealogy of a policy
is a process of understanding how policy was formulated, and to later synthesise
it into rendering a whole picture of governance in a particular time. We should
historicise an event and consider why the colonial government made decisions in
such a way, and to consider if there were any alternative practices that could
make a difference. Smarts research is significant in my research project because
of his seriousness in revisiting a well-accepted belief through his method of
historicising.

At the same time, Smarts idea of focusing colonial policy on ordinary

people is also worth noting because it is an attempt at investigating quotidian
culture, which in his case is housing practices. Smart describes the attitude of his
20

research:

I have argued that contemporary Hong Kong cannot be understood without

attention to the impact of squatters on the landscape, on the constitution of a
public housing programme, and along with other small manufacturers
operating out of legal domestic quarters or publicly-provided flatted
factories, in both generating Hong Kongs export manufacturing-based
economic miracle and its transfer into mainland China after the beginning
of Chinas reforms in 1979. Obviously, I consider bringing ordinary people
back into our explanations important, and to a considerable extent I will be
doing so in this book (ibid 8).

Smarts move of bringing back ordinary peoples experience into the

discussion of colonisation is revealing and highly relevant to my decolonisation
project because a true decolonised society starts when all levels of society
become aware of their own situation and know how and why their current
situation arose. At the same time, Smart demonstrates how to use concrete
historical evidence to reveal the colonial response toward the squatter problems,
and suggest that sophisticated historical research can offer a nuanced and
balanced explanation.

I agree with Smarts revisionist perspective on myths that commonly appear

in society, that lead to people over-simplifying the complexity of issues.
Nonetheless, I remain doubtful of Smarts other argument on colonial
mentality. He argues that

21

 it is necessary to go beyond ideas about the official mind or colonial

mentality in explaining colonial administration and policy shifts. The
relationship between thought and action is complex and rarely can be
understood as a simple enactment of underlying ideas, whether explicit or
tacit. Instead, actions are best seen as practical accomplishments. Ideas are
capable of prompting diametrically opposed courses of action. In part, this
is because actions make sense to the actor in a particular context and set of
practical concerns. Even when abstract principles or rules are explicitly
announced, they must be applied in concrete circumstances if they are to
have more than rhetorical effect. Critical legal theorists have demonstrated
that no matter how hard legislators try to specify how legal rules should be
applied, and

inextinguishable residual of indeterminacy requiring

interpretation remains. Attempts to impose rules are countered by processes

which reinterpret, sidestep, resist or subvert the application of those rules to
particular cases. The colonial mentality or official mind in action takes on
dynamics that cannot easily be read off from an understanding of the
abstract principles or even taken-for-granted procedures. At the same time,
the actions cannot be understood without reference to the mentality and
principles from which they spring and which are used to legitimate them
(ibid 8).

Smarts attempt to go beyond explanations of the official mind is due to

his recognition of the discrepancy between ideas and actual practices.
Accordingly, it is through the inter play among various factors, such as political,
economical, and cultural circumstances, that a colonial mentality is formulated.
However, I argue that through a careful reading of the actual government
22

practices, coloniality can still be found since it is a decision made by a coloniser,

and coloniality is embedded in their decision making process and way of
reasoning. At the same time, actual practices are negotiated processes. A
coloniser would not allow institutional practices to stay out of their control, and
their understanding of political environment at that time. I argue that colonial
mentality is embedded, in a very sophisticated way, in actual institutional
practices and legal means. Other factors, political, economic, societal and
cultural, affect actual practices in a certain way, but coloniality is still embedded
in these practices. Therefore, I remain doubtful as to Smarts argument on
colonial mentality. However, his historical method provides an insightful
analysis for my research. He describes clearly that practice is important in
revealing the colonial mindset because regardless of how detailed legal rules are
written, they are different in practice because of various political or cultural
factors. Smarts urging for a careful reading of practice implies the importance of
combining historical and societal perspectives not only in the case of analysing
historical documents, but also in understanding how concrete practices were
imposed on common people. My research will use Smarts method of reading
historical documents and practices with great care and subtlety in order to
facilitate an analysis of the social and cultural forces that affect ordinary people,
and I will deploy this as a way of reassessing coloniality.

1.4.5

Ranajit Guhas Awareness of Questioning Universalist

Assumptions

Similar to Smarts questioning of widely-accepted beliefs of the cause of a

particular event or policy, Ranajit Guha, an Indian postcolonial scholar, holds a
similar attitude of questioning universalist assumptions. This mentality of
23

questioning universalist assumptions is important in my research because a

scepticism toward received truths is tied to doubting well-accepted assumptions
that seem to be the truth. Guha reminds readers about the importance of
historicising society as a way to uncover the embedded coloniality implanted in
daily life. He says:

There is little in this sweet and sanitised image of dominance to expose or

explain the harsh realities of politics during the raj 5. On the contrary, the
presumption of hegemony makes for a seriously distorted view of the
colonial state and its configuration of power. It is important, therefore, that
the critique of historiography should begin by questioning the universalist
assumptions of liberal ideology and the attribution of hegemony taken for
granted in colonialist and nationalist interpretations of the Indian past. It
must begin, in short, by situating itself outside the universe of liberal
discourse (Guha a 20).

Historicising common practice enables us to question the assumptions that

people easily take hegemony for

granted.

Guhas

understanding of

historiography helps to challenge the hegemony created by colonisers as a

unified given. More discussion on the concept of hegemony will be in Section
1.4.7. Guhas questioning of common assumptions echoes with Smarts
methodology in investigating the Shek Kip Mei myth, and is also useful in
shaping the analytical approach of my research that attempts to overturn the
universalist assumption about new town developments in rural Hong Kong.

Raj refers to kingdom in Hindu language.

24

1.4.6

Law Wing Sangs Collaborative Colonialism

Thus far I have considered the way Chen Kuan Hsing underscores the need
for developing a historical perspective on decolonisation, and Alan Smarts
emphasis on concrete historical structure and how to use historical evidence to
explain practices that have been imposed on local people. I will further elaborate
the combination of cultural and historical perspectives in the work of Law Wing
Sang, a Hong Kong postcolonial and cultural studies scholar. Law argues that
collaboration is a key to finding an extended analytical framework for power
formations in Hong Kong. He advances a methodology for studying coloniality
by combining history and culture together to form an integrated historical
cultural study of colonial power which is able to further elaborate Chens
historical analysis of coloniality. Law suggests,

(Post)colonial analysis should look much closer into the multifarious

constitutions of coloniality, or, in other words, the diverse effects and
configurations of colonial power, before making generalisations about
colonialism and thus, postcoloniality. What is then called for is an
integrated historical cultural study of colonial power, which should go
beyond the opposition between, as Dirlik asserts, culturalism and
historicism (Law Wing Sang 206).

In other words, Laws argument shows that postcolonial research should

give close attention to the formation and effects of colonial power. Its analysis
should conjoint history and cultural studies. Law further suggests that

[t]o reject historicism, the binary schema in colonial study as well as the
25

associated location reductionism in colonial and post-colonial analysis

involves a dual task: (a) revisiting the nature of colonial power prior to
assessing or presuming any structure of colonial domination; (b) refusing
the dialectical structure of colonialist and nationalist discourses which treat
space merely as a passive particularity that specifies and fragments the
universal progression of history. Therefore, a re-theorisation of colonial
power as a power of space is called for (ibid 206).

Law stresses the importance of combining situated local culture and history
together to understand colonial logic. He rejects grand narratives and universal
arguments of historicism that reductively explain how Hong Kong transformed
from a small village to a metropolitan city. A re-examination of colonial power
can make the blind spots of previous scholarship evident, and offer a new
perspective to analyse the society. Local people, instead of having a passive role
in merely receiving the governments rule, have in fact challenged the rulers and
resisted the injustice that the government created. My research will adopt his
approach of integrated historical cultural study of colonial power to decentre
and disclose the colonial perspective on controlling the city.

Laws integrated historical-cultural approach proves a valuable way for my

research to re-examine postcolonial power, but his methodology of conducting
this is more doubtful. Law mainly uses newspapers, such as China Mail 6 (

), and cultural magazines, such as Panku 7 () as cultural evidence.

6

China Mail was one of the leading English Hong Kong newspapers.
Panku was a new cultural magazine launched by a group of young writers and artists. They not
only focused the new magazine on cultural and political criticism, but also organised activities
among its readers by pushing the Campaign for Lifestyle Innovation. Their motto was Lets live
more like Chinese. They grouped together a number of college professors, artists, poets,
7

26

Laws methodology of providing a cultural perspective through secondary

sources might unconsciously adopt the populist misconceptions of the writers of
the articles. This factor might affect our understanding of local people and their
quotidian culture because reading other peoples reporting might be alienated
from actual experience. Distortion also might occur because authors could add
their own interpretation, and this would shape the understanding of quotidian
culture in my research. In some cases, first hand alternative sources might no
longer be available for events way into the past, but as far as possible, in order to
avoid such distortion, I will use primary sources, such as semi-structured
interviews and casual conversation with flower traders, to verify and supplement
secondary data. Similar to Law, I will include the biographies of important
colonial rulers, such as Governor Frederick Lugard 8, and the use of government
documents, as a source for understanding coloniality that is not otherwise
available and the people are not publicly available for interviews. I will also use
historical documents (public records) and newspapers to reveal the mentality of
people, both the colonial government and the colonised local people.

Laws idea on collaboration is also useful in my research. He argues the

importance of analysing colonial power formation as collaboration. He says:

Collaboration is a key that can take us to look beyond a spurious dichotomy

between the coloniser and the colonised and to recognise in early colonial
Hong Kong the agential power of the Chinese gentry-elite, but it would be a

musicians, doctors, and journalists who were to design a whole new set of Chinese customs (Law
Wing Sang 142).
8
Frederick Lugard was appointed as Governor of Hong Kong between 1907 and 1912. He
established the University of Hong Kong in 1911 and became the first Chancellor.
27

glaring error not to consider how they bore the colonial imprints. For it is in
this early phase that we see how the development of an autonomous
bourgeoisie, like it happened in Europe, was both facilitated and thwarted in
Hong Kong because Hong Kongs development of collaborative power was
premised precisely on a colonial milieu. To get to the collaborative as well
as to the colonial nature of the power formation, I would argue, is the key
approach by which we can understand Hong Kongs political culture then
and now (ibid 29).

1.4.7

Ranajit Guhas Hegemony of Colonisers

Many scholars, such as John Carroll and Law Wing Sang, explain
coloniality in Hong Kong in terms of collaboration between British colonisers
and Chinese elites. It is understandable because texts and materials produced by
the upper class are relatively easy to collect. It seems the closer to the centre of
decision making, the easier it is to collect information, which is reflected by the
fact that most historiography serves colonisers. However, coloniality not only
exists in the collaboration between the elites who affect decision making, but is
also embedded in daily life and institutional practices. As well, coloniality can
continue to exist in the post-colonial era if a decolonisation process has yet to
take place. Studying colonisers and the people around them, without paying
much attention to quotidian culture, might result in researchers entering into a
mentality that is deeply implanted in the colonial system. Collaboration does not
offer an explanation as to why common people accept and adopt the mentality
that may contradict their interests or accept situations which offer them little
benefit. Unlike what Carroll argues (as explained in Section 1.4.2), I would
counter-propose that coloniality exists within a hegemony in society, but we can
28

observe it through a careful reading of practices.

The arguments of Ranajit Guha, an Indian postcolonial scholar working on

subaltern studies, help to review colonial power formations embedded in a
society. He argues that coloniality and hegemony form a complex relationship
through practices of coercion, persuasion, collaboration and resistance (Figure
1.1).

Figure 1.1

General configuration of power (Source: Guha a 20)

Hegemony, initially referred to the dominance of one state within a

confederation, is now generally understood to mean domination by consent. A
broader meaning of hegemony was coined and popularised in the 1930s by
Italian Marxist Antonio Gramsci, who investigated why the ruling class was so
successful in promoting its own interests in society. Fundamentally, hegemony is
the power of the ruling class to convince other classes that their interests are in
the interests of all. Domination is thus exerted not by force, nor even necessarily
by active persuasion, but by a more subtle and inclusive power over the economy,
and over state apparatuses such as education and the media, by which the ruling
classs interest is presented as the common interest and thus comes to be taken
for granted. The term is useful for describing the success of an imperial power
over a colonised people who may far outnumber any occupying military force,
but whose desire for self-determination has been suppressed by a hegemonic
29

notion of the greater good, often couched in terms of social order, stability and
advancement, all of which are defined by the colonising power. Hegemony is
important because the capacity to influence the thought of the colonised is by far
the most sustained and potent operation of imperial power in colonised regions.
Indeed, an empire is distinct from a collection of subject states forcibly
controlled by a central power by virtue of the effectiveness of its cultural
hegemony (Ashcroft, Griffiths, and Tiffin a 95).

Although hegemony is embedded in persuasion that is hard to notice by

common people, and resistance has been suppressed by the elites before an
occurrence of a large-scale protest. Guha argues:

[t]he important word hegemony which is crucial to our argument may

now be relocated at that point where its notion intersects with the trajectory
of real historical power relations. As used in this work, hegemony stands for
a condition of Dominance (D), such that, in the organic composition of D,
Persuasion (P) outweighs Coercion (C). Defined in these terms, hegemony
operates as a dynamic concept and keeps even the most persuasive structure
of Dominance always and necessarily open to Resistance. At the same time,
it avoids Gramscians juxtaposition of domination and hegemony as
antinomies. This has, alas, provided far too often a theoretical pretext for
the fabrication of a liberal absurdity the absurdity of the idea of an
uncoercive state in spite of the basic drive of Gramscis work to the
contrary.

Since hegemony, as we understand it, is a particular condition of D and the

30

latter is constituted by C and P, it follows that there can be no hegemonic

system under which P outweighs C to the point of reducing it to nullity were
that to happen, there would be no Dominance, hence no hegemony. In short,
hegemony, deduced thus from Dominance, offers us the double advantage
of pre-empting a slide towards a liberal-utopian conceptualisation of the
state and of representing power as a concrete historical relation informed
necessarily and irreducibly both by force and by consent. We shall use this
term in the sense discussed above as an aid to our study of the paradoxes of
power which made the constituent elements of D and S entails each other in
the manner they did in Indian politics under colonial rule (Guha a 22-23).

In other words, Guha provides a framework that allows people to

investigate the status of ordinary people. His analysis implies that people should
understand coloniality through a comprehensive and complex network of
domination and subordination. In Dominance without Hegemony Guhas states
that

[p]ower simply stood for a series of inequalities between the rulers and the
ruled as well as between classes, strata, and individuals. These unequal
relationships may all be said to have derived from a general relation
that of Dominance (D) and Subordination (S). It permits us to conceptualise
the historical articulation of power in colonial India in all its institutional,
modal, and discursive aspects as the interaction of these two terms as D/S
in short (Figure 1.1) While these two terms (D and S), in their interaction,
give power its substance and form, each of them, in its own turn, is
determined and indeed constituted by a pair of interacting elements
31

Domination (D) by Coercion (C) and Persuasion (P), and Subordination (S)
by Collaboration (C*) and Resistance (R). However, the relation between
the terms of each of the constitutive pairs is not quite the same as that
between the terms of the parent pair. D and S imply each other just as do C
and P on the one hand, and C* and R on the other. But while D and S imply
each other logically and the implication applies to all cases where an
authority structure can be legitimately defined in those terms, the same is
not true of the other dyads. There the terms imply each other contingently.
In other words, the mutual implication of D and S has a universal validity
for all power relations informed by them, whereas that of C and P or of C*
and R is true only under given conditions (ibid 21).

Guha offers another more dialectical perspective on analysing power

relations. He offers a more comprehensive account of power formation involving
people in positions of power (dominance) and subordination (ordinary people).
His theoretical approach shows the impact on society by a colonial power
formation in a comprehensive way. Beside John Carroll and Law Wing Sangs
discussion on collaboration (C*) between British colonisers and Chinese elites,
colonisers used different ways to control society, such as using persuasion (P) to
make ordinary people follow their rules, which might otherwise appear unjust to
them. One possible reason for the power of coercion lies in the force of
economic progress and modernisation. When people are drawn into these forces,
they give up their social rights to a small group of people who are seen as
indispensable for the development of Hong Kong society as a whole. For
instance, in the case of flower cultivation in Hong Kong, the colonial
government needed to acquire arable land for a new town development. The
32

colonial government, instead of using forceful means to resume land (the use of
coercion (C)), the coloniser instead collaborated with rural elites (C*) by giving
them material and non-material rewards so that they help the colonial
government to acquire land from small landowners (P). Although small
landowners and tenants raised sporadic resistance (R), since they were not
powerful enough to sustain it and faced the great power of the elites, the
resistance remained on a small scale. Therefore, the colonial government
deliberately used persuasion as a tactic to dominate the society, rather than using
coercion (C). Or it uses a combination of both, with coercion outsourced in some
cases to the collaborative local elite and their subsidiaries. This was done
because people accepted the dominant ideology of the general need for
development in Hong Kong and thus, offered less resistance (R), because they
were already unconsciously in agreement with the colonial position. In a later
section I will make frequent reference to the example of flower farm land
expropriation as an example of how a developmental logic has had a great
impact on society. This logic is not limited to discussing the Hong Kong flower
industry, but is applicable to other colonial practices which are presented as a
supposed benefit to society as a whole. These examples are used to demonstrate
how coloniality is embedded in power formations.

33

1.5

Always Historicise! An Awareness of the

Political Unconsciousness
In order to provide a way to understand and reveal unconscious ideas, we

should be aware of the mentality that is entrenched in daily life, and in the
context of my research, I will argue that this mentality is a colonial mentality.
Fredric Jameson, a Marxist scholar, argues that all ideologies have strategies of
containment which allow society to provide an explanation of itself that
suppresses the underlying contradictions of history and society (Hornes 268). A
function of ideology is to repress social and cultural change. Jamesons
theoretical framework allows us to understand our unconscious. His opening
statement in The Political Unconscious: Narrative as a Socially Symbolic Act is
Always historicise! In this Jameson suggests,

as the traditional dialectic teaches us, the historicizing can follow two
distinct paths, which only ultimately meet in the same place: the path of the
object and the path of the subject, the historical origins of the things
themselves and that more intangible historicity of the concepts and
categories by which we attempt to understand those things. In the area of
culture, which is the central field of the present book, we are thus
confronted with a choice between study of the nature of the objective
structures of a given cultural text (the historicity of its forms and of its
content, the historical moment of emergence of its linguistic possibilities,
the siltation-specific function of its aesthetic) and something rather different
which would instead foreground the interpretive categories or codes through
which we read and receive the text in question. For better or for worse, it is
34

this second path 9 we have chosen to follow here: The Political Unconscious
accordingly turns on the dynamics of the act of interpretation and
presupposes, as its organisational fiction, that we never really confront a
text immediately, in all its freshness as a thing-in-itself (Jameson ix).

Jameson points out that the importance of uncovering political

unconsciousness is a way to reveal the agency of both the object and subject in
society, and Jameson focuses on giving a voice to the subject. By using
Jamesons logic in a colonial context, the method of revealing political
consciousness is able to offer an analysis on revealing the suppressed
contradictions in history and society. This uncovering allows a way to give voice
to the grassroots and to show the impact of colonised life that is rarely
investigated in the society. My research aims to provide this function by using
the case studies of flower cultivation and the Mong Kok Flower Market to show
the effect of coloniality upon quotidian life of ordinary people. Therefore, I
perform cultural and historical research on the Mong Kok Flower Market as a
way of understanding the local culture of a vibrant place that is often neglected
by government officials and scholars. The history of the market and flower
industry I am researching is meant to contrast with the governments official
discourse on local culture. At the same time, historicising a place allows people
to understand previous governments treatment of the flower industry, and to
judge whether there has been any improvement of the governments attitude.
This idea will be further elaborated in Chapter 4 when I talk about the hawker
control policy in the flower market.

The second path refers to the path of the subject.

35

Jameson is hardly alone in asserting that people should historicise in order

to decode and understand their own situation. Guha also encourages people to
historicise events as a way of understanding their past status. Guha states:

To change the world and to maintain it in its current state has indeed been
the dual functions of liberal historiography performed on behalf of the class
for which it speaks. A bourgeois discourse par excellence, it helped the
bourgeoisie to change or at least significantly to modify the world according
to its class interests in the period of its ascendancy, and since then to
consolidate and perpetuate its dominance. As such, this historiography may
be said not only to share, but actively to propagate, all the fundamental
ideas by which the bourgeoisie represents and explains the world both as it
is and as it was. The function of this complicity is, in short, to make liberal
historiography speak from within the bourgeois consciousness itself (Guha
a 7).

In other words, historicisation is an important methodology to understand

embedded ideas in daily life situations. Understanding how history is written is a
way to think along the lines of the bourgeois and to identify the blindspots.

Arif Dirlik, a historian focusing on history and postmodernity, argues for

the importance of offering historical memory in relation to place-based history.
He argues:

The essays in this volume (is) to reaffirm the importance of history as

epistemology to restoring to contemporary discussions of postmodernism
36

and postcolonialism a sense of their own historicity. Historicizing the

postmodern or the postcolonial is not a goal in itself; it is, most important, a
means to reinject into critical scholarship a reminder of the radical political
visions that inspired it in the first place and must be an ever present source
of inspiration if such scholarship is to avoid degenerating into intellectual
gamesmanship, a fatalistic nihilism, or, at worst, the appropriation of
putatively radical critical scholarship for conservative and reactionary
causes. Historicisation requires some recognition of reality of the past a
recognition that we do not just construct the past as we please but are
constrained and shaped by the past even as we endow it with ever changing
meanings. The perspective of history is crucial to a critical grasp of what we
remember of the past and what we forget (Dirlik ix).

Dirliks understanding of historicising how we understand the past shows

the importance of self-awareness about how citizens are shaped by external
forces. This awareness allows people to explore how the past is constructed,
what historical events are included and what events are neglected. This
consciousness enables people to be critical about their subjectivity and to
understand their identity as something that is constructed and perceived by
historians, as well as seeing the inadequacies of this and ways they can intervene.
Dirlik further explains the use of historicism:

if Eurocentrism resides ultimately in the structures of everyday life as they

are shaped by capital, it is those structures that must be transformed in order
also to challenge Eurocentrism. Knowledge-forms are crucial, but not as
an end in themselves; they are most important for showing the way to
37

different kinds of living To affirm the historical role Eurocentrism has

played in shaping the contemporary world is not to endow it with some
normative power but to recognise the ways in which it continues to be an
intimate part of the shaping of the world that is not going to disappear with
willful acts of its cultural negation. One aspect of Eurocentrism, which
infused both earlier revolutionary ideologies and the accommodationist
alternatives of the present, seems to me to be especially important, perhaps
more important for the historian than for others because it is complicit in
our imagination of temporalities: developmentalism. The notion that
development is as natural to humanity as air and water is one that is deeply
imbedded in our consciousness, and yet development as an idea is a
relatively recent one in human history. As Arturo Escobar has argued
forcefully in a number of writings, development as a discourse is imbedded
not just in the realm of ideology, but in institutional structures that are
fundamental to the globalisation of capital (ibid 85).

Dirliks logic of rethinking past legacies with a present understanding

underscores the importance of historicising past events because Eurocentrism is
a blind spot of the colonisers. Eurocentrism is an ethnocentric view that treats
Europe as the worlds singular centre, with a singular historical viewpoint. From
a eurocentric perspective, non-European races are regarded as inferior and
backward (Liao 105). Emergence of postcolonial critique is a way to undo
Eurocentrism produced by the West and its appropriation of the non-Europe in its
sense of history. The problem with Eurocentrism is that it dominates the
relationship between other parts of the world and Europe, and how the people of
various regions perceive themselves. Colonial administration and education are
38

mediums through which a eurocentric perspective is transmitted and internalised

among colonised people. At the same time, a colonial governments policy
making and administrative practices are also modes of eurocentric coloniality. In
order to challenge this Eurocentrism inherited from the British, my research
historicises the flower market and studies the quotidian culture of common
people, which the coloniser often neglects.

To make it clearer, Dirlik argues that

we need a reaffirmation of history and historicity at this moment of crisis in

historical consciousness, especially because history seems to be irrelevant
either because of its renunciation at the centres of power where a
postmodernism declares a rupture with the past, unable to decide whether
such a rupture constitutes a celebration or denunciation of capitalism; or
contradictorily, because of an affirmation of premodernity among those who
were the objects of modernity, who proclaim in order to recover their own
subjectivities that modernity made no difference after all. A historical
epistemology will not resolve the contradiction or provide a guide to the
future, but it might serve at least to clarify the ways in which the present
uses and abuses the past and serve as a reminder of our own historicity
why we say and do things differently than they were said or done in the past.
Ours is an age when there is once again an inflation of claims to critical
consciousness. These claims are based often on an expanded consciousness
of space. We need to remind ourselves, every time we speak of the
constructedness of some space or other, that it may be impossible, for that
very reason, to think of spaces without at the same time thinking of the
39

times that produced those space (ibid 85-86).

Dirlik sees that people need to historicise in order to avoid predetermined

patterns of thought. Otherwise, it would be difficult to think of other possibilities
and find ways out of ideas embedded by colonisers in our society through
various means such as in executive protocols, bureaucratic practices and the rules
of government and semi-governmental bodies and organisations. My research
project aims at staying away from this operation logic by revisiting the history of
the flower market and flower cultivation. I aim at demonstrating how to reveal
unconscious coloniality embedded in social structure through a method which
could be generalised and used by other researchers for future decolonisation
projects.

1.6

Subaltern Studies
In order to offer a structural and sophisticated understanding of ordinary

peoples history and quotidian culture as a decolonisation project, I will borrow

ideas from Indian subaltern studies that analyse power formation. Beginning
with a consideration of the meaning of subaltern studies, I want to respond to
academic debates that have challenged subaltern studies, before I turn to the
detailed meaning of subaltern studies and offer a way of reading the society with
this theory.

John Carroll, a historian mentioned in Section 1.4.2, points to a lack of

complexity in subaltern studies and a tendency to over-simplify the complex
relationship between the colonisers and the colonised. Carroll argues:

40

Whereas Orientalists and postcolonialists see colonialism as grounded in

racial difference and otherness, David Cannadine 10 argues that this
emphasis on race has come at the expense of social structure: at least for the
British, empire was predicated foremost on class and status. But why must
colonialism be based on either race or class, rather than on both? Assessing
some of the problems in applying subaltern studies to Chinese history, Gail
Hershatter 11 observes how the contrast of dominant versus subaltern
overlooks the multiple, relational degrees of subalternity: a person might
be dominant at times, subaltern at others, depending on the situation and
context. Like subaltern studies, postcolonialism often simplifies the
relationship between dominant and subaltern (Carroll 10).

According to Carrolls logic, subaltern studies have a limited scope of

analysis on social issues since it only deals with race or class issues. Carroll
believes that this theory could not deal with the complex and changeable
relations between dominant and subaltern groups. First of all, Carroll is
misleadingly trying to claim that subaltern studies or postcolonial studies cannot
and have not handled at the same time more than one set of hierarchical
relationships. This is an unfounded presumption that complex, multiple relations
of class, gender, race, sexuality, social hierarchy, desire, cultural imagination
etcetera cannot and have not all come into play in subaltern and postcolonial
studies. Numerous subaltern or postcolonial studies have offered exactly such
complex, inter-related analysis if Carroll actually bothered to look and
acknowledge, and the overwhelming abundance of such scholarship testifies to

10
11

A historian working on European history.

A historian working on East Asian history.
41

the unfounded nature of Carrolls arbitrary assumption, which is perhaps, a

dismissive disciplinary gesture more than a studied and informed analysis. I
however, want to argue that unlike Carrolls criticism of subaltern studies, this
scholarship is more than a historiography project limited only to race and class
analysis, and can be deployed to study power relations in many and any aspect of
life. Subaltern studies aims at using historiography as a tool to discover the
colonial mentality that is embedded in society through legal means or
institutional practice and using this to create hegemony in the society, and this
hegemony can be in one or more aspects of life, with cultural, social, sexual,
racial, economic, class and other implications. Subaltern studies empower people
to understand the genealogy of the history of the place, and the government
practices that changed over time. However, such empowerment can only be
achieved through a careful reading of historical materials. I argue that subaltern
studies enable researchers to reveal the history of a place in greater detail and
therefore could uncover the coloniality embedded in institution structures and
daily life which people unconsciously accept. I will offer an explanation about
what, why and how people accept coloniality unconsciously, and ways this is
embedded in governance.

My principle theoretical approach in this research is based on a subaltern

studies framework which is used to reveal the complexity of local history and
culture, and the formation of the colonial power structure. I seek to establish a
concrete understanding from which to analyse local peoples lives as a means of
decolonisation, with a theoretical approach derived from a postcolonial critique
that challenges Eurocentrism and embraces the importance of ordinary people.
Therefore, subaltern studies provides a postcolonial critique that helps to revisit
42

local culture and to stay away from the traditional, well-accepted views of the
colonial administration and education, and can help facilitate a true
decolonisation process. Postcolonialism, as described by Derek Gregory, is:

part of this optical shift. Its commitment to a future free of colonial power
and disposition is sustained in part by a critique of the continuities between
the colonial past and the colonial present. While they may be displaced,
distorted, and (most often) denied, the capacities that inhere within the
colonial past are routinely reaffirmed and reactivated in the colonial
present (Gregory 7).

If coloniality continues in a displaced, distorted and denied manner, my

thesis aims to help create a future free of colonial power by offering a critical
awareness of this distorted continuity of coloniality into the present through
seeing it operating from the perspective of subaltern voices, whose critical vision
and experience have been continuously neglected not only by the colonisers of
the past but also the ruling elite of the present. In addition, Guha, states that the
aim of subaltern studies is to promote a systematic and informed discussion of
subaltern themes in the field of South Asian studies, and thus help rectify the
elitist bias characteristic of much research and academic work in this particular
area (India) (Guha b viiviii). In this sense, my research seeks to avoid an elitist
bias and to reveal the underlying logic of coloniality hidden in daily life
practices that directly affect ordinary peoples lives.

43

1.6.1

Gayatri Chakravorty Spivaks use of the Subaltern Class

According to The Oxford American Dictionary of Current English, the word

subaltern originally defines lower rank, or an officer below the rank of
captain, especially a second lieutenant (subaltern). Indian postcolonial
subaltern studies go beyond this definition to offer an analysis of power
formation. Various debates about the term subaltern in subaltern studies offer
various conceptualisations of ordinary people that enable researchers to
articulate their situation. The first definition of subaltern that I want to
introduce is by Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak, who is one of the most well known
scholars in subaltern studies and postcolonial studies. Spivak and Guha are
responsible for popularising the term postcolonialism in western Anglophone
academia. Her important work, Can the Subaltern Speak? locates subalternity in
the following condition: if you are poor, black, and female you get it in three
ways (294). Coloured and female in a postcolonial context shape the subaltern
class as the most dispossessed grouping. As Spivak says, [t]he subaltern woman
will be as mute as ever (295), and she argues that although there is continuous
subjugation of the subalterns, people who follow the ways of western
imperialism are able to live with a clear conscience by being ignorant of the
subalterns voice. These people often fabricate stories to maintain their own
illusions, blind to their own abuse of the subalterns. However, when the
resistance force from the subaltern explodes in the open and the ruling class is
forced to face the truth, they do not know how to handle it. Spivak uses various
stories to illustrate that the voice of the subaltern is intentionally suppressed and
muted by the ruling class, so that the latter do not feel the need to shoulder any
responsibility for the dark and miserable world that they have plunged the

44

subalterns into. Spivak uses a story (Devis story 12) to show how the ruling
classes react to the realisation that they are responsible for the plight of the
subaltern classes by mis-representation, denial, disavowal and retaliation.
Spivak concludes that the subaltern cannot speak and the dominant narratives
could never be written from the subalterns point of view (ibid). In other words,
Spivaks understanding of the subaltern implies that the dominant always
obtains power and has the last say over the interpretations and actions of the
subalterns. Thus, subalterns actual expressions are always already distorted
when understood by those holding positions of dominant power. In fact, it is
often found that the dispossessed people have voiced their opinions in public,
but their advice has been muted or distorted as it enters into public discourse,
such as in the official documents and the mass media. This thesis digs out the
dispossessed figures ignored by official discourse, such as flower hawkers,
flower traders and flower cultivators. The denial of subaltern peoples voice,
even in the post-1997 era, is a continuation of colonialism because a decolonised
government would listen sincerely to different classes of people and respond to
their demands, and balance the viewpoint of different classes in society. This
situation of muting and distorting subaltern voices happened in the request of a
permanent flower market by the flower traders (Section 4.9 and 4.18) and the
projection of the future of heritage preservation and revitalisation in the flower
market (Section 5.7).

12

Spivak suggested a case written about by the fiction of the writer Mahasweta Devi, who treads
new ground by raising the same question in the postcolonial perspective, that is in the period
after Indias political independence. Devis subaltern represents the people who have remained
untouched by western education. However, they are affected by it. Western beliefs and ideas on
what is good or bad, what is acceptable, what is not, and what is desirable and what is
undesirable is forced on Devis subaltern subjects without their consent. This forced subjugation
to western civilisation is met with constant resistance by the characters in Devis stories. Devi
insists that the stories are completely true.
45

Spivaks definition of the subaltern is useful in offering a different

understanding of ordinary people, but her explanation has a limited scope for an
analysis of contemporary Hong Kong because our system allows people to
express about their opinions in public consultations about policy or projects that
concerns public interest, such as projects launched by the Urban Renewal
Authority (URA). However, the design of these consultations reduces
oppositional voices, and dispossessed people still remain dispossessed (more
discussion of this will be in Section 1.10). In other words, it is a system designed
to include the opinions of dispossessed people in appropriated manners, but
nevertheless minimises non-government suggestions. At the same time, Spivaks
conclusion is that for the true subaltern group, whose identity is its difference,
there is no subaltern subject that can know and speak itself. Thus, the
intellectual must avoid reconstructing the subaltern as merely another
unproblematic field of knowing (Ashcroft, Griffiths, and Tiffin b 8). Spivaks
conclusion expresses that nothing could solve the condition of subalternity
because even academics could not represent the subalterns point of view.
However, the ironic situation is that because they are the dispossessed figure,
they might not be able to articulate their situation well on their own, or even if
they do so, they will be mis-interpreted by those in power, and they might not
have enough cultural capital to analyse their situation and position their point of
view effectively. In other words, Spivaks idea of the subaltern is the most
dispossessed, disadvantaged and marginalised member in a given situation, and
thus, is a limit case against which all other positions are relatively more powerful.
Thus, however complex the graduations of power are in a situation, everyone is
more powerful than the subaltern who is at the bottom and the limit of any
power dynamics.
46

1.6.2

Ranajit Guhas Concept of the Coloniser and the Elite

Class

Contrasting Spivaks understanding of the subaltern, Guha offers a

different interpretation on this word, which also sheds light on my research
because it offers a more sophisticated view of colonial power relations. It is
useful in my research because it helps conceptualise more slippery and
complicated power formation and is more amenable for analysing embedded
coloniality that is hard to be aware of in society. In Guhas sense, the subaltern
class might not be the lowest class in the society. There can be a gradation of
different levels of subalternity. For example, among rural people in Hong Kong,
the village elders are in the position of power within their own community, but
are subaltern in relation to the colonial government. Also, indigenous rural
communities who own land (and often the better land) are more powerful and
resourceful in relation to later arrivals the non-indigenous rural people who
might not own land or own the leftover land not desired by the indigenous
population. Thus, the indigenous rural village elders and landowners are the
most powerful and elite among the rural population, but in relation to the
colonial government, they are still considered a part of the subaltern class. The
colonial government might control them or rally their support in different
situations, and would use persuasion and material and non-material benefits to
rally their support for the colonial government against the more disadvantaged,
less powerful, resourceful and privileged rural population. in this way, the
colonial ruling class can divide and rule the subalterns by using the slightly more
privileged members of the colonised to help reduce resistance from the truly
subaltern class (in Spivaks sense) and even to help exploit, suppress and
manage them. Thus, those relatively more elite members among the subaltern
47

class can choose to become the intermediaries of the colonial ruling class, who
help to create consensus among the colonised in favour of colonial policies that
can in fact put them at a disadvantage. Thus, in Guhas terms, there are
gradations of power among both the subalterns and the ruling class, and the
subaltern class in his terminology can sometimes refer to the relatively more
powerful elite among the colonised, who can choose to stand on the side of the
coloniser or of the colonised depending on different calculations, and is a very
slippery power player in Guhas analysis. By studying this flip-flop class of
relative elites among the subalterns, Guha is able to outline how colonial rule is
localised / embedded into the cultural, socio-economic and political operational
logic and institutions of the colonised. Guhas theorisation of the concepts of
elites and the subaltern can be used to explain the complex layers of postcolonial
power dynamics. Since I will borrow Guhas idea as my major theoretical
discussion, I will leave his idea for a while and discuss it in greater detail in
Section 1.10.

In other words, subaltern studies provide a discourse for the dominated

classes in society to correct the elitist bias produced in research, which reflects a
top down perspective favourable for the elites. Subaltern studies articulate the
often silenced and neglected position of the subaltern through exposing how
power is exercised on them and distort and silence their voices and how they
resist such conditions in the complex dynamics of power play, and providing the
discursive and theoretical resources for doing subaltern historiography.
Understanding the operational logic of reducing and silencing peoples voices
allows us to see a new form of management and control over citizens. In Chapter
5 of my thesis, I will illustrate this mainly in a case study of the public
48

consultation process in a heritage preservation and revitalisation project in the

Mong Kok Flower Market.

1.7

Michel Foucaults Concept on Genealogy

Michel Foucaults theory of genealogy further elaborates Jamesons idea of

historicisation as discussed in Section 1.5. Foucault adopts a new method,

deployed in Discipline and Punish, and argues that genealogy requires patience
and knowledge of details, and depends on a vast accumulation of source material
(Rabinow 77). Foucault uses the term genealogy to evoke Nietzsches
genealogy of morals, particularly with its suggestion of complex, mundane and
inglorious antecedents, in no way a part of any grand scheme of progressive
history. This concept underlies Foucaults appropriation of the Nietzschean
notion of genealogy, through which Foucault comprehended history as a form of
decentring that is in opposition to the search for an original foundation that
would make rationality the telos of mankind (Foucault b). In his essay,
Nietzsche, Genealogy, History, Foucault elaborates the significance of his
argument that genealogy opposes itself to the search for origins. He argues:

Why does Nietzsche challenge the pursuit of the origin First, because it
is an attempt to capture the exact essence of things, their purest possibilities,
and their carefully protected identities; because this search assumes the
existence of immobile forms that precede the external world of accident and
succession if the genealogist refuses to extend his faith in metaphysics, if
he listens to history, he finds that there is something altogether different
behind things: not a timeless and essential secret, but the secret that they

49

have no essence or that their essence was fabricated in a piecemeal fashion

from alien forms (Rabinow 78).

Foucault discusses his own genealogical historiography and the concerns of

a traditional, origins-oriented approach. Recasting origins as descent enables
one to think of difference rather than resemblance, of beginnings rather than a
beginning, and of exterior accident rather than internal truth. In my research,
although I am unable to set a definite starting year of the flower market, that
means I cannot find a beginning of the flower market, this does not prevent
my research from focusing on the formation of the market and offer a suggestion
as to how it transformed. The lack of a definite origin of the market does not
therefore, decrease the value of the place. Further explanation of why it is not
necessary to search for a definite origin in order to do effective analysis is
offered in a remark by Foucault in an interview which irritated many historians:

A few years ago, historians were very proud to discover that they could
write not only the history of battles, of kings and institutions but also of the
economy; now they are all amazed because the shrewdest among them have
learned that it was also possible to write the history of feelings, behaviour
and the body. Soon, they will understand that the history of the West cannot
be dissociated from the way its truth is produced and produces its effects
(Foucault 112 quoted in Barret 133).

Foucaults understanding of the genealogy of truth implies that

historiography should not aim at tracing origins since practice happens as a
series of event, and a power network gives rise to the results, therefore, tracing
50

the origin is of little meaning. At the same time, Foucault argues that historians
are now more aware of writing the history of feelings, behaviour and the body,
which implies an expanded notion of history, but they must understand history in
terms of the relation between truth and power. This understanding implies that
Foucault believes that historiography should not only serve the powerful leaders,
but should in fact undermine dominant power and open to the experience of
ordinary people. On a more practical level, the search for origins is more or less
impossible because of the lack of documentation, especially for quotidian culture
outside of eurocentric governance, such as the flower market and industry. In
this sense, my research draws upon Foucaults ideas of not tracing the origin,
and to return subjectivity to ordinary people in historiography. In my case
studies, I study the genealogy of ordinary people in relation to Hong Kongs
flower industry.

1.8

Michel Foucault and Subaltern Studies

Subaltern studies approaches have less relevance for analysing the mentality

of governance. Guha categorises government officials as elites only, but how

should we analyse their ruling mentality and operational logic is not the major
focus of his theory. However, since the aim of my research is to reveal embedded
coloniality in governance, we need to have a more comprehensive and
sophisticated tool to conceive of how government officials think. Subaltern
studies scholars have increasingly returned to Michel Foucaults work, especially
topics related to government. They also seek new ways of framing and searching
for subaltern agency (Legg a 278). Foucaults understanding of the term
governance is helpful in this sense since he allows us to see a broader set of

51

dynamics and interconnections. Foucaults concept of governmentality does

not confine itself to the mechanisms of the government, but also include the
mentality of governing embedded in practices and institutions of life. Foucault
understands the term government as the meaning of the conduct of conduct,
that is a form of activity aiming to shape, guide or affect the conduct of some
person or persons (Gordon 2). He was crucially interested in the
interconnections between the different forms and meanings of government (ibid
3). Robert Nichols, a scholar of political science, argues that Foucault has
influenced postcolonial theory, especially in questioning the function of
discourse and related questions about the production of knowledge within
colonial power. Moreover, Foucault has contributed to postcolonial politics, that
is the study of forms of governmentality in the West from the 17th century to
nowadays, and the implications concerning the rise of colonialism, imperialism
and neoliberalism (Nichols 119). Nichols also mentions that Foucaults idea of
governmentality is a kind of postcolonial politics that challenges the formation of
power understood as a unitary system and an analysis of power as a set of
strategic relations between a person and groups (ibid 142). To further help us
understand the concept of governmentality, consider the following set of
passages by Foucault:

1. The ensemble formed by the institutions, procedures, analyses and

reflections, the calculations and tactics that allow the exercise of this
very specific albeit complex form of power, which has as its target
population, as its principal form of knowledge - political economy, and
as its essential technical means - apparatuses of security.

52

2. The tendency which, over a long period and throughout the West, has
steadily led towards the pre-eminence over all other forms (sovereignty,
discipline, etcetera.) of this type of power which may be termed
government, resulting, on the one hand, in the formation of a whole
series of specific governmental apparatuses, and, on the other, in the
development of a whole complex of saviors.
3. The process, or rather the result of the process, through which the state
of justice of the Middle Ages, transformed into the administrative state
during the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, gradually becomes
governmentalised (Foucault a 102-103).

In other words, Foucaults governmentality is a method for discovering the

rulers mentality of governing through analyses and reflections on the formation
of power. Governing mentality is embedded in procedures, regulations and
disciplines imposed on ordinary people. Those forms are treated as apparatuses
of state control. Governmentality allows researchers to understand the
connection between governmentality analysis and its ability to lead us to
discover invisible, ignored, hidden, neglected subaltern agency, and to see the
rationality of government decision and therefore to deconstruct what the elite
bias is about. Only by understanding the rationality of the government can we
see how the elites rule, and what the loopholes are concerning top-down ruling in
the continuation of coloniality in the post-1997 era. This discovery of the
loopholes allows the production of a subaltern agency and an awareness that
there are some underlying meanings in governments institutional practices. The
subjugated knowledge of a place and people in the society is often neglected in
the governments understanding of local culture and governance.
53

1.9

Subaltern Historiography
Subaltern historiography is a methodology of rediscovery of embedded

colonial power that provides an analytical tool and points of intervention for this
research so that I can deconstruct elite discourses. This method aims at rectifying
elite bias and investigating the framework of subaltern politics. In particular,
subaltern historiography helps to recover the experience, the distinctive cultures,
traditions, and identities of subaltern groups in a large span of settings, cultures
and practices which have been lost or hidden by the action of elite historiography.
In my studies, I will further explain the subaltern history of the Mong Kok
Flower Market in Section 2.9. The subaltern studies project is against the
universalist historiography produced by the elites. The history of ordinary people
is obscured in this discourse because of the partial and inadequate understanding
of elite historiography (OHanlon 78-79). Therefore, another part of my thesis is
to challenge the elitist conception and practice of history, and to explain what the
subaltern reading of a place could be. In particular, I want to show how heritage
preservation can be a process by which to discover the value of a place and
enable different stakeholders to share stories. However, in my case study of the
heritage preservation in the flower market a wholesale and retail hub
supplying cut-flowers, potted plants and other flower-related accessories I
will show blindspots in the official history described in the official heritage
preservation report and rediscover the value of the Mong Kok Flower Market
through a subaltern historiography.

Florists trading in this flower market seem to be relatively privileged

enough to run a business, and thus have a higher economic status in society.

54

However, the case might not be as clear as it seems. The Mong Kok Flower
Market is a district not totally dedicated to the trading of flowers; florists rent or
buy premises on the ground floor of residential buildings (usually 15 floors).
There is a micro-politics at work everyday between the hawker control officers
and the florists because residents complain that the flower traders obstruct the
street and create a nuisance. There are a series of present day issues affecting the
florists, and they generally do not realise that their situation has not much
improved since the days of hawking in the street. If florists, residents and the
government understood the market history better, a more favourable
transformation of the flower industry could be possible. It would also allow the
florists to have a stronger agency to fight for their benefits since the subaltern
history of the flower market recognises ordinary peoples efforts in contributing
to this vibrant industry in which they have contributed to for so many years.
They might have a better understanding of the governments mentality, and
perhaps from this have a better chance of winning the negotiation for a
permanent wholesale flower market (More details will be given in Chapter 2 and
4).

The situation of the florists might be seen lying within minority histories,
as coined by Dipesh Chakrabarty, a Bengali historian who has contributed to the
discourse of postcolonial theory and subaltern studies. He explains that the
meaning of subaltern as used by the Subaltern Studies Group was first
introduced in the 1960s to describe former slaves, working classes, convicts and
women; while the meaning of this word expanded in the 1970s and 1980s to
describe ethnic groups, indigenous peoples, children, the old and gays and
lesbians (Chakrabarty a 141). According to Chakrabarty,
55

[s]ometimes, you can be a larger group than the dominant one, but your
history could still qualify as minor/minority history. The problem of
minority histories 13 thus leads us to the question of what may be called
the minor-ity of some particular pasts, i.e. constructions and experiences
of the past that stay minor in the sense that their very incorporation into
historical narratives converts them into pasts of lesser importance vis--vis
dominant understandings of what constitutes fact and evidence in the
practices of professional history. Such minor pasts are those experiences
of the past which have to be always assigned as inferior or marginal
position as they are translated back into the historians language, that is to
say, as they are translated back into the phenomenal world of the historian
(ibid 146).

Chakrabarty called the histories that he mentioned as subordinated or

subaltern pasts. They are marginalised without anybodys conscious intention,
but because they represent moments or points at which the very archive that the
historian of a (marginalised) group mines in order to bring the history of that
group into a relationship with a larger narrative, develops a degree of
intractability with respect to the very aims of professional history (ibid 147).
Chakrabartys idea of writing a subaltern past involves the history that cannot
enter into official history or cannot enter history except as minor. Construction
of the past allows people to see the limits to the mode of viewing embodied in
13

Dipesh Chakrabartys use of minor is different from Deleuze and Guattaris use of the term
in their interpretation on Kafka, which they take to mean a critique of narriatives of identity
and refuses to represent the attainment of autonomous subjectivity that is the ultimate aim of the
major narrative. The minor, according to Chakrabarty, is to cast doubt on the major. It
describes relationships to the past that the rationality of the historians methods necessarily
makes minor or inferior, as something nonrational in the course of, and as a result of, its
own operation. And yet these relations return, he argues, as an implicit element of the conditions
that make it possible for us to historicise (Chakrabarty b 101).
56

the practices of the discipline of history. In other words, Chakrabartys idea on

subalternity is to challenge the limits of history by foregrounding the
discrepancy between what is chosen and not chosen in conventional history
writing. Chakrabarty explains:

[t]hey are marginalised not because of any conscious intentions but because
they represent moments or points at which archive that the historian mines
develops a degree of intractability with respect to the aims of professional
history. In other words, these are pasts that resist historicisation, just as
there may be moments in ethnographic research that resist the doing of
ethnography (Chakrabarty b 101).

In other words, Chakrabarty argues marginalised, minor history is a result

of the past decision of the historian aiming at having a grand narrative of history.
Therefore, the widely-circulated version of history might not provide a
comprehensive understanding of a society. Accordingly, local people and local
history might be neglected in a eurocentric historiography. The act of
championing minority histories has resulted in the discoveries of subaltern pasts,
and in the constructions of historicity that help us to see the limits to modes of
viewing enshrined in the practices of the discipline of history. The discipline of
history is only one way of remembering the past. Subaltern pasts, as Chakrabarty
tell us, are like stubborn knots that stand out and break up the otherwise evenly
woven surface of the fabric. We cannot write history from within what we regard
as colonial beliefs. We thus produce good, not subversive, histories, which
conform to the protocols of the discipline (ibid 106). In other words, the
metaphor of stubborn knots shows that subaltern history is an alternative
57

history that allows people to question the widely accepted version of history and
to treat minor history as a way to understand society through another
perspective.

Historical revisionism allows people to revisit their past and to offer an

alternative voice, which gives a new generation an opportunity to understand
their past in a different perspective and to offer different trajectories of
possibility. In my case studies, I will offer a subaltern historiography of the
Mong Kok Flower Market in order to halt the moment of danger because, as
shown in the Hong Kong governments heritage preservation and revitalisation
report, the ruler does not offer a thorough understanding of the place. A further
discussion of this will be given in Chapter 2. At the same time, architectural
value is emphasised in the heritage preservation project involving several
buildings in the market, but the historical and cultural values of the people
making a living in the buildings are undermined. I will investigate this more
extensively in Chapter 5.

1.10

My Theoretical Approach

My thesis adopts the work of two subaltern studies scholars, Ranajit Guha
and Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak, and their idea of the subaltern to explain power
formation and power dynamics in the transformation of flower cultivation and
the Mong Kok Flower Market in Hong Kong. I will investigate how coloniality
forced or infused to shape the flower industrys historic and cultural background.
I will adopt the following model to explain how coloniality is manifested and
materialised in the well-accepted values active in daily life which have become

58

normalised and legitimised (Figure 1.2). The government turns injustice into
executive protocols, bureaucratic practices and laws that form governmental and
semi-governmental organisations. My case studies are related to land policy,
hawker control policy and the heritage preservation policy that shapes Hong
Kongs flower industry.

Figure 1.2.

Relational mapping of between Elite, Subaltern (in Guhas sense) and

Subaltern (in Spivaks sense)

I will be using this relational mapping to explain the embedded coloniality

hidden in the elite and subaltern class relationship, and I will add layers to this
categorisation to describe the subaltern situation in Hong Kong. As I am using a
network of power relation to analyse embedded coloniality, I will therefore need
to establish a set of types.

59

1.10.1 Type 1: Colonial Elites E(C)

According to Guha, the word elites refers to three levels of society. These
levels provide an analytic language to explain the implicit and unconscious
situation about embedded coloniality. The first level is the dominant foreign
groups, including all the non-Indian groups, that is, mainly British officials of
the colonial state and foreign industrialists, merchants, financiers, planters,
landlords and missionaries. In my thesis, the dominant foreign group is mainly
the British colonial officials in the colonial government. In the network of power,
Colonial elites [E(C)] are at the top of the diagram, that means they have the
power to make decisions. As well, they have the ability to spread first-hand
information, bargain, negotiate, help or even destroy people or interests of power
both above and below their position. Their role, as intermediaries, has a
significant importance because they are close to, or even in the decision-making
group (Guha b 44).

1.10.2 Type 2: Local Elites E(L)

Local elites [E(L)] are people similar to the colonial elites, though they are
more directly related to ordinary people. Guha believes that the second level of
elites is the indigenous elite groups, who are included in classes and interests
operating at two levels. At the all-India level they included the biggest feudal
magnates, the most important representatives of the industrial and mercantile
bourgeoisie and native recruits to the uppermost levels of the bureaucracy. In
Hong Kong, we have our own level of all-Chinese level indigenous elite group.
At the same time, Ambrose King and Yeo Chi argue that Hong Kongs political
stability in the last hundred years was because of the successful process of the
administrative absorption of this group of local elites. The administrative
60

absorption of politics is a process through which the British governing elites

co-opt or assimilate the local non-British socio-economic elites into the
political-administrative decision-making bodies, thus, attaining an elite
integration on the one hand, and a legitimation of political authority on the other
in spite of the lack of democracy in Hong Kong (King 4). King and Yeos
understanding of indigenous elite group implies a collaboration among elites.
However, I would question how representative those local elites are who have
been recruited through a logic of administrative absorption of politics. For
instance, the revitalisation and preservation project of the flower market was
launched in 2008, following a series of preservation-related and local identity
social movements, connected to struggles over proposed developments in Lee
Tung Street (), the Star Ferry Pier () and Queens Pier (
) from 2005 to 2007 14. These movements were markedly different from the
interests of previous architecture fetishes of the non-Chinese and heritage
professionals. The present concern is for quotidian culture and social-economic
value. However, in the context of the preservation project in the Mong Kok
Flower Market, I would argue that the practice is still following the colonial
logic of URAs preservation of the physical infrastructure of a place within a
narrow sense of architectural preservation, but neglects the importance of local
culture. It is questionable whether heritage preservation has started to be
decolonised yet, and the URA version of preservation is different from the
preservation requested by civil society that demands a fostering of quotidian
culture. In the past, the government has under-estimated the importance of urban
heritage preservation as a problem. As mentioned by Edward Ho, Chairman of

14

I will give a brief description of the Lee Tung Street, Star Ferry and Queens Pier movements
in Section 5.5.
61

Antiquities Advisory Board (AAB), he considered heritage preservation merely

as a struggle to balance between heritage conservation and private ownership
rights (Hong Kongs Heritage). However, this line of thinking has ignored the
complexity of socio-cultural importance of heritage in Hong Kong.

At the same time, impact of elites on the government has been well
considered by Goodstadt who argues that the business and professional elites
have had a significant impact on the colonial government. He explains:

From the earliest days of British rule, colonial officials preferred to

minimise the scope for conflict with the Chinese population by using
intermediaries. To the colonial administration, the business and professional
classes seemed the group most firmly rooted in Hong Kong, with the
biggest personal stake in its survival because of their investments and
ownership of local assets. They also appeared entitled to a special voice in
the conduct of public affairs because when mainland or local political
developments threatened British rule, they could be relied on to cooperate
in keeping revolution and anarchy at a distance. Thus, the leaders of
business and the professions were seen by the British as the best qualified to
be involved in the colonial power system (Goodstadt 10).

In other words, the major force that keeps Hong Kong society stable is
having the indigenous group of business elites and professionals join the
governing elite. However, Goodstadt might have ignored the importance of the
rural gentry that stabilised the NT from the influence of older colonial rulers;
though, according to Ambrose King, the top rural gentry could be categorised as
62

a kind of administrative absorption of politics. Shaped by the colonial era, the

linkages between the business elites and the rural elites have been interwoven
and have produced a complicated political dynamic.

Another group of elites mentioned by Guha is those situated at regional and

local levels. They represent the classes comprised of either members of the
dominant all-India groups or belonging to social strata hierarchically inferior to
those of the dominant all-India groups. They act according to the interests of the
local group but not about the benefits of the society as a whole. Guha suggests:

At the regional and local levels they (the elites) represented such classes
and other elements as were either members of the dominant all-India groups
included in the previous category or if belonging to social strata
hierarchically inferior to those of the dominant all-India groups still acted in
the interests of the latter and not in conformity to interests corresponding
truly to their own social being (Guha b 44).

In other words, the regional and local levels elites, though their social strata
are relatively low, act according to their own interest but not in the interests of
their social class.

1.10.3 Type 3: Subaltern Class (S)

The largest population are called Subalterns [S] who are people at the
bottom group with least power, but can nonetheless be differentiated within a
gradation of power relations. This group is comprised of different layers of
government officials, law enforcement officers, flower cultivators and flower
63

traders from the flower market, and different categories of indigenous inhabitants
in the rural areas. To help map the power relations among all these groups, I have
created a diagram (Figure 1.2). A triangular shape is used, in which the higher
the place in the hierarchy, the more powerful and elite are the groups. In some
cases, it is in relation to the lower sections of the hierarchy, with the larger the
population base. The bottom layer represents the truly dispossessed subaltern
people in Spivaks sense. In my handling of these concepts, Spivaks description
of subaltern is meant to supplement Guhas analysis of the coloniser and the
local elites.

The proposed diagram (Figure 1.2) highlights the power dynamics of

various parties in Hong Kongs flower industry. I will use it to demonstrate the
power dynamics between the colonial government, elites and ordinary people in
facing issues of land development, hawker control and heritage preservation. I
intend to keep the diagram simple and clear because my intention is to present a
theoretical framework that can assist readers in understanding what is in the end
a complicated power struggle. The diagram is not comprehensive in explaining
all the power dynamics in the NT, for example, I will not explain another
powerful group in the NT the land developers because they are connected
more with land issues and too distant from the factors related to flower
cultivation. Further exploration of the power dynamics between the coloniser, the
rural elites and land developers lies beyond the scope of this thesis.

64

1.11

Organisation of the Thesis

I have organised this thesis according to the different functions of the flower
industry that occurred mainly from the 1950s until present day. I will offer a
historical background prior to the 1950s, but the main focus is after this point
because this period has more significance for the issues in the flower industry.

In the next chapter, I will put the remainder of the thesis into a broader
context by discussing the culture of flowers in Hong Kong, and I will give a
subaltern historiography of the Mong Kok Flower Market. Understanding Hong
Kongs flower culture illustrates the importance of the flower industry in Hong
Kong a place mixed with Chinese traditional usage and the more recent
emergence of Western flower usage. Subaltern historiography allows readers to
understand the local history and mundane life of ordinary people. This section
paves the way for understanding the short-comings and absences of the official
history described by the government.

In Chapter 3, I then proceed to discuss the rise and fall of flower cultivation
in the NT. A large influx of immigrants caused a drastic shift from traditional rice
cultivation to vegetable and flower cultivation. However, because of the drive for
economic progress, the government expropriated farmland. I want to reveal how
and why local flower cultivators survive in Hong Kong despite mainstream Hong
Kongs claim of the lack of land and thus, having inadequate land to allow
agriculture, a low economic return activity to survive. I will argue that this is a
reductive discourse. Some colonial government officials are pro-development,
but some officials actually tried to protect village life and argued otherwise.

65

The transformation of law enforcement officers, analysed in Chapter 4,

illustrates the colonisers understanding of local culture. Farmers grew flowers in
the NT and across the border between Kowloon and the NT, and gathered at the
Mong Kok market to sell flowers. However, the business environment in the
market was difficult due to the frequent patrols of law enforcement officers from
the Urban Council (UC) in the past, and has now been replaced by the officers of
the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department (FEHD). I will address a
frequent tension that occurred between flower traders and law enforcement
officers and investigate the mentality of both parties. Frequent patrolling and
tensions between enforcement officers and florists discourages the florists from
further development in the flower industry. The government failed to respond to
the frequent requests of the flower industry about providing them with a
permanent flower market. I want to argue that the mentality of not addressing the
frequent requests and to simply continue law enforcement demonstrates a kind of
colonial mentality embedded in daily practice. This mentality of control is
structurally designed by the government in the interest of reducing street culture
and keeping the street clean and tidy for the flow of capital in forms more
favoured by the government. It implies government distrust of the people and the
way the government understands trade and development.

Without responding to the requests of the flower industry for providing a

permanent flower market, the government instead engaged in a process of
heritage preservation in the market. Chapter 5 explores this, beginning with
looking at how the government commissioned the URA to conduct a
preservation-cum-revitalisation project in the market that failed to address the
major tensions between the residents, the florists and the passers-by. Heritage
66

preservation and revitalisation conducted by the government over-emphasises the

architectural value of the area, but neglects to pay enough attention to the
livelihood and habits of usage of local people. Evidence shows that coloniality is
embedded in this view because planning decisions are made from the top down,
from the point of view of the corporate investor, the tourist and the practicality of
governance. The government designed a consultation process that structurally
limited public opinion. Moreover, the Planning Department twisted the district
councillors negative comments against the URA plan in a report prepared by the
Town Planning Board (TPB) into favourable arguments in order to facilitate the
governments preferred process of heritage preservation. I therefore find that
coloniality is embedded in the governments structure of planning and public
consultation process. The concluding chapter will draw together the argument
and address the research question by investigating how coloniality forced or
infused to shape the flower industrys historic and cultural background.

1.12

Methodology

I formally interviewed and informally conversed with florists in the Mong

Kok Flower Market during ordinary days and before the Chinese New Year
(CNY) in 2011. The main focus of interview questions concerns about global and
local trade network, their perception on flower industry, law enforcement patrols,
preservation and revitalisation project in part of the flower market, and their
imagination of the future market (semi-structured interview guidelines are shown
in Appendix 1). I also interviewed florists in the Hong Kong Flower Show in
2011 to understand why and how they joined the Flower Show, and to see how
they obtained their goods. I visited a few flower farms in Hong Kong to

67

understand the operational logic of flower cultivation in the NT and to

understand the supply chain of local flower cultivation. I conducted
semi-structured interviews with business people who ran flower shops located
near the funeral homes and the flower arrangement schools, and with individual
floral designer and wedding planner as to reveal the current situation of the
flower industry, their demand for flowers from the market, and their perception
of the flower market 15.

I selected interviewees through random sampling and snowball sampling. I

went to the not-so-peak season and conversed with the florists in the flower
market when they have more time to talk to me (Person A, B and C). At the same
time, I also went to the temporary flower market for flower cultivators 5 days
before CNY and seized a chance to talk to flower cultivators (Person O, P and Q)
and the executive member of the Hong Kong and Kowloon Flower and Plant
Workers General Union (Flower Union, , Person R) during the
peak season. All interviewees had equal chances of being selected if they were
not occupied with servicing customers. I had extensive conversations with those
flower traders who were more talkative and experienced. Concerning people who
are working in the industry, I used snowball sampling to know my informants.
For instance, during an occasion celebrating Person Hs expansion of business,
Person H, who is the Chairman of the Hong Kong Flower Club, introduced to me
Person L and M the former being an entrepreneur who runs a flower shop in a
5-star hotel, and the latter, a wedding planner. I went to a flower chain store to
conduct my ethnographic research by selling flower bouquets one week before

15

Appendix 1 is an interview list. I list out the details of each interview, including a pseudonym,
sex, occupation, brief background and date of interview of every interviewee.
68

Valentines Day in 2011 in order to collect information about the operational

logistic of a flower shop and the consumer perceptions for this Western festival. I
went to the Mong Kok Flower Market occasionally between 2010 and 2012 to
collect information and to conduct participant observation on the behaviour of
the business operators and the enforcement officers. District councillor of the
flower market, Law Wing Cheung played a role in forming the power dynamics
of flower traders and residents in the vicinity of the market. I tried to address his
ideas in November 2010, but his assistant replied that Law was very busy and he
refused my interview request after repeated attempts. Through these methods, I
explored the operation of the flower industry and how various bureaucratic
practices affected florists everyday operations.

I read historical documents held in the Hong Kong Public Records Office
that addressed agriculture and the flower market to collect evidence about
interaction. I analysed the corresponding letters between different colonisers in
the government. Biographies of various colonial officials, such as James Hayes
and Austin Coates were analysed to investigate colonial mentality. Books,
journal articles, unpublished theses and newspaper articles on the NT, the UC
and the URA are studied in y research. I used these methods because colonial
mentality could hardly be maintained in first hand information.

After collecting all the information, I did transcription or summary for the
interview so that I could reflect on interviewees content in detail. Tones, paces
and hiccups allow me to understand their concerns and hesitation to a greater
extent. In particular, ordinary people are often not very articulate. Patience is
needed to infer from the entire context the subalterns understanding of their
69

current and past situation, their memories of flower market history and their
imaginations on the future of this place.

Information is selectively included here due to their relevance and

importance in helping us to understanding the flower industry as a wholesale and
retail network. It is important to refer to the historical and cultural background to
trace how coloniality has shaped the flower industry. Also, data that can
contribute to the understanding of both government strategies and policies
related to flower industry are included.

1.13

Contribution of the Thesis

An understanding of embedded coloniality is possible only through a

careful reading of Hong Kong society since the government implants its
ideology through well-accepted values in daily practice which are then
normalised and legitimised. The government turns unjust social relations into
executive protocols, bureaucratic practices and laws governing the government
and semi-governmental organisations. Therefore, an attentive study of policy
enables us to understand this operational logic and search for a new trajectory
for changing the current situation of the flower industry. My historiography of
the Mong Kok Flower Market has in fact shown that the place is important to
Hong Kong studies since it is located in Boundary Street (), and I explore
the special nature of flower cultivators and flower traders in relation to the rise
and decline of agriculture in the colonial and post-colony era, which is also
linked to the politics of land development in the NT and the emergence of
imported flowers as a sign of economic prosperity. Therefore, the history of the

70

flower market is of significant importance to Hong Kong Studies. Producing a

subaltern historiography of the flower market is a way to challenge the official
history of the place which is limited to the historical value of built architecture.
In contrast, subaltern historiography acknowledges the cultural value of the area
from the perspective of the people living in it. In fact, the people created it and
use it on a daily basis, and thus a historiography of the place contributes to the
process of decolonisation.

71

CHAPTER 2
THE FLOWER INDUSTRY AND
THE FLOWER MARKET
Flower market is located at the playground of Boundary Street opposite to Creative
Kindergarten (). It is called Fa Hui Park () locally. There were no
flower shops here in Flower Market Road in the past. People here suddenly become rich
when flower shops start to cluster here. (Person C)

2.1

Chapter Introduction
This chapter mainly addresses the flower culture of Hong Kong, and

establishes a concrete understanding of flower cultivation and the Mong Kok

Flower Market. The chapter aims at revisiting the importance of flower culture in
Hong Kong, and the subaltern historiography of the flower market. I arrange the
chapter in this way because the genealogy of the local flower culture allows us to
see its importance in local everyday culture. The unique use of flowers in Hong
Kong culture enables the flower culture to flourish. This genealogy also provides
us with background information about the increasing demand of flowers and
explains why both local flower cultivation and import of flowers can increase at
the same time, rather one growing at the expense of the other. This indicates a
steady expansion of flower consumption in Hong Kong. Why so? To answer
these questions, I will first reveal the culture of flowers in Hong Kong and to
show how people embed the experience of flowers into their everyday practice of
living. The flower market and flower cultivation have become an art of our

72

culture and everyday life. However, embedded coloniality exists as a

well-accepted value in the daily operational logic and has become normalised
and legitimised. My research finds that because of keen competition in the
industry, even people working in flower industry might neglect their own
importance in terms of culture. This chapter aims at revealing a subaltern
historiography of the flower market and flower cultivation which makes a point
of intervention and moves toward a deconstruction of an elitist discourse that is
engaged in the later part of this thesis.

2.2

The Culture of Flowers

Flowers, as cultivated farm produce, are full of cultural meanings. They are

used in various occasions, such as festivals, weddings, funerals, celebrations and

commemorations of all sorts (more details will be given in Section 2.4 and 2.5).
Flowers are used to add joy and beauty to different occasions, to intensify the
atmosphere, to show respect and solemnity, sadness and memory etcetera. In fact,
the flower seems to symbolise almost all social sentiments. However, according
to my interviews and informal conversations with people working in different
aspects of the flower industry, I would categorise the industry on two levels. The
first level is based on floral art since one dimension of flowers is connected to
high culture of flower arrangement and floral design. This is a concern for
aesthetic value or even pursuing the philosophy behind the flower 16.
16

For example, Ikebana - a Japanese floral art unveils eternity by being thoroughly temporal.
It arises not out of the will to live, or the desire for the permanency of soul, or the false
immortality of progeny or reputation. Stripped down to its essential nature, it just is, but what it is,
is a creative embodiment of the divine, a sacred must to be cherished but not clung to, to be
sustained but not embalmed, and above all to be delighted in right now, in this place. The flower
lives without willfulness, is expressive of its nature just as it is, and does not pretend to be
everlasting (Carter 108). There is a philosophical foundation on the Principle of Three: heaven,
the earth, and human beings. It is a depiction of the order of the cosmos, and this order is
repeated in the inner nature of a human being: the microcosm imitates the macrocosm. The
73

However, at the same time, florists selling flowers as a commodity have a

relatively low estimation of flower value, and also believe that flowers are a
kind of luxury good, not essential and with little importance. With workers
who are preparing flower bouquets, baskets, etcetera., the most common
comment is: it is a tough job. For instance, Person C, a flower shop owner in
Mong Kok Flower Market, says,

Flowers are luxury goods. That means you only buy flowers when you
have time, money and space. If you dont have any money, who will buy
flowers? Especially in the context of Hong Kong, the house is so small.
Even you receive a potted plant as a gift, you dont have much space to
place your plant in such a tiny space 17.

Firstly, flowers are beautiful in one sense, but arranging flower baskets and
flower bouquets, especially in large amounts within a short period of time, put
pressure on the workers. Workers work for at least 12 hours per day. They may
even work overnight during peak season, such as Valentines Day. Also, because
of the Food and Environment Hygiene Department (FEHD) officers often
(always is too extreme) charging flower traders for street obstruction in the
flower market, their business has been made even tougher due to constant
checking by the FEHD officers. More aspects of the way flowers are used in
ordinary life, which distinguishes them from flowers used as an art form, will be
examined in Chapter 4.
longest stem, or branch, represents heaven, the shortest earth, and the stem or branch of
intermediate length represents human beings. Human beings occupy a mediating position
between heaven and earth, as participants in the heavenly or formless realm and in the material or
earthly realm of forms. (ibid 111).
17
Interview with Person C, 5/10/2010.
74

2.3

Cultural Meanings of Flowers in Hong Kong

A few scholars have started to make the broader cultural role of flowers and

floriculture as the focus of their investigations. One of the most important works
is by Jack Goody, The Culture of Flowers. His exhaustive anthropological study
explores the meanings attached to flowers in cultures in various countries, such
as in Western Europe, America, Africa and China. He attempted to map out
culture areas with an emphasis on broadly different uses of flowers, rising
above the local characteristics of individual cultures (Goody 427). Another
similar attempt was made by another scholar Elizabeth Hyde Cultivated Power:
Flowers, Culture, and Politics in the Reign of Louis XIV. Hyde explores the
social and cultural context of flowers within early modern French culture. In the
reign of Louis XIV, flowers were incorporated into French formal gardens. Hyde
attempted to use flowers to explain nature, gender, art and politics in early
modern culture in France (Hyde xvii). Under this context, flowers are not only
about nature. Flowers are also part of culture since they have been brought under
cultivation by mankind and also they are broadly used in different social
practices, such as for decoration, for medicine, in cooking and for their scents;
but they also link with establishing, maintaining and even ending relationships,
from the living to the dead (Goody 2). China has a long tradition of flower
appreciation. Scholars and government officials enjoyed praising flowers and
had written much poetry in order to imply all sorts of ideas and sentiments (ibid
355-360 18). Some of them had even written more than a hundred poems for the

18

For example, Jack Goody quotes one of the earliest poems on the flower itself was composed
by the Tang Dynasty (618-907) poet Wang Wei:
The deep green foliage is quiet and reposeful,
The petals are clad in various shades of red;
The pistil drops with melancholy
Wondering if spring knows her intimate thoughts (Goody 356).
75

same flower. Scholar-officials were keen to acquire knowledge about flowers,

such their varieties, origins, shapes and characteristics. Their observations were
jotted down and were published. In particular scholar-officials of the Song
Dynasty 19 tried to symbolise moral elements through their language of flowers
from articulating their characteristics and gave them a spiritual character. For
instance, Chinese scholar-officials found moral qualities in lotus and plum
flowers and identified them with gentlemanly qualities (Choi ii). In Western
context, flowers play an important role as vehicles of expression. It indicates as a
declaration of love or as a gesture of thanks, as a means of conveying
condolences or congratulations, flowers are often the most eloquent and direct
means of communication (Heilmeyer 7).

Flower cultivation and gardening in Hong Kong is unique because of the

characteristics of the limited living space in Hong Kong, unlike other spacious
countries such as China, Canada and the United States. Cultivation of flowers is
rarely linked with gardening for ordinary residents of Hong Kong. Cut-flowers
and potted plants are used to promote greenery in households and offices. Hong
Kong people commonly do not have a habit of buying flowers for decoration
during ordinary days. Therefore, revenue of flower business is minimal.
However, flowers are in high demand during festivals and important dates in a
persons life. Flowers are widely used in various occasions such as celebrating
CNY, mourning ancestors, expressing love, etcetera. I will further discuss the
relationship of cultural meanings and flowers in Section 2.4.

19

Choi Sung Hei, the thesis author, refers to Song Dynasty as Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127)
and Southern Song Dynasty (1127-1279).
76

Before explaining the rich cultural meaning of flowers and how they relate
to everyday habits, it has to be noted, contrary to my findings, that florists view
flowers as a commercial good without much appreciation for their cultural
meanings. According to my semi-structured interviews and informal chats with
florists who run flower shops, they believe that flowers are luxury goods and
not essential. The flower industry undergoes keen competition because flowers
of one shop and others are similar. Cultural meanings of flowers, for
businessmen, are not very important because businessmen treat the goods mainly
as commodities that they could make a living. Nonetheless flowers are full of
cultural meanings. Flowers are used in celebrating the opening of a business, or
even to celebrate the success of entertainment shows. Companies rent flowers to
decorate their offices. Hotels use flowers to decorate lobbies and even rooms to
make a luxurious impression.

77

Types

Examples

Floral Art

Chinese floral art

Flower arrangement

Culture

(American style, British style, Japanese style)

Higher-edge flower usage

Weddings (venue decoration, bridal bouquet)

Funerals (venue decoration, flower basket)

Festivals (e.g. Valentines Day, Mothers Day)

Celebration of opening of new business

enterprise

Commercial use (e.g. decoration in hotels,

companys weekly service

Lower-edge flower usage

Religious / Ritual

Household flower usage

Decoration in shopping malls and housing

estates

Gardening

Flower cultivation

Horticulture in primary & secondary schools

Arboriculture

Cultivation of

Chrysanthemum

Gladiolus

Peach blossom

Potted plants
(e.g. poinsettia, African violets, lucky bamboo)

Table 1.

Agriculture

The hierarchy of the understandings and meanings of flowers,

from high culture to everyday culture in Hong Kong

From the table above, we can see that people use flowers widely in different
occasions, from various high culture occasions, such as in floral art, to festival
and religious use, decoration, and finally to greenery. Flowers, seemingly
unimportant or restricted to the domain of luxury goods, actually appear widely
in our daily life.

78

2.4

The Cultural Meaning of Flowers in Festivals

The culture of flowers in festivals will be discussed in this section as an

indicator of the changing perception of flowers nowadays and the adoption of

Western approaches to flowers. An analysis of flower culture allows us to
understand the context behind the transformation of the Mong Kok Flower
Market. Moreover, flower usage in festivals is of the utmost cultural significance.
Because of the mixture of Chinese and Western culture in Hong Kong, people
celebrate both major festivals in these two cultures. I will select several
important festivals celebrated in Hong Kong, with especially heavy usage of
flowers.

Through a consideration of flower consumption, one is able to trace the

development of Hong Kongs economy. Flowers are often seen as a luxury good
or as a consumer product. Before the 1980s, there was only a narrow selection of
cut-flowers available in Hong Kong since flower consumption was mainly
related to religious rituals or limited to the use in weddings. In contrast, after the
1980s, the local flower industry changed because of the economic boom, cheaper
cost and a change in the business environment of the flower market (detailed
explanation will be given in Section 2.14). More importantly, flower usage
became more westernised. Consumption habits were much more oriented to
festivals such as Valentines Day and Mothers Day. Holiday orders involved
deliveries and more complicated arrangements. Before that point, relatively few
people bought flowers for themselves, or for informal events such as birthdays or
as hostess gifts despite it is the classic and contemporary western use of flowers.

79

Nowadays, Hong Kong people still observe traditional CNY and Ching
Ming Festival, but pay increasing attention to a list of non-religious observances
and gift days. Mothers Day and Valentines Day grew in popularity. Floral gifts
confirm a gendered role such as mother, wife, secretary, or hostess and signal a
feminine aspect of identity such as sensitivity, creativity or desirability
(Ziegler 202). When these gifts are visibly consumed, it is a kind of information
communication about the giver and the receiver including social relation,
location and roles, group membership, taste and identity. The use of flowers as a
gift is increasing in Hong Kong, as other floral practices have declined
especially religious observations such as Ching Ming Festival, Chung Yeung
Festival and extended funeral rites.

During the same period, local farmers steadily disappeared since the 1980s.
Flower wholesalers throughout Hong Kong increasingly source flowers from
growers in China (Chu), Taiwan, the Netherlands, Thailand, Malaysia, Japan
etcetera., or invest in the mainland and other countries to establish flower
production in areas at cheaper cost. Globalisation of investment keeps production
cost at a minimum. For instance, Riyi Orchid Company Ltd. is a Hong
Kong-based company that collaborates with a Japanese company for technology
research and set a production area in Fujian Province in China (Wang). It implies
that the business scale of flower industry is increasing and it is becoming an
economic good. Peak sales in the retail florist business occur during the holidays.
The major sales periods occur during the holidays of CNY, Valentines Day,
Mothers Day, and Christmas in Hong Kong. During the holidays, retail florists
do the largest volume of business in a very short time. As is common in the retail
flower shop business, the florist must plan well and work long hours. The
80

industry depends heavily upon these peak sales to make up for slack periods
occurring particularly during the summer months (Griner 191).

Festival

Lunar Dates

Western Dates

Date in 2012

Chinese New Year

First day in Lunar New Year

23 January

Valentines Day

14 February

14 February
th

Ching Ming Festival

14 day of the third Lunar Month

4 April

Mothers Day

6 May

First Sunday in May

Chung Yeung Festival 9th day of the ninth

Lunar
Month

23 October

Christmas

25 December

Table 2.

2.4.1

25 December

Flower culture in Chinese and Western festivals in Hong Kong

Chinese New Year

CNY Year is the most important festival for flower consumption (Figure
2.1). According to Chinese tradition, there is a blessing called flowers, blossoms,
prosperity (). It means that when flowers bloom, prosperity will
occur (Goody 392). Flowers such as peach blossom, chrysanthemums, gladiolus
and tangerines are popular. People are willing to consume flowers during this
festival and therefore, around three months before Chinese festival 20, farmers
grow a lot of flowers even though they usually grow vegetables in order to earn
more money. Orchids have recently become a New Year favourite. Customers
like orchids because of their elegance and the way they signify good taste.
Orchids are a hardy plant which can last for months, and costs have been
decreased from hundreds of dollars a few years ago to one hundred dollars or

20

Interview with Person Q, 31/1/2011. Gladiolus plantation takes around 85 days.

81

even less nowadays (DeWolf). An orchid can stay alive without watering for ten
days. Therefore it is also popular because people might travel during the New
Year holiday (Under the Sun).

Some florists choose to sell flowers at the Lunar New Year fair ()
in wet goods stalls five days before the Lunar New Year 21. This is a periodic
market which consists of wet goods stalls, dried goods stalls and fast food stalls.
The Chinese believe that buying flowers for the CNY can bring good luck. For
instance, peony is a metaphor of fortune and the mandarin has a symbolic
meaning of auspiciousness (Lam Wai Ping 27). There are fourteen fair stalls in
Hong Kong in total 22. The Lunar New Year fair stall in Fa Hui Park is the largest
one in the Kowloon district, and also the nearest to the Mong Kok Flower
Market. Flower traders are also the local flower cultivators. However, flower
cultivators running business in Lunar New Year Fairs will not be examined in
this thesis as my focus is solely on the flower traders and flower cultivators
selling flowers in the vicinity of the Mong Kok Flower Market.

21

After tuan nian fan (, family reunion dinner the day before CNY), people begin their
festive entertainments in order to pass time because it has been traditionally practiced that people
should not sleep during CNYs Eve and this act of passing a sleepless night is known shou sui
(). It has been a popular practice in Hong Kong that people will go to the cinema for special
mid-night screenings or the flower market (nian xiao shi chang ) during this night,
which is a temporary carnival-like market that is opened before the New Years Eve and closes
before the dawn of the New Years Day. In this market, many stalls are set up selling New
Year-related commodities like festive flowers (nian hua ), clothes, toys and home
decorations (Law Yuk Wa 21).
22
The fourteen Lunar New Year Fairs are located at Victoria Park, Causeway Bay, Fa Hui Park,
Sham Shui Po, Morse Park, Wong Tai Sin, Hong Ning Road Recreation Ground, Kwun Tong,
Kwai Chung Sports Ground, Kwai Tsing, Sha Tsui Road Playground, Tuen Mun, Tung Tau
Industrial Area Playground, Yuen Long, Shek Wu Hui Playground, North District, Tin Hau
Temple Fung Shui Square, Tai Po, Yuen Wo Playground, Sha Tin, Man Yee Playground, Sai
Kung and Po Hong Park, Tseung Kwan O (Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Food and
Environmental Hygiene Department).
82

Figure 2.1.

Flower trading on Flower Market Road before Chinese New Year

in 2011 (Source: Hing Fat Wholesales Ltd. Facebook Page)

2.4.2

Religious Rituals: Ching Ming Festival, Chung Yeung

Festival and the first and fifteenth day of each month

Ching Ming is generally deemed by Chinese people as the most important

festival for remembering their ancestors (Scott cited in Cheung Wai Lung 29).
During this traditional Chinese festival, most Chinese families visit graves or
tombs of their deceased ancestors to make large-scale offerings to them. It is the
collective period of time when Chinese people show care and respect for their
ancestors (ibid 29). They take flowers and other offerings, such as pork and fruits
to the cemetery, providing the dead with an array of ritual food and even with the
chopsticks to consume them. Incense and candles are burnt, prayers are offered
and crackers are sometimes ignited. Minor repairs to the graves may be carried
out and undergrowth cut back (Goody 375; Wilson 121). Participants bring
83

flowers for their ancestors, such as chrysanthemums and carnations (Cheung Wai
Lung 158). People believe that chrysanthemums will stave off disaster and help
strengthen the body. Drinking chrysanthemum wine is a Chinese tradition. Tao
Yuan Ming, a famous Tang dynasty 23 poet, loved chrysanthemums deeply, and
the flower has become a unique symbol of the upright character and the hermit in
Chinese culture (Huang 89). Chrysanthemums, especially white, yellow and
purple ones, are also seen as the flower to remember ancestors.

Another similar festival is the Chung Yeung Festival which also involves
visiting ancestors graves. Nonetheless, as compared to Ching Ming Festival,
less people visit graves because this festival is conventionally a custom in which
people climb up the mountains to escape from evils and illness (Huang cited in
Cheung Wai Lung 32). Since trips to graves are less common, flowers are not
consumed as often.

At the same time, according to the Chinese lunar year calendar, the first and
the fifteenth day of each month are dedicated to religious rituals in the memory
of ancestors. Some people will also buy chrysanthemums and gladiolus for
religious rituals. These are colloquially know as shen tai hua () which
refers to the flowers place on the household shrine. This practice still continues
in contemporary society. Flower shops, mainly located in wet markets 24, cater to
the needs of traditional religious rites.

23
24

Tang Dynasty () was between 618-907 BC.

A wet market is generally a fresh food market commonly found in Asian countries.
84

2.4.3

Valentines Day

Valentines Day traditionally is a time of exchanging tokens of love and

admiration, particularly roses, which are the most requested flower for Valentine
floral bouquets 25. Long-stemmed roses are a customary favourite, in bouquets or
boxes of a dozen, with red roses symbolising true love (Griner 192; Hunter
216). Since ancient times, roses have been acclaimed as the symbol of perfection.
Roses were probably the native of Palestine but have transformed to be a global
commodity around the world (Coats 161). Roses were connected with beauty, for
example in William Shakespeare Sonnet 1, he wrote: From the fairest creatures
we desire increase/ That thereby beautys rose might never die which is an
intimation beyond the sphere of purely natural reproduction but a suggestion of
realms of artifice and an artistic manifestations of beauty (Callaghan 35).
Burgeoning consumerism and a popular emphasis on romantic love in the
twentieth century were also important factors in the growth of this holiday
(Ziegler 270). Romantic love was not in itself new. The notion that love alone
should determine the choice of ones partner has been evident since at least the
eighteenth century. It expanded with the development of the fashion system, the
spread of novel reading as a leisure activity, and with a general identification of
women with sensitivity, gentleness, and emotionalism. Campbell argues that
romanticism fuelled consumerism and the taste for newness since it legitimates
the search for pleasure as a good in itself (Campbell 201). In the past, bunches
of fragrant purple violets were common as Valentines Day gifts to young women
25

Several theories attempt to explain the origin of Valentines Day. Some authorities trace the
origin to Lupercalia, an ancient Roman festival and feast connected with fertility rites held on 15
February. Others connect the events with one or more saints of the early Christian church, one of
whom was named Valentine. According to legend, he was imprisoned because he refused to
worship the gods of the Romans. He had made friends with many children who missed their
friend and expressed their love by tossing notes through the bars of his cell window. Another
theory believed by many is linked to an old English legend that says birds choose their mates on
14 February.
85

until well into the 1930s. Roses were desired, too, but their cultivation required
more costly heat and light. Production lagged behind demand in the early
twentieth century. Substantial growth in this flower holiday came in the 1980s
and 1990s with increased flower imports, declining prices, and the greater
visibility of flowers on streets.

In Hong Kong, bunches of flowers are available from flower shops and big
supermarkets, where bouquets of a dozen red roses are offered. Red roses are the
major gift to express love. Depending on the scale of a flower shop, large-scale
flower shops usually start preparing hundreds of bouquets in their workshops one
week before 14 February. Workers are divided into many procedures, such as
cutting flower stems, cutting thorns on roses, arranging flowers into bunches,
wrapping ribbons and other accessories (Figure 2.2).

Figure 2.2.

Backyard of a flower shop preparing Valentines Day flower

bouquets

As a marketing strategy, special box sets or hamper will also be prepared,

86

such as flowers with a teddy bear toy or a box of chocolate (Figure 2.3).
Customers might order flowers for delivery to their lovers office, in which van
delivery is needed. Delivery might also go to restaurants in the evening so that
customers could display the flowers when they are having dinner. Customers
might also pick up flowers by themselves. As roses are in an extremely high
demand during Valentines Day, and flower is in limited supply, flower prices
during Valentines Day are especially high. However, a lover sends flowers as a
gesture of love, regardless of costs. The roses sold in Hong Kong are imported
from mainland China or from Ecuador 26 in Latin America.

Although most of the time flowers are treated as a gift between lovers,
occasionally sons and daughters will send flowers to their mothers as gratitude
for their mothers love.

Figure 2.3.

Flower bouquets and floral gift for Valentines Day

26

Ecuador has roughly eight thousand acres under the production of cut flowers. Ecuador
exports 71 percent to the United States. The remainder are shipped to the rest of the world.
Three-fourths of Ecuadors production is in roses. Ecuador has the advantage of being a more
stable country in terms of its economy and safety when compared with Colombia, which is the
largest Latin American market and notoriously associated with drug smuggling (Stewart 143).
87

Roses are the most common symbol of love not only on Valentines Day,
but also during ordinary days when lovers show their affections for each other.
Some people observe specific meanings with respect to the number of roses.
There are also meanings hidden in the number of roses exchanged between
people. Some of these meanings have been derived from visual pleasure, while
some have caught on from popular stories and myths. For example, one rose
represents love at first sight and utmost devotion to a single person
(Meanings of the). Nonetheless, Person G who runs a flower shop in a wet
market tells me that those meanings are arbitrary and do not correspond to a
fixed set of meanings 27.

2.4.4

Mothers Day

Mothers Day was practically invented by florists (Stewart 266) in the

United States 28, and is neither a formal or traditional celebration in Hong Kong.
Nonetheless, this festival has been celebrated by more people in Hong Kong
since the 1990s when the importation of flowers increased. On Mothers Day,
sons and daughters use different ways to express their love, care and respect for
their mother, such as sending gift cards, flowers and gifts. Children usually meet
their parents in Chinese restaurants to have a meal and chat. Otherwise, children
might call their parents to express their well wishes and affection.
27

Interview with Person G, 21/11/2010.

Mothers Day is celebrated on the second Sunday in May. Honouring mothers and motherhood,
it is one of the busiest holidays of the year. The history of Mothers Day involves a series of
events. It begins with Julia Ward Howe in 1872. Several other people later rallied and launched
campaigns about honouring their mothers by wearing a white carnation in their button hole
(Stewart 266). However, it was Anna Jarvis of Philadelphia, who began a campaign for a
nationwide observance of Mothers Day in 1908. She wrote letters to various businesses,
including the Weekly Florist Review, suggesting the practice. She chose the second Sunday in
May since the day was the anniversary of her own mothers death. Florists helped promote it and
were in favour of a wide variety of flowers since growers could not supply enough white
carnations immediately (ibid 267). In 1914 Congress designated the second Sunday in May as
Mothers Day.
28

88

Flower, especially the carnation, is an important cultural symbol for

demonstrating gratitude towards ones mother. This festival is widely celebrated
in Hong Kong. Pink carnations are popular, but other colours might also be used.
Not only will children buy carnations for their mothers, but political parties will
also distribute carnations as gifts on the street and in restaurants to express their
gratitude to mothers, to wish them a happy family (DAB Tai Po; Chong; Cheng
Chi Jo) and as a way of promotion of its political ideas.

2.4.5

Christmas

Christmas is the most prominent Christian holiday 29 and Christians

celebrated in larger scale. Many Christians decorate their homes with an advent
wreath, advent calendar, or advent candles (Figure 2.4). Other non-Christian
customs and activities have been adopted as part of the Christmas celebration,
such as Santa Claus, decorations of lights, evergreen trees, wreaths, holly and ivy;
as well as participation in activities such as feasting, carolling and gift-giving
(Griner 248). In Hong Kong, poinsettia is the most common type of flower used
to decorate the city. Individuals and businessmen buy Christmas pine trees to
decorate homes and shopping malls respectively. Handmade preserved flower
arrangements 30, fresh wreaths, door decorations and garlands are also bought to
decorate the household office or Christmas party.

29

Christmas Day, 25 December, was probably influenced by early pagan festivals and adapted
from the Roman calendar in the fourth century. The word Christmas comes from the early
English phrase Cristes maesse meaning mass of Christ. The Christmas celebration centres on
the events surrounding the birth of Jesus Christ as told in the New Testament. For many
Christians, the Christmas season begins on the Sunday nearest 30 November, marking the first
day of Advent, which refers to the coming of Jesus on Christmas Day.
30
Preserved flower wreaths were made through careful dried flower and foliage. They are
individually then tied to the arrangements. With good care preserved flowers could last for years.
89

Figure 2.4.

Christmas tree, poinsettia, flower wreath and garlands

(Source: Christmas catalogue 2011 of Anglo Chinese Florist Ltd.)

2.5

Other Cultural Meanings of Flowers in a Persons

Important Dates
People buy flowers to celebrate a persons important dates. I particularly

discuss flower meanings in weddings and funerals because most people observe
these events at some point in their life. Other cultural meanings of flowers that I
will not discuss include the celebration of graduation and get-well gifts for the
sick. I will not discuss these flower usages because not all people observe these
practices in Hong Kong. Also, I will not discuss the use of flowers in opening
ceremonies of new enterprises, or even to celebrate the success of entertainment
shows because these experiences are not common practice for most people.

2.5.1

Weddings

Weddings, for most people, are the biggest day of ones life. A wedding is a
joyous occasion and a time to celebrate, and flowers are a particularly lovely way
to help create a beautiful setting for the perfect day (Monckton 7) and to increase

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the enjoyment of the participants (ibid 15). Especially before 1980s, flowers
played a small part in traditional Chinese marriages in Hong Kong. Flower
decorations did not appear on tables, and only the groom had a red rose in his
lapel while the bride wore red and carried a bridal bouquet of gladiolus.
Currently, flowers are widely used in weddings. The usage is mainly divided into
bridal bouquets and venue decoration, especially wedding banquets held in
hotels and restaurants (Figure 2.5). Because of the increase in demand of flower
arrangement for weddings, various interviewees, who run flower shops ranging
from high-end to low-end, would decorate the settings. For instance, Person E, a
principle of a flower arrangement school, explains that there is a great demand of
flower arrangement because of an increasing usage of flowers in weddings and
banquets 31 . Most of her students are recruited to help in wedding banquet
decoration even before they finish her course. At the same time, wedding
planning is more popular in Hong Kong because Hong Kong follows both the
Chinese and Western traditions and rituals 32. According to another interviewee
who is a wedding planner, flowers are very important at weddings 33. Depending
on the price range that the couple can afford, a wedding planner would hire a
flower designer to plan for the decoration in wedding ceremony and banquet.
Part of a wedding planners role is to coordinate flower arrangements and
bouquets in order to make the whole ceremony harmonious and coherence. He
shares an incident that he encountered. He says,

31

Interview with Person E, 10/11/2010.

Nowadays, weddings in Hong Kong almost always combine traditions and rituals from both
the western world and ancient Chinese culture. Western wedding elements, such as white gown,
tuxedo, bouquet and red wine are used. At the same time, Chinese rituals and objects are included
like the tea ceremony, lotus seeds, red umbrellas and a suckling pig. Today, people expect
couples to follow both sets of rituals, both styles of dress, and they even need to cut their
wedding cakes twice to fulfil their Hollywood style wedding and yet satisfying their elders. (Pink
Wedding).
33
Interview with Person M, 1/1/2011.
32

91

Sometimes the suppliers give me low quality flowers, I immediately have

to implement a backup plan. My team needs to remake the flower bouquets
and flower decorations in less than 24 hours.

In other words, wedding planners role helps to promote floral art in

wedding banquet. Their role in coordinating wedding arrangement promotes
flower culture indirectly since the couples might not fully understand what they
want. Wedding planners provide various choices of wedding plan so that couples
could choose the service that is with a guaranteed quality within the price range
they could afford.

Figure 2.5.

Venue decoration and bridal bouquets from a flower designer

(Source: http://www.solomonbloemen.com)

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2.5.2

Deaths

Flowers are an indication of the end of a persons life. Flower wreaths

would be normally used for decorating the repository hall to give it a solemn
atmosphere (Yu 16) and to signify commemoration, mourning, devotion and
respect. Flowers are also used to form a placard which is carried through the
streets and can be stood upright on its legs. The main colour tone is white for a
Chinese funeral. Red flowers can also be used for a person who was eighty or
ninety years old, as death after sixty is called a blissful funeral ().
Nonetheless Chinese culture rarely uses red coloured flowers. According to an
interviewee who runs a flower shop close to a funeral parlour, Westerners do not
understand why only white flowers should be used in Hong Kong 34. He points
out that even the flowers used in Micheal Jacksons 35 funeral, the famous
American singer, were red roses which implied ardent devotion and regret for the
loss of this genius.

In most funerals two flower baskets are used, and between them appears a
black banner on which an appropriate couplet is written (Goody 377). Or else,
the message is written on a cardboard panel which praises the goodness of the
deceased. The relationship between the mourner and the deceased is written in
the ancient Chinese format, which is rarely used in present day Hong Kong.
Flowers, and sympathy stands become a symbol of relation and status, which is a
social and ritualistic language (Figure 2.6).

34

Interview with Person K, 9/12/2010.

Micheal Jackson (1958-2009) was an American singer with a nickname called as King of
Pop. He is a global figure in popular culture.

35

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Figure 2.6.

Sympathy stands used in funerals (Source: Funeral Wreath)

Nowadays, because of keen competition in the flower industry, all flower

shops, regardless of their location to funeral homes, receive orders for making
flower baskets for mourning. This is because funeral services are not limited to
funeral parlours only, but also occur in churches for Catholics or Protestants, or
in the private homes of wealthy families. Person K explains the difficulties in
running a flower shop in Hong Kong. He says,

Nowadays flower shops in different districts and even the online ones
receive orders of funeral flower basket. Competition in the flower industry
is very keen. Besides, the running cost is getting higher. In the past, when
we received HK$300 to make a flower basket, HK$100 was the cost of
flowers, and the rest of the cost went to other operational cost and the
revenue. However, when we receive HK$300 now, the flowers alone cost
HK$200. We earn very little now. At the same time, the decline of the
94

funeral business also affects our business. Nowadays, people either choose
not to have a funeral or hold a standard small scale farewell ceremony in the
hospital. This is another obstacle in making funeral flowers when the
demand in funeral service and the demand for funeral flowers decrease.

Person K explains the difficulties in his operation because all flower shops
make flower baskets for similar purposes. It is difficult to keep a stable customer
source. Although Person Ks flower shop is adjacent to a funeral home, it does
not mean that he receives order only for the funeral services. During my
interview, he was making orders of flower basket serving other purposes as well.
The basket was for celebrating the success of a school performance. So it shows
that flower shop no longer specialises in making flower basket just for one
particular purpose.

To conclude, Section 2.4 and 2.5 examined the cultural meanings of flowers
in festivals and important dates in a persons life. I want to argue that flower
usage is embedded into everyday life in Hong Kong. Because flower usage is
common, the flower industry has expanded and demand for flowers is high. The
Mong Kok Flower Market is a hub of wholesale and retail trade. Because of a
prosperous flower business, people rely on the flower market for wholesale
trading. At the same time, retail business also grows in the flower market. As
well, flower cultivation in Hong Kong, though limited to chrysanthemums,
gladiolus, peach blossom and potted plants, has also increased because the
industry as a whole has expanded. The expansion of the flower industry also
demonstrates the transformation of Hong Kong society because it shows the
increase in strength of its economy. When people become richer, they are more
95

willing to consume flowers. Flower consumption depends on the business

environment because it is a luxury good that is not essential for peoples
day-to-day life. Also, when the economy is vibrant, people set up more business
which also stimulates the flower business because flowers are in demand in order
to celebrate the opening of new enterprises.

2.6

The Background of the Mong Kok Flower Market

Tracing the development of the flower market allows us to better understand

the flower industry. Flower market, as the official English translation of the
place, does not give enough attention to the origin of this Chinese marketplace.
This place, Fa Hui (hua xu , literally translated as flower marketplace),
means that the major goods are flowers and flower-related products. Appendix 3
is a timeline that lists out the transformation of the flower market in accordance
to chronological order. The current Mong Kok Flower Market is a mixture of
commercial and residential area, and ground shop of the residential buildings are
commercial firms specialised for flower wholesale and retail trading at the
present time. Other kind of business mixed in the market includes dancing,
music, fitness, well being, film studios and offices, private tutorial offices and
religious institutional use, which are related to ordinary peoples life. Nearly all
the ground shops in the vicinity of the flower market run flower businesses, but it
was not the case in the past. The market runs in a form of wholesale and retail
business with 105 flower shops. Their role as a wholesaler supply flower goods
to most retail shops all over Hong Kong. Nowadays, flower retailers are in
different forms, such as in shops on ground floor, on-street fixed pitch stall
hawkers in open market, or in wet market. Some of them run flower businesses
96

in shopping malls 36 and in supermarkets 37. Flower retail located in hotel lobbies
also provide services to the hotels. Person L runs his flower shop in a five-star
hotel 38. Hotel demands high quality of flower services, such as in lobby, hotel
rooms and even dining tables. He shares the difficulties of co-operating with the
hotel managers. He says,

the managers do not have much flower knowledge. They could only give
brief comments of either good or bad. It is difficult to guess what the
manager wants. We need to re-make the samples again and again.
Sometimes, two managers with contrasting comments about the flowers
create tough moments to me. I could not solve the problems but could only
leave the final decision with the managers.

In other words, demand of flowers is expanding to non-festival use and

flowers are treated as a kind of decoration. At the same time, to turn flowers into
gifts, retail florists prepare hampers, such as including dolls, or chocolate in a
box or basket, and wrap it well as gifts. Hong Kongs colonial experience has
resulted in Hong Kong culture integrating the culture of flowers from both
Chinese and Western festivals and cultural habits. This has resulted in Hong
Kongs unique large demand for flowers the whole year round. This explains the
increasing demand for flowers, as more Western flower use habits get integrated
into the increasingly prosperous and cosmopolitan city culture. It also explains

36

Agns B florist is located in high end shopping malls such as Pacific Place in Admiralty, and
Festival Walk in Kowloon Tong, or Flannel Flowers in International Financial Centre (IFC) mall
in Central and Times Square in Causeway Bay.
37
Not all supermarkets in Hong Kong sell flower goods. Only big supermarkets targeting clients
with Western tastes and lifestyles would have flower stores. These big supermarkets are in
limited number.
38
Interview with Person L, 1/1/2011.
97

why both flower cultivation and import can increase at the same time, indicating
a healthily growing market, instead of one form of supply expanding at the
expense of the other, as would have happened in the case of stagnant growth.
Regardless of what retail form or flower distribution, most of the retailers depend
on flower wholesale suppliers in the Flower Market, 39 because their small
volume order is not economical to order directly from overseas brokers.
Nonetheless business environment in the flower market was hard due to frequent
patrolling from law enforcers in the past and also nowadays. I will offer a
detailed discussion in Chapter 4 with an argument that transformation of the
flower market reveals changes in the flower industry and indirectly shows the
life of ordinary people and their interaction with government policies. In the
following section, I will explain the background of Mong Kok Flower Market,
its transformation and daily operation in detail.

2.6.1

The Flower Market as a Traditional Chinese Market

Anthropologist William G. Skinner has conducted a detailed study of

Chinese marketplaces in the countryside. Skinners research demonstrates the
value of spatially explicit theories such as central place theory in applied
situations that served to explain or even fundamentally reshape peoples
understanding of social and economic systems. According to Skinner, a standard
marketplace in China can be defined in the following way:

39

Some flower shops would import flowers directly from overseas suppliers without passing
through the Mong Kok Flower Market but their orders should be in bulk, otherwise the
transportation cost is too high. Therefore, only big flower shops, especially chain stores would
maintain this practice. Some flower designers also directly order flowers from overseas without
passing through the flower market because they could order special flower goods that
wholesalers in Mong Kok Flower Market do not provide. However, this practice is not common
because it remains a high-end flower design.
98

By late traditional times, markets had so proliferated on the Chinese

landscape and were so distributed that at least one was accessible to
virtually every rural household. They were considered essential, both as a
source of necessary goods and services unavailable in the village
community and as an outlet for local production. I term standard that type
of rural market that met all the normal trade needs of the peasant household:
what the household produced but did not consume was normally sold there,
and what it consumed but did not produce was normally bought there. The
standard market provided for the exchange of goods produced within the
markets dependent area, but more importantly, it was the starting point for
the upward flow of agricultural products and craft items into higher reaches
of the marketing system, and also the termination of the downward flow of
imported items destined for peasant consumption. A settlement that boasts a
standard market (but not also a higher-level market) is here called a
standard market town (Skinner 4).

This standard market town describes the general situation of a market place.
The market town was virtually bigger to accommodate different needs of
villagers and a variety of necessary goods and services. It is also a place for the
horizontal exchange of peasant-produced goods. The flower market in the past
was similar to Skinners description, though it was not as big as a market town.
The flower market was a morning bazaar in which street vendors who were
farmers from villages in rural areas in the NT brought baskets and stalls of
flowers, vegetables, fruits, potted plants, goldfish and also snacks and imported
goods for sale (Hua) (more discussion will be in Section 2.8). The market
formed a kind of rural market place.
99

Both Chinese and Western cultures have a similar concept of the

marketplace. In Chinese, xu () is a general term for periodic markets in
South China; whereas in North China, it is called ji (). Periodic markets used
to be held at fixed intervals following the lunar calendar in most village towns in
the NT in Hong Kong (Tse a 12). According to Ding Chang Qing, the description
of hui could be traced back to Shiji (). But a better description of xu was
given by a North Song Dynasty 40 writer, Wu Chu Hou (cited in Ding 7). He says,

In southern China, village markets are called xu (means marketplace as

well as empty). Liu Zong Yuan wrote in Bibliography of Ou Ji the
Shepherd Boy, Went to xu and sell. In one of his poems, salt being
wrapped in bamboo leaves was a reference to the market. The market is
full when filled with people; otherwise, it is empty. Village markets in
southern China are more often empty than full. Isnt it appropriate to call it
empty? Wu Chu Hou, Qing Xiang Za Ji (Miscellanea of Literary
Heirloom) 41 (My translation)

The periodic market place of the flower market in Hong Kong started on
Boundary Street, was then moved to Flower Market Road (), and in the
process, shows us the transformation of the Hong Kong flower industry. More
analysis of this change will be given in Section 2.9 when describing a subaltern
historiography of the flower market.
The concept of Chinese market is similar to a marketplace in the Western

40

Northern Song Dynasty () was between 960-1127 BC.

41

100

context. The Western early usage of the word marketplace means a place for
meeting at a fixed time each day, or days of a week, for buying and selling
livestock and provisions. In the mid-thirteenth century, further meanings were
imposed such as a public building or space where markets are held (Harper b).
Later on, it meant an area or arena in which commercial dealings are
conducted (Stevenson b). The meaning of the word market was further
associated with commercial transactions due to exchange markets in financial
settings, such as the stock exchange, but my research is not related to this
meaning.

Other meanings of market adopted in Western market also help in shaping

how to study a market. According to Robert J. Shepherd, most vendors that he
encountered in Eastern Market in Washington, DC, the United States were
motivated by a desire to earn profits and further their own personal interests.
However, beside of monetary rewards, hawkers also have non-monetary rewards.
Shepherd explains,

[b]ut for many, cultivating social ties with other vendors transcended
personal gain: these ties were part of the reason why they went to the
market weekend after weekend, no matter the weather or their business
success. Bundled up together, the sociability of friends, the petty jealousies,
the jokes and backbiting and intermittent waiting for customers, the rain and
cold and baking hot August afternoons, the implicit honor code to not poach
customers, the bargaining and talking and finally the sales, all of these
elements together constitute not the market or even a market but the
actually existing marketplace of Washingtons Eastern Market (Shepherd
101

160). In this sense, businessmen have personal reasons for running business
in a market, such as social bondage with other wholesalers, retailers and
customers.

2.6.2

Geographical Location

The area of Yau Tsim Mong is 147 hectares and is expected to

accommodate a population of 280,020 (Hong Kong Special Administrative
Region, Census and Statistics Department). Mong Kok is situated at the heart of
the Kowloon Peninsula and can be accessed by the Mass Transit Railway
(linking Kwun Tong Line, Tsuen Wan Line and East Rail Line, i.e. the former
Kowloon-Canton Railway) (Map 1). It has always been a transportation
interchange for the Kowloon area with several bus and mini-bus routes owing to
its convenient location. It is probably the most accessible place in Hong Kong
(Wong Ka Fu 4).

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Map 1.

Location of the Mong Kok Flower Market on a map of Hong

Kong (Source: Google Map)

2.6.3

History of Mong Kok

In the past many areas in Kowloon were used for agricultural purposes. It
was a low lying, swampy area suitable for cultivating wet crops such as
watercress and water spinach. Besides vegetable farming, the local economy
supported soy-sauce making, and there was a large soy-sauce factory in the area
(Cheng 91). Nowadays traces of agriculture and condiment production are
preserved in street names in the districts, such as Sai Yeung Choi Street
(Watercress Street ), Tung Choi Street (Water Spinach Street
) and Soy Street (). The government allocated land in Mong Kok to
dispossessed villagers building squatter huts there in 1893. In 1898, the
government reclaimed these land and adjacent farmlands for infrastructural

103

development, such as extending Station Street (later renamed Shanghai Street

) and Argyle Street () to Kowloon City () (ibid).

According to a local historian Cheng Po Hung, the construction of Prince

Edward Road () in the early 1920s imposed the greatest impact on the
development of Mong Kok. Prince Edward Road has one of the highest
concentrations of flower shops in the market, and the URA is currently
conducting a heritage preservation project in some buildings in Prince Edward
Road West (, more discussion will be provided in Section 5.7). The
road was originally called Yi Wah Avenue (). Historians Andrew Yanne
and Gillis Heller explain that Edward VIII, the eldest son of King George V,
visited Hong Kong in 1922 and therefore Prince Edward Road East and West are
named after Prince Edward. The original name of Prince Edward Road was
simply Edward Road but it was renamed in 1924 when he became Prince of
Wales (Yanne, and Heller 18). Cheng Po Hung explains that the change of name
from Yi Wah Avenue to Prince Edward Road in 1924 was a token of respect for
the heir-apparent Prince Edward (Cheng 92). Emphasising the transformation of
street name in history books also implies a certain kind of embedded coloniality
because it focuses only on the top-down meaning of a place. The quotidian
culture and history of the working class are ignored in official history.

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2.6.4

The History of the Mong Kok Flower Market The

Hong Kong Tourism Board Version

Heritage preservation can be a rediscovery of history and the most

important purpose is to decolonise the societys understanding of its past. It is
also another way of seeing subaltern historiography as a kind of postcolonial
intervention. As suggested by Sabine Marshall, colonialism, with its civilising
mission and economic agenda, resulted in homogenising people with different
cultures throughout a region or even worldwide. Postcolonialism, precisely
through the concept of heritage, aims to counter the Western mold by fostering
and, indeed, sometimes actually recreating, the traditions and cultural identities
that were previously invalidated or suppressed (Marschall 99). Marschalls
understandings show that homogenising local cultures simplifies the complexity
of quotidian culture, and reduces the complexity of a place, thus hindering
peoples understanding of local history. Pursuing a form of globalisation, cultural
tourism serves as an important means through which to embrace local
characteristics and to distinguish the area from other world cities. Undoubtedly,
the preservation and revitalisation of the flower market could attract more
tourists. A detailed study on how the coloniser describes the place provides clues
as to how the colonisers want to re-form the place. Hong Kong Tourism Board 42
(HKTB) started to package the flower market as a cultural tourist destination
through a variety of story-telling techniques, including pamphlets, website
information and heritage trail markers. This contemporary presentation acts as a
way of showing the flower markets special history. But the actual history is
42

HKTB, a government-subvented body, was founded in 2001 under the HKTB Ordinance. It
was reconstituted from the Hong Kong Tourist Association (HKTA), which was established by
Government Ordinance in 1957. Unlike the HKTA, which was an association of members, the
HKTB has no affiliation to any specific sector or organisation within the industry and is able to
support the interests of Hong Kong's tourism in its entirety (Hong Kong Tourism Board a).
105

rather inconsequential because tourists have only a limited attention and interest
in the past. It also implies the intention of increasing the cultural value of the
place through re-telling a different version of history. This version of history
seems to increase the cultural value of the place, but it is not an authentic history
of the Hong Kong people.

By taking a postcolonial studies point of view, this research attempts to

re-read cultural history of a place through a genealogical study of the
transformations of the flower market both in terms of its changing operational
patterns, former use and its spatial changes. We can ask what is the authenticity
(of a place) by (1) encouraging consideration of specific histories that dictate and
frame what is authentic and what is not from the perspective of production, and
(2) suggesting that the nature of cultural tourism development incorporates
specific histories that can often mask historical incongruities and debates (Duval
70-71). In other words, questioning official discourse of a place allows for a
perspective to find the gap and reflect on why the historian creates a gap in not
telling that part of history. The simplification or avoidance of history is an
evidence to discover government mentality.

According to the HKTB, the flower markets history was relatively more
simple than what it is. A notice board set up by the HKTB in the flower market
(Figure 2.7) says,

flower and caged birds are part of an elegant home life for all cultured
Chinese. As a result, bird and flower sellers have been a part of Hong
Kongs urban scene since its earliest days. About a hundred years ago, a
106

flower market was established near the ancient village of Mong Kok where
flowers were cultivated. Today, the flower market is still in the same
location on Flower Market Road near Mong Kok Stadium.

HKTBs description of the flower market simplifies the complexity of the

market history and ignores the power dynamics of the place. This description
might satisfy foreign tourists who might not pay too much attention to the history
of local culture and its future development. However, I want to argue that the
over-simplified history and the lack of recognition for the historical value of
quotidian culture hinder local peoples understanding of their culture. My
subaltern historiography described in Section 2.9 will demonstrate the power
dynamics of the market, which indirectly shows the importance of
socio-historical value in Hong Kong history. The avoidance of local culture and
the failure to recognise local history reveals an embedded coloniality hidden in
history writing that focuses on elite discourse. Without a clear articulation of the
history and culture of the place, people find it difficult to create their own
identity, and to know how and why their present situation exists in a particular
way. In this sense, ordinary people would not know the genealogy of a current
practice, and their diminishing ability to defend. In so doing, the governments
ability to rule is enhanced because people do not know fully who they are, what
past moments of resistance could be used to justify their present causes, or how
to create new opportunities to fight for their rights. In this sense, coloniality is
still embedded in our postcolonial society through not being encouraged to
recognise and embrace local history and culture. Therefore, subaltern
historiography is a method to decolonise the implanted coloniality hidden in
daily life practices that people are not aware of.
107

Figure 2.7.

2.7

Sign introducing the flower market and bird garden

Embedded Coloniality in Preserving Mong Kok

Flower Market
Embedded coloniality is implant in the governments argument in

preserving a place since the reasoning of preservation implies a hegemonic view

towards local culture prevailing in the current government. The current
governments heritage preservation practice focuses on architectural value of
buildings. The current practices seem to fetishise the material architecture,
without paying enough attention to the cultural contents of the place (this point
will be explained in Chapter 5). In the case study of flower market, preservation
work has been carried out in a range of Tong Lau 43 buildings in the flower
43

Tong Lau or shophouses consists of a row of four attached house units, each of which consists
of a shop on the ground floor and residential quarters on upper floors. The characteristic form of
the shophouse reflects a number of influences: from exposure to Western architectural aesthetics
108

market (I will offer a further discussion in Section 5.7). The government

commissioned the URA 44

to conduct heritage preservation research to

investigate its value. In Heritage Assessment Report for Conservation Approach

to a Shophouse Cluster, only elitist history is emphasised and the social and
cultural value of the place is undermined. The document first introduces the fact
that four-storey Tong Lau were erected along the stretch of Nathan Road ()
between Mong Kok and Yau Ma Tei (). Then, a picture of the colonial
parade is shown in the conservation report representing the history of Mong Kok,
with the following subtitle: A parade celebrating the coronation of Queen
Elizabeth II passing a section of Nathan Road and Argyle Street, 1953 (AGC
Design Ltd 14) (Figure 2.8). The history that the conservation report addresses is
colonial history, which is not exactly the history of the place; that is, it is not
about the history of the street, but instead about the history of the district. This
kind of historiography may overlook the history of the preserved area, and even
obscure it. At the same time, a history of the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II is
embraced, which is a top-down history rather than one of the everyday, mundane
life of people. In other words, the dominant history of the elites is still the
emphasis of the government. To the government, historical value of Mong Kok is
about history of the coloniser without a detailed explanation of the use of place
among ordinary people.

in a British colony, to local building regulations, high land and property prices, and an
ever-increasing population. All these factors contribute to the characteristic of the narrow width
of the shophouse, typically of 13-16 feet, dictated by the most economic length of Chinese fir
poles used as floor and roof beams. Some flower shops use the fir poles to do business in the
Flower Market.
44
The Urban Renewal Authority (URA) is a semi-government institution established in 2001. Its
primary aim is to address Hong Kongs acute urban decay problem and improve the living
conditions of residents in dilapidated urban areas. URA adopts Redevelopment and
Rehabilitation as its core activities, preserving buildings with heritage value, and revitalising
areas which are within URAs project sites. URA replaced the Land Development Corporation
with stronger executive and legal powers to acquire land.
109

Figure 2.8.

A picture illustrating the value of Tong Lau buildings in Mong

Kok in the conservation report. The picture is of a parade
celebrating the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II passing a section
of Nathan Road between Mong Kok Road and Argyle Street, 1953
(Source: Cheng Po Hung quoted in AGC Design Ltd Heritage
Assessment Report for Conservation Approach to a Shophouse
Cluster)

These historical values focus on the buildings, without much investigation

of the cultural value of ordinary people. The government discusses architectural
buildings official history, but there is not much attention to the history of the
residents about how they use the building. The document states:

[o]riginally a continuous tenement row stretching from No. 190 to No. 220
Prince Edward Road West, this four-storey block was built in 1932 by a
company called the Credit Foncier DExtreme-Orient a company
registered in Shanghai in 1909. The blocks, called Modern Flats, were
built for the well-to-do families whose monthly income was above $400 at

110

that time. The Japanese used the building during the Occupation
(1941-1945), and the British Army rented it after the War until 1947 when it
was derequisitioned and returned to the developer.

From the above statement, the historical background of the architecture,

such as who owned the buildings and what their later use was during and after
the War, is emphasised. However, cultural and historical elements of the users of
the buildings are neglected, except when they were colonisers and invaders. The
government tends to put more attention on the importance of the building itself,
but neglect the usages of Tong Lau and the formation of the existing flower
market.

Certain historical uses and cultural meanings are briefly mentioned in the
heritage report.

From the 1950s records provided by Public Records Office, most of the
blocks were once rented by the Government to provide accommodation for
civil servants working for the Police Force, Civil Aviation Department, and
Medical Department. On 31 March 1954, all civil servants moved out and
found accommodation elsewhere. The third floor of No. 212 was bought by
the Kowloon Mandarin Baptist Church and used as a Baptist parish since
then. The shop named Po Shing Shoes is the oldest shop amongst the
ground floor of Nos. 190-212. In the early days, the ground floor was
occupied by a variety of shops selling clothes, herb teahouses and food
houses. In recent years, a flock of florists shops have moved in. The whole
lot is surrounded by two well-known streets: Flower Market Road and Yuen
111

Ngai Street, which are crowded with florist shops for many years (Hong
Kong Special Administrative Region, Leisure and Cultural Services
Department, Antiquities and Monument Office a).

From the above descriptions, it is found that the changes in official uses of
the building are the main focus of the report. Similarly, the URA promotes the
preserved area as the Cultural-art Flower Market. But ironically, the historical
development of the area in relation to Tong Lau buildings, and the transformation
in the vicinity of the flower market that shapes the characteristics of this place
has been disregarded in the report. It is found in my research that this place is
rich in historical and social value of culture, which will be studied in detail in
Section 2.9.

The eliding of historical value is one way that embedded coloniality in the
post-1997 government functions. People lack historical perspective and this
makes them less aware of the importance of place, and consequently suppresses
resistance and hinders their ability to fight for their rights. Ordinary people in
present day might continue the same attempts that previous people made, unable
to learn from the past. This practice is ideal for colonisers because common
people lack an awareness of their situation. By showing a parade marking the
coronation of Queen Elizabeth II passing a section of Nathan Road between
Mong Kok Road () and Argyle Street, history is rendered from a colonial
perspective. However, the meaning and experience of this event for local people
is not mentioned, which implies a coloniality. Typically, colonial governments
undermine the importance of local culture, since embracing local culture might
consolidate the coloniseds recognition of self-identity towards a place, which
112

might not be favourable to the coloniser, since understanding and self-identity

can possibly feed into the colonised cultures ability to consolidate and mobilise
itself in opposition to the colonial government. The practice of coloniality
continues into the postcolonial period in Hong Kong after the return of
sovereignty from British to Chinese, implied in the way existing heritage
preservation plans continue to remember only the glory of colonisation and
neglect quotidian culture (more discussion will be provided in Section 5.6). With
this understanding, knowing the discrepancy between the official version of
history and subaltern historiography is a method of postcolonial decolonisation.

Nevertheless, the social and cultural values of the buildings are described
briefly in the conservation report. The document asserts that

the social value of the shophouses lies in the contribution they have made to
the development of this part of Mong Kok. As the ground floor shops have
now largely been taken over by florists, they have interest to the people
visiting the nearby Flower Market Road (ibid).

Social value is momentarily discussed in the historical report, yet the report
ignores the contextual meanings of the flower market. What is the formation of
the Mong Kong flower market? Why do florists choose Tong Lau for businesses
in the market? These questions have no mention in the conservation report. Also,
the proximity of the flower market is not only for flower trading. There are also
people living in the buildings nearby, and they are disregarded in the heritage
preservation account. In this way the long and complex history of the flower
market has been elided. A brief mentioning of flower market shows only that
113

social life seems not to be esteemed by the government.

2.8

A Brief History of Mong Kok Flower Market in

Hong Kong
I want to challenge the governments monotonous emphasis on architecture,

and therefore this section will unfold the rich historical and cultural background
of the flower market that the postcolonial government has not mentioned in the
preservation project. This holds great significance in terms of planning for the
future development of the flower industry. However, local people who have been
running those businesses for many years might not understand fully the history
of the Mong Kok Flower Market in the way official history would.

Person C, who works in the industry for more than 10 years, says,

Flower market is located at the playground of Boundary Street opposite to

Creative Kindergarten. It is called Fa Hui Park locally. There were no
flower shops here in Flower Market Road in the past. People here suddenly
become rich when flower shops start to cluster here. 45

However, discrepancies in the understanding of the markets history were

found among different interviewees. Person B, who has worked in the industry
for four years, replies,

I dont know, when I start working in the flower industry, the street is as if
45

Interview with Person C, 5/10/2010.

114

it is like that, that is full of flowers. The earliest history started at Flower
Market Road, then expanded to Sai Yee Street. But I really dont know the
reason for the increasing number of flower shops. I really dont know. 46

Person Cs reply shows that even industry workers working everyday in the
market might not know the history of the market. Thus, they come up with
different versions of histories. In general more experienced flower traders obtain
relatively more knowledge of the past than the new ones, but still, their versions
are not what I could trace from history books. I will suggest some reasons for
this discrepancy after I have introduced the version that I found in official
records.

My subaltern historiography of the flower market uncovers the complexity

of its history. It is not a common practice for business people of the flower
market to tell and exchange their stories and histories among themselves and
with outsiders. Therefore, the market population as a whole, with its rich
socio-cultural background, has not given enough attention to its own background.
The undervalued sense of ones own historicity leads to the usual simplification
of their own history when they are prompted to tell. If one becomes frustrated
with this willful poverty of memory and resort to elite discourse and history,
one would end up with a single story that is devoid of common peoples voices.

My subaltern historiography shows that the original Mong Kok Flower

Market was located at Boundary Street, i.e. the boundary between Kowloon and
the NT before 1898 (Ng Ho 76; Leung To 50; Yi 179). This boundary has
46

Interview with Person B, 5/10/2010.

115

remarkable colonial historical significance. Before China lost to the British again
during the Second Opium War of 1960, the northern part of Kowloon was not
part of the British colony. NT was not part of the colony until it was leased to
Britain for 99 years in 1989. This boundary between NT and Kowloon thus
demarcates the historical site of colonialisation of Hong Kong. After the British
took over Kowloon and NT, much of it was used as a buffer zone in terms of
military defense. Later, this boundary also became some what of a boundary
between urban and rural Hong Kong until 1937 when the government expands
urban area for development 47. Thus, it is a historically significant and appropriate
site for a market where rural products were sold to the urban population. It is
also the site of a major transport hub and junction of major roads. It is natural for
a market to approximate easy transport access.

Street vendors were also flower farmers in the past. According to Ng, there
are many villagers who grew vegetables and flowers in rural villages located in
the north of Boundary Street, and they brought their farm produce to the south of
Boundary Street for street trading. The market started to operate at seven oclock
in the evening because flowers were perishable goods, and selling flowers at
night made the flowers more durable. The market would only run for two hours
since the curfew started at nine oclock in the evening (Ng Ho 76). After the
order of curfew ended 48, the flower market continued to operate until ten oclock
at night. The closing time was not too late because the flower traders were also
flower farmers, and they need to prepare for work the next day.
47

Originally, the NT referred to the area north of Boundary Street. However, the British
expanded the area of Kowloon in 1937. The part of the NT lying north of Boundary Street and
south of the Kowloon Hills is now called New Kowloon. This area was administered from Hong
Kong as part of the urban area and enjoyed none of the special privileges and rights to follow
Chinese customary law enjoyed in the rural NT to the north (Nissim 18).
48
There is no exact year of the end of curfew along the Boundary Street in available sources.
116

The place is popularised as the Fa Hui Village (literally meaning Flower

Market Village ) because there was flower cultivation in the nearby
farmlands. Therefore, the marketplace was gradually filled with flower produce
and other farm produce. The cutting of flowers took place in the late afternoon so
that they will keep better and are fresh for the market. Flowers were tied into
bundles and brought to the collection centres, where lorries set out for the flower
market on Boundary Street in Kowloon (Aijmer 48) (Figure 2.9).

Figure 2.9.

Customers selecting gladiolus and chrysanthemum in flower

market in the past (Source: Ng Ho 76)

Hua Xu (), a Xianggang Gongshan Re Bao columnist, described the

flower market in 1935:

I was walking along Prince Edward Road in the morning the day before to
visit a friend at Kowloon City, and when I went pass the back of the police

117

training school, I discovered a morning bazaar ... On both sides of the road,
there were baskets and stalls of flowers, vegetables, fruits, potted plants,
goldfish, and also snacks and imported goods ... together they formed a kind
of rural market place. Vendors were farmers from villages in the NT.
Customers ranged from fashionable men and women to barefooted folks.
All sorts of people were seen together. The baskets and stalls lined up
Boundary Street in two long rows. In this bazaar, flowers were the major
goods of exchange 49 (Hua).

From the description of Hua, street trading was common in the market and
the street vendors were mainly farmers who came from the NT. A mix of
customers, such as modern men or bare feet folks came to visit the market.
This except clearly shows how vibrant the flower market was. Frank Leeming, a
historian and anthropologist in Hong Kong Studies in the 1970s generally
described the crowded open market in the past, where people destitute of other
work have started to cook and sell bits of food on the streets to passers-by, or
have started to cultivate fields on empty hillsides (Leeming 161).

This introduction to the flower market shows that the market is very
place-specific. It is located at the territory boundary between Kowloon and the
NT. Flower production and flower trading overlaps. Flower production was
self-sustainable and production was adequate to the size of the market in Hong
Kong since flower consumption in the past was not high. Currently, ground floor
49

118

shops have largely been taken over by florists in the flower market. It has
changed from informal trading (street trading) in the past to part of the formal
economy (renting/buying a premise for trade) at present. Shops are located
mainly on Flower Market Road, Yuen Po Street 50 (), Yuen Ngai Street51
() and Prince Edward Road West. Some shops are scattered around Sai
Yee Street () and Playground Field Road (), but these shops
occupy areas still very near to the core of the flower market (see Map 2 in
Section 2.10). Each street name tells a history of the changing land uses of the
district, and how colonial infrastructure gradually took over the space of
quotidian economy.

The flower market is located at the boundary between three District

Councils 52 (DC), i.e. Mong Kok, Sham Shui Po () and Kowloon City.
Because the market is at the boundary of administrative districts, there were
governance problems especially in 1980s when the UC wanted to take charge of
it. More details of this will be explained in Section 4.5. Nonetheless, the flower
market is now categorised under the Mong Kok district, and therefore I will
analyse the Mong Kok context in particular. Nonetheless, some information in
this research was found in the Sham Shui Po district newspaper and will be
explained in Chapter 4.

50

Transliteration of Yuen Po means garden patch.

Transliteration of Yuen Ngai means gardening or horticulture.
52
The DC is a consultative body on district administration and affairs under the supervision of
Home Affairs Bureau of the government. There are eighteen districts of Hong Kong while each
district obtains their own local councils.
51

119

2.9

A Subaltern Historiographical Reading of the Flower

Market
In this section, I will outline of the historical development of the market in

five stages, namely Stage 1: Flower Market on the Boundary between Kowloon
and the New Territories (NT), Stage 2: Squatter Fire in the Fa Hui Village, Stage
3: Street Trading along Boundary Street, Stage 4: The UC and the Flower Market
at the Volleyball Court at Fa Hui Park, and Stage 5: Development of Shops on
Flower Market Road and Enhanced Corporatisation.

2.9.1

Stage 1: Flower Market on the Boundary between

Kowloon and the New Territories

The original Mong Kok Flower Market was located at Boundary Street, i.e.
the boundary between Kowloon and the NT before 1898 (Ng Ho 76; Leung To
50; Yi 179). Brief description in this period was given in Section 2.8 previously.
The government restricted the activities of hawkers to some selected open
spaces and side streets. These bazaar markets had pitches of equal size marked
out and a sliding scale of rents charged (Pang 24). The flower market in this
period was organically formed because of the geographical characteristics.

2.9.2

Stage 2: Squatter Fire in the Fa Hui Village

The Fa Hui Village () was listed in the Street Guide published by Wa

Kiu Yat Po in 1959. The location is near the flower market at Boundary Street,
Kowloon (Wah Kiu Yat Po). A dramatic transformation of the flower market
started when a serious squatter fire happened in Fa Hui Village on 1 November
1955 (Figure 2.10). Nearly 500 huts were burnt and more than 6,800 people were
rendered homeless (Sham Shui Po Kaifong Association).
120

Figure 2.10.

Fire hazard in the Fa Hui Village in 1955 (Source: ibid)

The wooden huts in the Fa Hui Village were mostly two-storey. There was a
small wet market and some grocery stores. There were nearly a hundred small
handicraft workshops, such as those making rattan, grassware, brooms, clogs,
etcetera. There was a chicken feather factory, a small cinema, a primary school
and a few teahouses. But most of the shops were burnt. We can imagine the Fa
Hui Village as a small community. With not just flowers, but with everything
they needed, including culture and entertainment, and with produce they could
sell to the city for a living. The second squatter hut fire occurred in 1956. At the
same time, a public housing policy was emerging. People eventually moved to
Tai Hang Tung Estate for resettlement. The burnt area was covered with grass
and trees and became a public park called Fa Hui Park in 1957 (HKRS 53
156-1-4808).

This section looks at how the flower market was an unstable area. It follows
the cultural landscapes (not just the physical landscapes but also the changing
53

HKRS refers to Hong Kong Record Series Number. All HKRS sources are from Hong Kong
Records Office.
121

livelihoods and control measures or pressures) of its surrounding. Fa Hui Park

was built and the market has been shifted outside Fa Hui Park.

2.9.3

Stage 3: Street Trading along Boundary Street

After the squatter fire in 1955, the market was moved outside Fa Hui Park.
The flower market remains as the major site for flower and gardening products
trading to this day. A wider road was designed for the market place at that time
(Figure 2.11, the two red lines are added for comparison). According to Person
Rs interview, the executive member of the Flower Union, he stated the
following:

We (the flower traders) were told to move to the pavement outside the
playground in 1957. We paid the rates until 1965. Also, two gateways were
established, namely flower market section of the Hong Kong and Kowloon
Flower and Plant Workers General Union () and the
Chinese-Hong Kong Cut-flower Industry Association flower market (
) 54, indicating its historical use for selling flowers.

54

The Hong Kong and Kowloon Flower and Plant Workers General Union is active nowadays
despite a trend of deteriorating membership since the 1980s (from 4,274 members in 1989 to
1,157 members in 2010. Appendix 4 shows the detailed figures). Discussion on the role of this
union to the flower industry will be given in Chapter 4. The Chinese-Hong Kong Cut-flower
Industry Association Flower Market is currently not active any more. However, this organisation
still constitute in voting for LegCo agricutlture functional constituency.
122

Figure 2.11.

A wide road outside Fa Hui Park to accommodate street traders

In the 1960s, the florists changed their habit of selling at night time. They
sell flowers after midnight because it would cause less disruption to normal
traffic. Two hundred hawkers - some wholesalers, some retailers - sold flowers in
the flower market in the 1960s, and operated as a dawn market (). The
market operated from 3 a.m. till sunrise. Wholesales of local flowers including
cockscomb, celosia argentea plumosa [celosia], crepe myrtle, gladiolus,
chrysanthemum, white ginger lily and some others. Local production could
supply enough flowers for all of Hong Kong because of a lower population and
less demand at that time.

The flower market was a dawn market because of practice of the trade
union called the Hong Kong and Kowloon Flowers and Plant Workers General
Union for the provision of trucks. Person R explains the operation of flower
selling in the past. He says,

123

At that time, many flower growers did not have their own car. Therefore,
the union provided trucks and picked the flower traders up at several spots.
For instance, there were three medium sized trucks transporting flower
farmers and fresh flowers from Shatin () to Boundary Street flower
market. Flowers were arranged into two columns in the truck, and went
back and forth for at least two or three times everyday. This practice
disappeared eventually when the flower growers had higher incomes and
bought their own vehicles. 55

According to Person R, this practice was terminated in 1965 because the

UC started a regular Lunar New Year Fairs at Fa Hui Park in that year, the
government terminated the practice of selling flowers along the road of
Boundary Street. Flower traders gathered to sell flowers in the areas around
Flower Market Road. In the 1970s and 80s, because of stability and economic
growth, the development of a local flower industry developed to its fullest extent.
According to a flower industry research report from 1973-74, conducted by the
Flower Union, most of the flower farmers were centralised along
Kowloon-Canton Railway, Tsuen Wan (), Tai Po () and Shatin. There
were more than 600 houses of flower farmers in Shatin. They produced a variety
of flower species, including introducing new species, flower buds and seeds. At
that time, flower growers obtained new foreign technology, e.g. light intensity
for the control of flowering chrysanthemum (). Both the development of
production quality and quantity increased. This technology was adopted by
private flower cultivators 56, but the Agriculture and Fisheries Department (AFD,
55

Interview with Person R, 31/1/2011.

For example, Gran Aijmer describes Ye Wan Zhe who was a flower grower in Pak Tin valley.
This flower cultivator owned a technically advanced garden farm which was unique in Sha Tin at
56

124

predecessor of the AFCD 57) in the colonial government encouraged wider usage
(Lui).

Since the mid-1980s the colonial government continually developed new

towns. Many flower farmers were forced to move away from their original
farmland to remote areas such as Tai Po, the Northern District and Yuen Long
(), and some of them moved to mainland China to continue their business.
The chairman of the Hong Kong and Kowloon flowers and Plant Workers
General Union, Cheung Chuen, said that the number of flower gardens has
drastically dropped since the early 1970s when the government speeded up
development of new towns. There were hundreds of gardens in Shatin. However,
a newspaper article reported in 1982 that there were fewer than 30 gardens
remaining and these were mostly on the outskirts of the new town. Most of the
Colonys 400 flower gardens were in Sai Kung (), Fanling (), Yuen
Long and Shataukok () (Flower Farms).

As described in Section 2.8, Person Cs understanding of Flower Market

starts in Stage 3. This maybe due to the increasing expansion of the flower
industry as a result of the increasing number of flower hawkers. At the same time,
the Flower Unions help in organizing flower hawkers along Boundary Street,
and the setting up of the two gateways, helped establish the identity of the flower
traders. However, some flower traders do not recall this history very clearly.
Among all possible reasons, I think this is due to the fact that it is an imposed

that time. In the evening he turned on a set of electric bulbs hung up over the fields. The flowers
grow in constant light day and night which increases their rate of growth. Ye got the idea for this
installation from his studies of floriculture in Japan (Aijmer 31).
57
AFD was transformed as AFCD in 2001.
125

framework of identity imposed on them through the spatial manipulation of

authorities from top-down. It is not a sense of identity as experienced from the
everyday experience of the traders. They do not see themselves as first and
foremost, a member of this market. More often than not, they see themselves as a
grower-trader of their own farm. They are proud farmers hawkering their best
produce. Their identity is first and foremost define by the soil, the land, the place
where their flowers are grown (i.e. the village where their farms are), not to the
place where their flowers are sold, i.e. the Flower Market. Their identity is first
and foremost a farmer and then a seller/trader/hawker. Flower growers have
always understood themselves as farmers and flower growers, not as legal or
illegal hawkers, as they would have been understood by hawker control
personnel and government policies. The lack of understanding of the markets
history as a unified flower trading market as it has evolved into makes it difficult
for the farmers-traders to unite, to appreciate the culture of the flower market, to
plan for its succession and inheritance of its past, and to improve the industry in
the future. The sense of community has to be built, often retroactively when
there is a shared crisis. A community becomes united only as a result of
conscious organising and mobilization efforts. It is never a taken-for-granted
given.

2.9.4

Stage 4: The Urban Council and the Flower Market at

the Volleyball Court at Fa Hui Park

In 1983 the market was moved inside the volleyball court of Fa Hui Park.
The flowers were subsequently transported from other parts of the NT to the

126

market. With the permission from the UC 58, flower hawkers used to have regular
trading sites inside the Fa Hui Playground. In those days, florists were hawkers
who sold flowers on the ground (Figure 2.12).

Figure 2.12.

Flower trading inside the volleyball court of Fa Hui Park

(Source: Flower Farmers)

Failing to provide a permanent premise for the market, the government was
not able to solve the conflicts of street use. The parking problem remained as the
main area of conflict for florists and pushing the business onto the volleyball
court of the Fa Hui Park failed to resolve the situaton and problems continued.
According to Leung Yuk Lam, Director of the Flower Union, the UC
experimented with a new form of counter-hawking practice in 1987. It sent out
the first few observation patrol teams to stay right at the site of illegal hawking
with the aim of reducing the cost of occasional raids by the law enforcement
58

Street traders were originally under the control of the Police. Stall licences were introduced in
1921. The Hawker Ordinance was passed in 1935. The control and licensing of the hawkers was
repealed in 1960 and its provisions were incorporated in the Public Health and Urban Services
Ordinance (Sujanani 18).
127

agency (Growers).

However, because of keen competition among different traders, flower

traders ran business earlier than the agreed time. Since 1988, the UCs general
duties team began to interfere and give penalties to some of the plant and flower
growers. They were being treated as illegal hawkers because nearby residents
complained of the noise and nuisance to traffic produced by about 50 trucks
which parked around the site (ibid). Since the flower growers wanted to escape
from the hawkers life, therefore, they started renting or buying shops in Flower
Market Road. Before that, Flower Market Road was not as prosperous as it is
now when there were car repair shops on Flower Market Road.

2.9.5

Stage 5: Development of Shops on Flower Market Road

and Enhanced Corporatisation

Increasing government control discouraged hawkers in the flower market.

Because of the help of the union, flower growers did their business on trucks
along the Flower Market Road, but the hawker control teams were very assertive
in the flower market. In order to have a more stable business environment, the
floral hawkers started to move into shops on Flower Market Road beginning in
the 1980s. Consequently, their status changed from informal traders (street
trading) to part of the formal economy (renting/buying a premise for trade).
Nowadays, shops are located mainly on Flower Market Road, Yuen Po Street,
Yuen Ngai Street and Prince Edward Road West. Some shops are scattered
around Sai Yee Street and the Playground Field Road, but these shops occupy
areas still very near to the core of the flower market.

128

2.10

The Existing Situation of the Flower Market

Hong Kongs flower market is not solely for wholesale purposes. Retail
activities are also vigorous. The ground floor shops are predominantly used by
florists and horticulture supply businesses, whilst the upper units accommodate
residents and various commercial and cultural uses, including dancing, music,
fitness, well being, film studios and offices, private tutorial offices and religious
institutional use. The florist shops form part of a larger concentration of flora and
horticulture businesses. Until March 2012, there are 105 flower and
horticulture-related shops established in the vicinity of the Mong Kong Flower
Market. Appendix 4 listed out the name, address and nature of business of those
shops. Map 2 illustrates the concentration of flower and horticulture shops on the
ground floor 59.

According to Person O 60, flower farmers encounter many changes in recent

decades. She says,

Flower cultivators need to shift their business to landscape design and

arboriculture. My brother attended arboriculture training and learned the
technique of tree risk assessment in order to write report for tree assessment.
Each report allows him to earn a few thousand dollars. We also do garden
services and landscape design and provide services to shopping malls and
housing estates. We have new business because many primary and
59

In the legend of Appendix 4 and Map 2, R refers to residential buildings, while C refers to
commercial-use. C1 refers to commercial premises selling cut-flowers. C2 refers to selling of
flower gift, including flower bouquets and flower baskets. C3 refers to orchid, including both
Chinese-style and Western-style. C4 refers to potted plants. C5 refers to silk flowers. C6 refers to
gardening, such as the shop selling product or services related to gardening. C7 refers to
commercial premises that are non-flower related.
60
Interview with Person O, 31/1/2011.
129

secondary schools start promoting greening at rooftop or on playground. I

think the future of flower industry should be in a trend of corporatisation.
You see, many flower shops in the flower market has renovated and become
more high-class. The current trend of flower shops in the Mong Kok Flower
Market is to upgrade their tone and to become more like the flower shops in
Central and Sheung Wan.

In other words, flower cultivators should have a diversification of

knowledge in agriculture and gardening in order to provide landscape and garden
services. Unlike the past practices, cultivation skill is not enough to support the
whole business. At the same time, revitalisation and heritage preservation of the
URA might therefore have created a good time for flower shops to upgrade their
looks and services. More discussion of these issues will be given in Chapter 5.

According to my observations, it is true that flower shops tend to offer a

pleasant shopping experience, such as having floral design and nice flower
displays, and a few flower shops even play festive music during CNY and
Valentines Day to enhance the atmosphere. Flower shops have more gimmicks.
One shop in particular allocates half of its space for use as a refrigerator. Flowers,
mainly imported from the Netherland, are kept at 8 degrees Celsius. Customers
enter the refrigerator and choose flowers. Also, they provide a flower memo
service that allows messages or photos to be printed on rose petals. Traditional
florists allocate part of the shop for an open refrigerator that keeps flowers cool.
It shows that florists invest more on hardware serving different needs of
customers. According to Chen Gen Wang, the majority of flower types for Hong
Kong consumers were globally grown rather than domestically produced, and a
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maturing global system resulted in an explosion of diversity in commercial

cut-flower varieties. Flowers have been imported from foreign countries since
the 1960s in small proportions (Chen Gen Wang). For instance, Hong Kong is
one of the main destinations of exports from Taiwan because its government
conducted research on flower production specifically for selling abroad. These
activities were encouraged by the Taiwanese Joint Commission on Rural
Reconstruction (Gallery). However, this export was not on a large scale
because the Taiwanese flower industry was in its infancy, and the cooling
container technology was likewise in an initial stage. Flowers imported from
other areas, such as from Thailand, were on small scale as well. The next section
categorises reasons for the emergence of imported flowers from both the supply
and demand sides.

2.11

Daily Operation of the Flower Market

I will explain a daily operation of Mong Kok flower industry in a normal

day, that means there is no festival occurs at that time.

0500-0800

Delivery and Wholesale Activities

Most of the wholesale flower shops open at 5 a.m. every morning. Lorries
unload large boxes, and other plants in bulk since imported cut-flower are
delivered by lorries and vans to Flower Market Road, Prince Edward Road West
and Sai Yee Street. Goods are unloaded from the vehicles on the road directly in
front of the shop (Figure 2.13). Some boxes are marked with an abbreviation of
the retail shops in other districts if they are ordered by the shops; the rest of the
goods are unpacked and put in the plastic buckets by the flower shop assistants

133

(Figure 2.14 and 2.15). Accordingly, staff members distribute flower orders from
their customers (Figure 2.16). A few big wholesale flower shops, all located on
Yuen Ngai Street, run 24 hours per day since some goods arrive at night. The
procedures of unloading and unpacking goods are the same as described earlier
in this paragraph.

Figure 2.13.

Goods are unloaded directly on the road in front of the flower

shop occupying public space (Source: Hing Fat Flower)

Figure 2.14.

Goods are unpacked and put in buckets directly in front of shops

(Source: ibid)
134

Figure 2.15.

Different kinds of leaf branches sold in the flower market

(Source: ibid)

Figure 2.16.

Staff members distribute flowers ordered to their customers

(Source: ibid)

135

Some farmers who produce goods in the NT carry their local farm produce
to the flower market for street trading early in the morning. This kind of trading
is sporadic, but mainly concentrated on Flower Market Road. One shop in the
flower market is still specialised in selling local farm produce such as basil,
Chinese herbs, even eggs. The variety of goods depends on the season and the
climate. One particular flower shop located on Flower Market Road sells local
farm produce. Honey is even available in that shop as it is one of the farm
products in Hong Kong. Nonetheless, most of the local farm produce was sold by
farmers in a format of street selling as their supply is not large enough for a shop.
The practice of street trading is a continuation of the tradition of the flower
market as described in Section 2.9.3. One of my informants who runs a flower
retail shop in the Wanchai wet market buys farm produce from the street vendors
in the flower market, and then resells the goods in their shop 1. This kind of
distribution of farm produce facilitates buyers who are consuming goods in the
wet market.

Florists of retail flower shops from other districts arrive at the market and
select goods. Buyers carry their goods and leave the market either by taxis or on
their own vehicles. Flowers in plastic buckets are brought into rear parts of the
shops, or in the back lane for preparation before sale. Shop assistants cut the
stems of the cut-flowers to avoid air blockage in the stem cell during water
absorption. Then, bunches of flowers are wrapped in newspaper, plastic or white
papers for protection and counting. The processed flowers are put in cleaned
buckets for display in the front part of the shop for sale. Other goods are put in
storage or in refrigerator if they are installed. People are busy to fill their shops
1

Interview with Person G, 21/11/2010.

136

with brilliant flowers for display before the opening of shop, mainly at 8 a.m.

0800-1130 Preparation and Retail Activities

Flower shops open at 8 a.m. Shop assistants continue their work if they are
not finished. Detailed work needs to be done to make the flowers more beautiful,
for instance, the anther of lilies shall be removed if possible so that the pollen
will not make the petals dirty. Fresh water is replaced in the flower buckets and
vases if the flowers were unloaded early in the morning. Water should be sprayed
on flowers, mainly roses, in order to keep a fresh look.

Some flower shops which specialise in making flower baskets and bouquets
are busy arranging flowers. These flower baskets wrapped in the morning are
mainly for the grand opening of businesses, while flower bouquets are for
various uses, such as celebrating birthdays, anniversaries, or for showing best
wishes to the sick. Other bunches are for display. A commercial preservative 2 is
added to the water to prolong vase life by helping to open the vessels that
conduct water up the stem. This is especially the case with more expensive
flowers, both in terms of the species and place of origin.

Retail activity is dominant in this period of the day. Assistants from flower
arrangement schools buy goods to prepare for lessons. Household customers
select fresh cut-flowers in the market. Some of them might travel in their own
cars. Since the Mong Kok Stadium 3 (), the sport ground on Flower
2

A floral preservative is a complex mixture of sucrose (sugar), acidifier, an inhibitor of

microorganisms, and a respiratory inhibitor. Sucrose serves as a source of energy to make up for
the loss of the functioning leaves and insures continued development and longevity of the flower
(Meyer).
3
Mong Kok Stadium was formerly known as the Army Sports Ground, was taken over by the
137

Market Road, is in repair between 2009 and 2011, parking is not available. Some
people might park their cars in front of the flower shops if trucks are not
occupying the space. Otherwise, customers are just dropped off on the road
quickly and shop around. Parking space is very important for both customers and
flower shops and will be described in Chapter 4.

Because of the lack of space, nearly all flower shops occupy the pedestrian
road in front of their shops. Some shops even occupy parking space and extend
their shops, or use the empty pedestrian path opposite their shops for goods
display4 (Figure 2.17).

former Urban Council for management in 1961. It is now under the management of LCSD and is
the major venue used by the Hong Kong Football Association for First Division League football
matches, Cup competitions, International football matches such as Asian Football Confederation
Cup and training session for Hong Kong Football Representative Teams. Mong Kok Stadium is
one of the city's major venues for football matches and community events. The renovated Mong
Kok Stadium offers more than 6,600 individual seats, of which some 3,300 are covered. It is
suitable for staging high-level and international football matches and is conducive to the
promotion and long-term development of local football (Hong Kong Special Administrative
Region, Leisure and Cultural Services Department d).
4
The pedestrian path along Flower Market Road, opposite to the flower shops is empty because
it is outside the Mong Kok Stadium.
138

Figure 2.17.

Flower shop occupies parking area and pedestrian pavement in

the flower market

1130-1230

The Patrolling of the Food and Environmental Hygiene

Department Officers

Officers of the FEHD prowl the neighbourhood to ensure that goods can be
displayed no more than 3 feet in front of shops. They tell the shop keepers to
move their flowers away from the parking spaces and the pedestrian walkway
(Figure 2.18). They were instructed to maintain a passive attitude of avoidance of
pathway obstruction by surveillance and policing of the flower traders. The
officers usually give verbal warnings, but they will charge the flower sellers
sometimes. The large perceived space for flower shops demonstrates the business
environment of the industry. The constant conflict between florists and law
enforcement officers will be further discussed in Section 4.5 and 4.15.

139

Figure 2.18.

Officers of Food and Environmental Hygiene Department to clear

the pavement along Flower Market Road and Sai Yee Street

1230-1500

Resuming of Normal Retail Activities

After government officials leave the market, shopkeepers move their goods
back to their perceived space, which includes the car parking space and both
sides of the pavement. Retail activities are foremost during this time.

1500-1600

Patrolling of Food and Environmental Hygiene Department

Officers

FEHD officers come again to control the street activities, with the same
procedures as described in the above paragraph of 1130-1230 The Patrolling of
the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department Officers.

140

1600-1800

Delivery of goods

Flowers and other plants are delivered to the flower market. Flower shops
repeat their work done in the morning. More retail customers arrive than in the
morning. The shops are crowded with customers and the unloading of goods.
Some people attend hobby classes conducted upstairs by flower arrangement
schools.

1800-2000

Delivery, Packing and Cleaning

Wholesale flower shops load goods on their trucks or vans to deliver to

retail flower shop customers in other districts. Afterwards, flower keepers clean
up the shops and prepare for the next day of operation. They carry the rubbish to
the refuse collection point at the junction of Flower Market Road and Sai Yee
Street. Some old people pick up cardboard that has been used to import flowers
for recycling. Certain flower shops might continue to work in their shop to
prepare flower orders, such as packing flower bouquets, or flower baskets
according to their business nature. This happens usually when they have many
orders, or the one single order involves much preparation. Those orders usually
need to be delivered the next morning. A few flower wholesale shops, mainly
located in Yuen Ngai Street, are active overnight as described in 0500-0800
Delivery and Wholesale Activities.

This livelihood is increasingly in danger of disappearing because, from the

case of tension between florists and FEHD officers as described in 1130-1230
Patrolling of FEHD Officers, the government is increasingly intolerant. They
use a control and management mentality to rule the flower market and I would
argue that the attitude of not giving enough attention to the local culture,
141

livelihood and economic network, but instead emphasising issues related to

hygiene and control, is a kind of embedded coloniality because actions are
determined according to a market price logic rather than community needs.
Chapter 4 will give a more detailed description of this case and discuss it in
greater depth.

2.12

Government

Attitudes

Towards

the

Flower

Industry
Rather than providing long term policy and practice for the flower industry,
the current Hong Kong government has yet to contribute to this sector a
permanent wholesale market rather than mis-managing the industry as a leisure
activity. According to existing government effort and people within the flower
industry, all evidence shows that the governments attitude towards the industry
is either doubtful or negative. Person H, Chairman of Hong Kong Flower Club,
has a reserved attitude towards governments role in supporting flower industry 5.
He says,

You cannot say that the government does not support flower industry, as
the government does sponsor larger flower clubs and organisations. For
instance, we (The Hong Kong Flower Club) will soon hold a large-scale
installation at Hong Kong Park, which is sponsored by the government. But
it is debatable to say whether the government could systematically support
and develop the flower industry and make it become a prominent one. If the
government tends to develop an industry seriously, at least there should be a
5

Interview with Person H, 23/11/2010.

142

well-structured education program developed by the government, with

specific qualification developed from Hong Kong, not just using the
qualification issued by foreign countries, such as the Netherland, Taiwan,
the USA, etc.

In other words, the government emphasized on greenery, but it does not

provide background support about creating a clear qualification system in Hong
Kong. It is debatable whether the government could offer a systematic way to
nurture new people into the industry, or to make the industry more prominent.

Hong Kongs flower market is more traditional when compared to other

countries that emphasise its local production, such as the Netherlands 6 .
According to Person H 7, he explains his view about the small scale of flower
market. He says,

The floriculture industry in the Netherlands is famous around the world. Aalsmeer, the city
with the main Dutch flower auction, is famous for its advanced technology and high-speed way
of selling flowers, but its beginning was modest. Some growers came up with an idea of holding
an auction to give more control over how their flowers were priced and sold in 1911. When the
auction ended, flowers were piled onto bicycles and boats to be delivered along Hollands narrow
canals and even narrower streets. Hawkers arrived by train. When trucks were finally introduced,
two auctions appeared in the Netherlands. Until 1968, the two auctions ran nearly side by side.
They become todays Blomenveiling Aalsmeer auction after a merger, and become the largest
major, year-round flower auction in the Netherlands (Stewart 210). The Aalsmeer auction was
also the first to adopt an electronic auction. Buyers and growers gathered. They brought flowers
together, anywhere in the world, so that they can be displayed, judged, picked over, and
purchased. Carts are paraded in front of the buyers. An auction employee pulled a single stem off
each cart and held it up high for the bidders to see. Buyers then start bidding. To an outsider, it is
difficult for bidders sitting in the auction room to get a good look at the flowers they are buying.
But the merchandising culture in auction is like a race. Buyers could not afford to lose even one
second figuring out what is for sale. Buyers look at the cart and knowing, at one glance, the
colours and variety, the number of stems on the carts, and who the grower was (ibid 221). Four or
five inspectors serve as one team to check each others work to make sure that the flower ratings
are consistent. The goal of the inspections is to provide accurate information to the buyer without
unfairly criticizing a growers product. Except for pest and disease infestation, most flowers with
flaws are not destroyed but are put up for auction with a lower quality rating or a note from the
inspector to alert the buyer about the problems they have discovered (ibid 223).
7
Interview with Person H, 23/11/2010.
143

In other area such as the Netherland, Taiwan and the mainland China, they
have a whole industry for flower cultivation. Hong Kong is so small, it is
impossible to cultivate flowers locally. It is not a viable option. The Hong
Kong Flower Market is not a centralised one. For instance, the centralised
mechanism of Japans Ota Floriculture Auction Co. Ltd (
) succeeds in securing guaranteed quality of their products, and even
promoting flowers in their market to foreign areas. Likewise, the flowers
that I use in this flower arrangement workshop today are sponsored by a
Japanese flower wholesale market. Actually, this kind of flower is seldom
exported, but I guess it is because of the decreasing demand of flowers in
Japan that they need to think of more channels to export their flowers. Hong
Kong is one of their destinations for experiment. Comparatively speaking,
Hong Kongs wholesale market is rather old-fashioned. Every shop sets
their own price according to their own needs and concerns, making the
industry more disperse in an old style of doing business. So, it is more
difficult to compare the case of Hong Kong to other countries. Yet, the
advantage of Hong Kong Flower Market is that it is very focused by
concentrating its business activity in one single area only. Although the area
is not very appealing, but dont look down on ityou can find flowers from
every part of the world here.

Person Hs comparison of flower market between Hong Kong and Japan

shapes our basic understanding of the different operation systems between the
two areas 8. Flower market in Hong Kong is more primitive in a sense that there
is little promotion strategy done by the flower operators or the Flower Union.
8

Interview with Person H, 23/11/2010.

144

Person H further explains his view on the decline of Mong Kong Flower Market.
He says,

The business operator in the flower market (in Hong Kong) needs to pay
the market rent because the government does not subsidize any land price.
Business operators in the market import goods from overseas buyers. It is
similar to all other large-scale flower shops that directly trade with the
buyer-export agent without the need of wholesale florists. Florists in Mong
Kok Flower Market are similar to all other business operators. They need to
handle both wholesale and retail. If this is so, why does the retail flower
shop need to have a middleman in the Flower Market, if they could buy
flowers directly from the source of origin? Besides, floral design in business
operators of Mong Kok Flower Market is not as beautiful and as delicate as
that in flower designer school. They might not even hire a professional
floral designer to plan how to make flowers display more appealing. If they
dont have an appealing appearance, they cannot attract ordinary customers.
At the same time, they need to pay rent at market rate. And some retail
shops just skip the middleman and trade directly to the source. From the
perspective of a floral designer, I believe there is a decay in the Mong Kok
Flower Market.

Person Hs critical comments explain one of the obstacles the business

operators are facing. Since the florists in the market are self-contained. The
government assumes that entrepreneurs in an open market economy know best
what to produce and how, and so the market should be allowed to thrive without
government interference, but the reality is that the business operators encounter
145

great difficulties in their business, such as those difficulties explained by Person

H. Similar comments about the high risk of business operators in Mong Kok
Flower Market are reported by Jin Niu. He explains the difficulties are in terms
of merchandising and storage since operators are like middlemen, they need to
obtain accurate information from both buyers and sellers in order to match the
customers needs. Also, since the business operators do not produce the goods by
themselves, they need to bear greater risks in accepting withered flowers since
flowers are perishable goods (Jin Niu 15).

In Hong Kong, flowers have been treated as a kind of commodity for trade
without a comprehensive policy recognising it as part of agriculture or
horticulture, neither in terms of agricultural policy nor industrial policy. For the
government, the management logic of the prosperous flower market is an
arbitrary decision. As explained by the Secretary for Food and Health,

there are currently no restrictions on the location of premises used for

retailing and wholesaling fresh flowers, potted plants and associated
products, nor any special licensing requirements. The concentration of
flower retailers and wholesalers in the vicinity of Flower Market Road is a
commercial decision made by the trade (Hong Kong Special Administrative
Region, Legislative Council a 6845).

In other words, the concentration of flower shops along Flower Market

Road is only a commercial matter that makes florists purely subject to market
forces, especially the real estate market, to affect their business activities. It
seems that the government does not bother to understand the needs of the
146

industry as an industry, and to provide aids or assistance to florists. The

government assumes that entrepreneurs in an open market economy know best
what to produce and how, and so the market should be allowed to thrive without
government interference. In reality, over the past several decades, business
operators explain to the government repeatedly about their request of having a
permanent flower market, but the government refuses responsibility and delays
in giving positive response to the people. This implies that these rulers do not
pay enough efforts in preserving and improving the local industry.
Non-intervention policy offers the government an excuse for not helping the
industry. The government considers direct interference in favour of one industry
as unfair to other industries not receiving official help. Conversely, governments
land development policy and street management shows that there is a certain
kind of control in the market: practises such as land resumption, hawker control
and heritage preservation policy discourage the development of flower industry
in favour of other businesses, car use, other land use and real estate development
in particular, and I will explain in Chapter 3, 4 and 5 respectively. In reality, an
industry could not improve without the aids of direct or indirect public policy.

2.13

The Flower Sector as Green Leisure Activity

From the colonial period to post-1997 Hong Kong, flowers, for the
government, are a way to provide people with a leisure activity and greening.
The UC organised the first Hong Kong Flower Show in 1968 (Urban Council).
Instead of assisting the development of the flower industry, it aimed at promoting
better city life. A. de O. Sales, Chairman of the Parks, Recreation and Amenities
Select Committee of the UC stated that the Council hopes that this modest

147

effort will stir up far more public interest in gardening so that more people would
be encouraged to help in beautifying Hong Kong by their own personal efforts
(ibid). From the governments point of view, improving the city image is more
important than using the flower show as a way to promote the flower industry as
an industry. The flower show is a promotion of privatised horticultural
consumption as a hobby and quality of life accessory rather than the
development of the flower industry as a whole.

After the UC was dissolved in 1999, the Leisure and Cultural Services
Department (LCSD) and FEHD replaced the UC. From then on, LCSD is
responsible for organising the flower show. The nature of the government
department responsible for organising the flower show indicates the
governments attitude towards the flower show as a leisure and entertainment
activity. It is under the LCSD under the Home Affairs Bureau. It is organised in
the form of a leisure activity and for the promotion of retail horticulture. For
instance, there are seminars on greening and horticulture, demonstrations of
different schools of floral art and trees, and other cultural activities such as music
performance, dance performance, magic show and face-painting (Hong Kong
Special Administrative Region, Leisure and Cultural Services Department b).

From the message of Tsang Tak Sing, Secretary for Home Affairs, we can
see that coloniality is embedded in the organisation of the flower show, and it
implies the governments attitude toward the flower industry. In the foreword of
Hong Kong Flower Show 2011, Tsang says,

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the Hong Kong Flower Show has attracted over 500,000 local and
overseas visitors, with the number increasing every year. The amazing array
of flowers and plant presented in the Show by local horticulturists and
exhibitors from all over the world has added to the charisma of Hong
Kong Asias World City (Tsang 3 in ibid).

For the government, the flower show is a way to attract visitors to come and
exchange knowledge of horticulture through floral art demonstration and flower
competition. Without any mention of the hard work of the industry in
contributing to the society, the flower show could only be seen as a gathering of
local and overseas experts exchanging their knowledge, and contributing to the
image of Asias World City. Local industry and local culture has been ignored.

The Government is committed to promoting greening initiatives while

members of the public are getting more aware of the importance of
environment. The Hong Kong Flower Show does not only contribute to the
increasing greening awareness of the public, it also encourages people to
improve their quality of life and living environment through planning at
home. In a bustling city like Hong Kong, the blooming flowers and
colourful exhibits of the Show will give visitors a respite and allow them to
enjoy the delight of a relaxing break (ibid).

Person H, the Chairman of Hong Kong Flower Club, evaluates the degree
of success of Hong Kong Flower Show 9. He says,

Interview with Person H, 23/11/2010.

149

Hong Kong Flower Show is launched by the government. It meets the aim
of greenery in Hong Kong. It enhances the awareness of greenery and is
able to inspire people to turn their house to be more greenery. However, the
show could become more diversified if it promotes more ideas other than
greenery alone, such as recycling, environmental protection and
preservation. Hong Kong Flower Show is relatively superficial. For instance,
in the Netherlands, there is a place where people can do flower auction.
Commercial firms and the government co-operate with one another to the
flower show a success. Thats why the show can be much larger in scale. In
contrast, the flower show in Hong Kong is government-led and always
invites commercial to join the show after. The show is similar every year.
You couldnt say that it is not successful because they could achieve the
listed objective, that is to enhance the awareness of greenery.

In other words, Person H agrees that Hong Kong Flower Show achieve its
objective of enhancing the awareness of greenery. However, there are other
things that the government could make more varieties to the show, such as
public-private partnership is a way allowing flexibility to the organisers, and also
embracing creativity. The current Hong Kong Flower Show contains mainly
three sections. The first one is the flower competition. One interviewee expresses
his dissatisfaction towards the floral art competition in Hong Kong Flower
Show 10 . Person D says the flower arrangement could be a visual art, and
therefore, he attempted to apply funding from Hong Kong Arts Development
Council 11 (ADC) and has been rejected. All he could do is to join the flower
10

Interview with Person D, 8/10/2010.

ADC is a statutory body set up by the Government to support the broad development of the
arts in Hong Kong. Its major roles include grant allocation, policy and planning, advocacy,
11

150

show competition to display his artwork, but the aim of the show is mainly on
greening Hong Kong. He was disappointed to see that the organising quality of
this competition because he is dissatisfied with the quality of the judges, who
have a lower level of knowledge and skills than he has, but were nevertheless
judging all the works. Also, there is a rumour that the winners are either friends
or students of the judges. It is like a small insider game for a social gathering, but
not a fair game for the growth of the floral arts. He boycotted the competition
after participating once, even though he won some prizes. Person D shows his
anger towards the unprofessionalism of Hong Kong Flower Show,

I have already boycotted the Hong Kong Flower Show because it is very
unprofessional. Even the winners are obviously not following the rules of
the competition. For instance, there is a category specifically restricting the
use of processed flower as the materials, but one of the candidates still used
dried flowers, which exactly is a type of processed flower materials. Yet the
candidate told me that the judge said it is acceptable. When I discussed this
issue with the organisers of Taiwan Cup, a very big flower competition in
Taiwan which represents all the Asian masterpieces, they also agreed that
dried flowers are processed flowers. So I made a complaint to the Hong
Kong Flower Show, and they told me that, Because the judge has already
given marks on it, we would not change any more. Another example is that
there is a rule saying that the flowers for competition need to touch water,
but again the flowers that have violated this rule actually won the
competition. So one can see the competition was so badly managed. People

promotion and development, and programme planning. Its vision is to establish Hong Kong as a
dynamic and diverse cultural metropolis (The Hong Kong Arts Development Council).
151

should follow the rules. It is why the rules are there. I suggest something
very easy to be carried out in procedure. There should be a person screening
whether the art work follows the rules or not, and the judge should only
grade those candidates who strictly follow the rules. I have expected the
government to manage the work more closely because they have organised
the competition for so many years. However, they are so careless and
absent-minded in carrying out the flower competition. I think that they are
just running it with the aim of the interest group. The government should
eventually train new talents to join the industry. The judge of the flower
competition was so unprofessional. In my stream of flower art, there are a
number of levels recognized by every stream. It is so ridiculous when I
discovered that a judge in a stream that is lower than my level was judging
my work! How unprofessional it is!

According to Person D, flower arrangement competition in Hong Kong

Flower Show is an important mean to enhance the standard of floral art.
However, since the government emphasise too much on promoting greenery but
do not have enough attention to enhance the standard of floral art, it is similar to
an interest group.

The second section in the Hong Kong Flower Show is for flower display.
For example, among the hundreds of flower and gardening shops located in
flower market, only three shops went to display floral art in Hong Kong Flower
Show 2012 12. The show invited 200 organisations from local and twenty-two
12

Four flower shops located in the Mong Kok Flower Market have participated in Hong Kong
Flower Show 2011. They are Brighten Floriculture Ltd, Sum Kee Yuen, Wah Thai Luen (H.K.)
Trading Co. Ltd., and Connie Garden.
152

countries 13 to showcase exotic flowers, landscape and floral art displays. Major
participants are horticulture interest groups from local and foreign regions. This
section demonstrates the governments wish in enhancing flower appreciation
among the public, and to allow more flower experts to learn from each others.

Another section in the flower show is for commercial use. According to my

observation, very few shops in the flower market rent a booth to do business in
the show. According to an interviewee working in a flower shop in Mong Kok
Flower Market, Person B 14 says,

[w]e (my company) do not know what to show in the flower show. Goods
sold in the Hong Kong Flower Show are the same in the flower market.
Also, the rental price of stalls is very high 15. Some shops in flower market
might go to the flower show, but it is mainly for brand promotion purposes.

Most booths for rent in the flower show are local flower producers who do
not have any shops in the flower market in Mong Kok, and therefore they treat
the Flower Show as a chance for them to do business promotion.

13

The twenty-two foreign countries who participated in the Flower Show 2012 were: mainland
China, Taiwan, Australia, Canada, Estonia, France, Germany, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Korea,
Malaysia, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Pakistan, the Philippines, Singapore, South Africa,
Spain, Belgium, the United Kingdom and the United States.
14
Interview with Person B, 5/10/2010.
15
Commercial stalls auction of Hong Kong Flower Show 2012 range between HK$22,100 and
HK$38,100 for 10 days (Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Leisure and Cultural
Services Department c).
153

2.14

Future Possibilities of Hong Kongs Flower

Industry

The future of Hong Kongs flower industry is positive and there are rooms
for development. For instance, flower culture could be promoted as a form of art.
According to Person D, Hong Kongs flower industry has a bright future and the
government worths to pay more attention to 16. Flower is not only a commodity
but a kind of art form with high aesthetic value and is able to allow people to
express themselves. He says,

I think the most important thing is to promote floral art to more people.
LCSD should help doing that. Unlike the Europeans who love displaying
flowers or potted plants in their house, Hong Kong people are not used to
live with flowers and plants. It is also the case of Japan. But when the
Japanese Flower Trade Union understands the inclination of the declining
flower usage in Japan, it starts to promote flower culture in kindergarten. It
aims at allowing students to get used to flower in their daily life since they
are young, so that the young people would consume more flowers when
they grow up. It is also a promotion of flower art as a way of expressing
ones emotion. I think the current flower industry is too short-sighted
because very few people do marketing work for the industry. The current
consumption of flower is mainly for wedding and funeral the usage is
way too narrow. If people think that flower is part of their everyday life,
they would buy flowers all the time.

16

Interview with Person D, 8/10/2010.

154

In other words, flower culture could be promoted and extended to the

ordinary usage, other than usages during festivals and important day in a
persons life as explained in Section 2.4 and 2.5. In contrast, some existing
business operators do not treat flower as a form of art, but rather a kind of
commodity. Person G attended courses about flower arrangement before 17. He
comments,

there are only a few number of flowers in a vase, how can you make
money out of this? Flower arrangement courses are only for those rich
ladies who have too much time to kill. It is for leisure only and is not
practical.

In other words, some business operators think that flower art is a kind of
high culture, it is difficult to let ordinary people to enjoy. At the same time,
Person G focuses more on monetary return in this business. At the same time,
flower is a way of expressing oneself and could be used as a way of nature
appreciation. Floral art is with high artistic value. If floral art could be promoted
in the education system, as explained by Person Ds interview with reference of
Japanese system, people understand the value of flowers when they are young. It
could promote art and culture on one hand, and on the other hand, business of
flower industry could expand because people are used to have flowers since they
are young. On the other hand, there are many ways of appreciating floral art, and
the current objective of Hong Kong Flower Show and other events of flower
decorations mainly focuses on promoting greenery in the city and might not be
enough to enhance the ability of appreciating floral art. Both Person D and
17

Interview with Person G, 21/11/2010.

155

Person H believe that the government could extend the concept of flowers to
broader social issues such as nature conservation and art and cultural values
among citizens.

2.15

Chapter Summary

To sum up, this chapter introduces the culture of flower in Hong Kong, the
general situation of flower plantation and the transformation of the flower
industry in Hong Kong through a subaltern historiography of the flower market.
To the government, floral activities are merely a matter of commercial activities
and a promotion of greenery and lifestyle. From the attitudes towards the floral
competition in the Hong Kong Flower Show, we could see that the government
maintains the view of greening Hong Kong and providing more leisure activities
for the public, and these attitudes hinder professional development of the flower
industry. Survival of individual florists is a market decision, not a public policy.
Floral design, which could be an art form that could enhance culture, is not
treasured by the government, not even by the ADC which is responsible for arts
development in Hong Kong. The limited scope promoted by the government on
the flower industry shows an embedded coloniality that is continuous from the
colonial period, which is comprised of providing superficial aids to help city
branding and image, but ignore the local cultural significance, economic network
and industrial livelihood of local communities. The government could not
respond to the needs of the industry. Also, the blessing from Tsang Tak Sing,
Secretary for Home Affairs, about allowing Flower Show to add to the charisma
of Hong Kong as an Asias World City, seems to be mere rhetoric without
action and policy in support, in contrast to the larger flower shows and

156

exhibitions in nearby region such as Taiwan 18. From the dissatisfaction of the
interviewee, embedded coloniality also exists in the lack of fairness in the annual
flower show. The flower show is supposed to promote greenery and the
enjoyment of flower culture for the public. However, from the complaints of the
interviewee about the flower competition, we could see that there was a lack of
professionalism in the show. At the same time, the government is increasingly
intolerant towards the public. They use a control and management mentality to
rule the flower market, and I would argue that such a stance does not give
enough attention to local culture. To emphasise hygiene and control reflects a
kind of embedded coloniality since it privileges corporate, real estate,
middle-class and car owners rights to space in the city as against the rights of
use for grassroots industries and small and medium businesses an sole
proprietors as well as ordinary quotidian livelihood. It also cares more about the
ease of control for the government official than the ease of business for a local
industry. This is a biased economic imagination and authority imposed on Hong
Kong, and it clearly ignores the needs and rights of quotidian culture and
livelihood.

18

For example, the Taipei International Flora Expo in 2010, it shows how floral art design could
enhance the image of Taipei of Taiwan. The Expo was an event allowing international exchange
of flower competition. 8.96 million visitors attended the 171-day exhibition, with an average of
52,398 people visiting the exhibition every day. The Expo organiser aims to combine horticulture,
technology and environmental protection in the planning process, and also allows an
enhancement of green life through cultural activities. Since this thesis is not a comparison studies,
I will not focus on the Taiwan Flora Expo.
157

CHAPTER 3
EMBEDDED COLONIALITY OF
FLOWER CULTIVATION IN
THE NEW TERRITORIES
Flower cultivation is important. Many primary and secondary schools and housing
estates order gardening service from me. Ive expanded my business even to China. It
provides enough money for my whole family. I have 3 children, huh! The flower
industry competition is keen, but everywhere is like that, isnt it? (Person I)

There is no flower cultivation in Hong Kong. Or I should say, there are so few, I have
very little chance to work on it.

3.1

(Person H)

Chapter Introduction
The Mong Kok Flower Market has a close relationship with flower

cultivation ever since farmers started to grow flowers in the NT and took their
produce to the flower market on Boundary Street. At the same time, the near
dissipation of flower cultivation has been closely related to Hong Kongs
reliance on real estate and infrastructure building as key drivers of economic
development. This results in government policies with strong demands for urban
land use. In this context, industries with relatively lower rates of economic return,
such as agriculture, were driven away to remote areas, while most of the land in
the NT was urbanised. Even flower cultivation, considered to be the most
economically viable farm produce, was forced to relocate or even disappear from
158

Hong Kong because the government appropriated arable land in order to develop
new towns or other public utilities. The dynamics between local cultivators,
florists and people working on flower arrangement shows that local flower
agriculture is segregated from high-end flower consumers. Local flower
cultivators, the original contributor to the industry, become more and more
marginalised. Their survival is increasingly difficult. Paradoxically, most of the
available arable land was owned by indigenous inhabitants of the territories, a
title which the government had dedicated to them 19 . Technically, their
indigeneity can sometimes be questionable. Those lands have a special
ownership status which makes it difficult to use for urban development. Flower
cultivators are however, mostly non-indigenous inhabitants immigrating from
China after 1949, renting land from the indigenous inhabitants and attempting to
survive in these scraps of land originally preserved for indigenous inhabitants.
The government did not respond to the requests from the local farmers because
its developmental attitude favours economic progress above all else. This chapter
argues that throughout the colonial and postcolonial era, government aids to local
agriculture has been limited to the supply of technological aid. However, what
concerns farmers is not only the availability of advanced technology but the
availability of arable land. The postcolonial government however, does not
19

Understanding the indigenous inhabitants of the NT is important in my research because they

were collaborators with the British colonialist in the development of NT. The fundamental issue
of rural elites is that they are a group of indigenous inhabitants and their offspring are often still
living in the NT. they are of a different ethnicity than other groups in Hong Kong at that time. In
the past, people either originated from a local group (or called Punti) or Hakka. NT was occupied
predominantly by what is sometimes called The Five Great Clans, the Tangs, Haus, Pangs,
Liaos and the Mans. Beside these five great clans, different surname groups came into this region
who were also of Han ethnicity, such as the Punti, Hakka, Hoklo, and Tanka before 1898. For
instance, the largest clans in Hong Kong, such as The Pang, Tang and Man are from Punti, while
the Liao were Hakka though they claimed to be Punti later (Baker 1968 cited in Chan Ching
Selina 2;. Also see Kwok 6; Chun a 3). There are a number of meanings related to indigenous
inhabitants. Similar meanings would be villagers, village people, outsiders, indigenous people or
indigenous inhabitants. However, indigenous inhabitants carries the specific meaning of the
colonial governments recognition carrying exclusive benefits which I will explain at the end of
the paragraph.
159

directly respond to the farming populations requests for arable land. I will prove
how the postcolonial government continues the previous colonisers mentality
that see the government as the agent to assist global capital flow, whether it be
colonial global capital flow of the British empire and its trading partners, or the
global capital flow of neoliberalist capital accumulation today. Government land
use and land regulation policies continue from the colonial appropriation of local
rural land for urban forms of development to the more recent forms of
appropriation of local rural land to facilitate and accelerate global capital
accumulation through real estate and infrastructure build-up. This chapter will
investigate how and why this situation happens in the case of flower cultivation
and how the power dynamics happen among the government and the common
people.

3.2

Cultivation as the Origin of Culture and

Development in the East and the West
Cultivation is a concept that connects culture to land in both the Western

and Chinese contexts. The first and earliest meaning of culture is found in
writing of the 15th century and is related to agriculture, when the word was used
to refer to the tending of crops (cultivation) or the husbandry of animals
(Williams a 87; Bocock 231). Terminologies such as agriculture, horticulture,
floriculture, and arboriculture retain this meaning. At the same time, the word
culture, according to older dictionaries such as Websters in the pre-1960
editions, refers to the cultivation of soil: the raising, improvement, or
development of a plant, animal or product, with the root of word coming from
the Latin cultura, cultivation or tending (Williams 87). Culture has extended
160

its meaning to describe more abstract beings since the 18th century, such as
describing a general process of intellectual, spiritual and aesthetic development
and an indication of a particular way of life, whether of a people, a period, a
group, or humanity in general. It is also used to describe the works and practices
of intellectual and especially artistic activity. The widespread definition of
culture relates to music, literature, painting, sculpture, theatre and film (Williams
a 90; Bocock 231-232), i.e. high culture and the fine arts.

At the same time, cultivation is also an important concept in Chinese culture,

but its transformation of meaning shows the change of perception of culture
and cultivation in society. According to Chin Wan 20, a local scholar who has
contributed to Cultural Studies in Hong Kong,

[t]he present day meaning of di chan 21 () is an abbreviation of real

property or real estate The original meaning of di chan, not as an
abbreviation, refers to produce of the land. It means farm produce or
edible grains. According to the chapter Offices of Spring, Zongbo in the
Rites of Zhou 22, Di chan gives rise to the growth of millions of life. Zheng
Xuan, a scholar in Eastern Han Dynasty23 annotated, Di chan means crops,
the nine major cereal grains 24. According to the section On Agriculture
in Mister Ls Spring and Autumn Annals, [a]s farming has diminished in
20

21
Pinyin romanisation system is used in this thesis for transcribing Chinese data.
22
The Rites of Zhou refers to ancient ritual texts listed among the classics of Confucianism
written in the middle of second century BC.
23
Eastern Han Dynasty () was between 25-220 BC.
24
Major edible grains refer to millet, sorghum, glutinous rice, paddy rice, flax, soya bean, beans,
peas, barley and wheat.
161

the state, it is now important to teach people to respect farm produce. Gao
You, a scholar in Eastern Han Dynasty, annotated, di chan means edible
grains (Chin, my translation).

From Chin Wans quotation, we can see that cultivation contributes heavily
to the Chinese economy and social life. However, cultivation faces decreasing
importance in Chinese culture because nowadays, the common-sense perception
of agriculture is about inefficient land use. Its socio-economic and cultural value
is under-valued.

3.3

Genealogy of Flower Cultivation in Hong Kong

The borderline flower market located between Kowloon peninsula and the

NT shapes a unique culture of Hong Kongs flower market. Flower cultivation

was once vibrant in the 1950s and 1960s. However, because of the increasing
importation of flower, and the urban development of land that hindered
cultivation, flower growers could only move to more remote areas, or even to
China. As shown in the case of Taiwan, flowers could be used to revitalise a city,
and even to promote its flower industry as an export. In Hong Kong, flowers are
used as a cultural resource to be the theme of a preservation project, namely the
Cultural-art Flower Market in part of the existing vibrant Mong Kok Flower
Market. The culture of flower cultivation and culture-led preservation project in
the flower market will be explained in Section 5.7. Understanding of the
geographic location and other background of this market will facilitate this
analysis.

162

Despite the fact that cultivated land has been tremendously downsized
(Appendix 5, from 32,990 hectares in 1970 to 6,760 hectare in 2001),
nonetheless flower cultivation and market gardening remains the most important
use of agricultural land because the monetary value is higher for flowers than
other crops. Major crops under cultivation are comprised by food crops,
including mainly brassica, compositae and various aquatic vegetables, and
ornamental crops such as gladiolus, lilium and chrysanthemum. By the end of
2010, the land used for vegetable, flower, field crops and orchard was 297 ha,
153 ha, 20 ha, and 276 ha respectively. However, the number of flower
cultivators has decreased drastically. The registered members of Hong Kong &
Kowloon Flower and Plant Worker General Union the only active flower
labour union in Hong Kong have decreased from 4,274 in 1989 to 1,157 in
2010 (Appendix 6). It echoes with the decline of farm working population in
general (Appendix 7). The agricultural industry is directed towards the
production of quality fresh food through intensive land use and modern farming
practices. Flower cultivation has gained importance in recent years. Orchids and
ornamental plants are now grown all year round. Dahlia, chrysanthemum, lily
and gladiolus are grown in winter, while ginger lily, lotus flower and sunflower
are grown in summer. Peach blossom is grown specifically for the CNY season
in the figure of Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department (AFCD) in
2011 (Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Agriculture, Fisheries and
Conservation Department b) (Figure 3.1 and 3.2).

163

Figure 3.1.

A peach blossom grows for three years in a flower farm in Mui

Wo, Lantau Island

Figure 3.2.

The flower cultivator in Mui Wo is cutting a peach blossom and

prepares to sell it in a periodic flower market in Cheung Chau
164

To a certain degree, flower cultivation plays a role in agriculture. From

Appendix 8 and 9 indicating the agricultural production of the estimated values
and quantities, we can see that local production has increased from 2,628,000
dozen in 1969 to 3,535,000 dozen in 1979 25. The value of flower production rose
from 15,650,000 in 1969 to 255,147,000 in 2001 26. From 1995 to 2001, local
production of flowers is still higher than volume of imported flowers 27 (Table 3)
(Hong Kong Government Hong Kong Year Book).

Year

Estimated local production of

Import of flowers*

flowers*

Ratio (local
production: Import)

1995

206,000

195,278

0.947951

1996

186,800

157,709

0.844267

1997

175,924

160,769

0.913855

1998

283,780

124,724

0.439509

1999

278,626

129,993

0.46655

2000

302,370

168,264

0.556484

2001

225,147

153,704

0.682683

Hong Kong Dollars (in thousands)

Table 3.

Estimated local production and importation of flowers in Hong

Kong in 1995-2001 (Source: Various Hong Kong Year Book)

According to Gran Aijmer, most gardeners used a combination of

vegetable and flower gardening which extended to include rice farming. Some
25

Recent figures in terms of local production quantity are absent from Agricultural and Fisheries
report.
26
Recent figures in terms of local production value are absent from Agricultural and Fisheries
report.
27
Recent figures in terms of the local production and export are absent from Hong Kong Year
Book.
165

farmers planted flowers in the early spring, and white cabbage and flowering
cabbage in the cooler season (Aijmer 21), while others continuously planted
flowers, mainly chrysanthemum and gladiolus during the cool season, and
celoria during the hot summer. In between the two flower seasons there was an
interlude of one crop of leaf mustard cabbage. Other farming practice included
mixed rice production with the cultivation of flowers and a few vegetables. A
farmer told Aijmer that he planted one summer crop of rice. The paddy fields
were later converted into flower land, mainly for gladiolus. During spring and
summer he planted chrysanthemum and celoria and a few loofah (ibid 22).
Another farmer specialised in flower cultivation. He had flower fields and a few
trees yielding flowers and fruit, like white orchid and purple thorn flower and
papaya trees.

Flower cultivators had increased in number owing to the arrival of new

immigrants who have flower growing knowhow, whereas native farmers used to
grow mainly rice. Also, due to the influence of skills brought to Hong Kong by
immigrant framers after 1949, native villagers have become engaged in the use
of land for growing vegetables, imitating the newer immigrant farmers, because
vegetable growing bring in more income than rice. According to Christopher A.
Airriess, the common reasons for refugees entering Hong Kong were shortages
of fertiliser, insufficient food rations, and lack of opportunities to cultivate
private plots in China. By 1961 almost 70% of the 16,414 NT vegetable farmers
were born in counties surrounding Canton and Macao, and elsewhere in
Guangdong (767).

166

Person Q is a local flower cultivator who runs a gardening family business

in Shatin 28 . He explains the importance of is ability to estimate flower
blossoming time. He says, It is important to estimate flower blossoming time.
Although there are refrigerators that allow flowers to store for a few days, it is
essential to estimate the time accurately. Otherwise, flowers would not blossom
if they were stored in the fridge for too long. The average time of planting
gladiolus is 85 days. However, weather fluctuates a lot these years. Therefore, it
is difficult to estimate.

Available arable farms were decreasing and at the same time as the
cultivation of flowers has decreased in Hong Kong. Farmers who wanted to stay
in the industry have attempted to source land in Shenzhen or in Yunnan (Di Si;
Wang).

There are still some flower farms in the NT. For example, the flower farm
that I visited was located in Mui Wo, a remote part of Lantau Island, the outlying
island located east of Hong Kong Island. This flower cultivator claims that he
grows peach blossom for his own satisfaction and leisure 29. His full time job is
working in a gold trading company in Sheung Wan (). He rents the farm
from the government and the long term contract was made because his father
worked in the AFD. He does not need to take care of his farmland intensively
since peach blossom trees require dry land. He mainly returns to the field two
months before the CNY to tighten the branches so as to make them grow
properly and to remove the green leaves so that the flowers blossom better. Some

28
29

Interview with Person Q, 31/1/2011.

Interview with Person N, 28/1/2011.
167

customers go to his farm and choose the trees that they like. But he is also
prepared to sell his blossom trees to periodic flower markets before the CNY at
Cheung Chau, another outlying island.

Chinese people like good blessings in CNY. Flower names are also very
important. Another flower product that is commonly grown is lucky bamboo.
The lucky bamboo field that I visited is located at Pat Heung, Yuen Long (Figure
3.3). In contrast to blossom trees, lucky bamboo requires lots of water. Therefore,
the farmland was filled with water. Since too much sunlight would burn the
crops, a net layer covers the crops to avoid direct sunshine. It is found that
gladiolus is also a common flower especially grown to sell before the period of
CNY (Figure 3.4).

Figure 3.3.

Lucky bamboo field in Pat Heung, Yuen Long

168

Figure 3.4.

3.4

Gladiolus field in Yuen Long

Technological Aids for Farmers

Assistance from the AFD was mainly in the form of technical support. I

want to argue that, provision of technical support is important but not a key issue
that cultivators feel the most difficult. The most difficult part is the steady,
long-term availability of arable land and a fair treatment towards their farm
produce and land (i.e. without the fear of expropriation by the government).
However, because Hong Kong mainstream and dominant culture sees land for its
real estate value, according to the most obvious form of capitalist logic,
government officers feels no qualms in exploiting farmers and marginalizing
their agricultural practices as economic activities with very low economic values
and very inefficient land use. In terms of the land expropriation and other policy
injustice towards farmers, I see no difference between todays government
privileging and assisting the rich and powerful of our global capitalist world

169

today, and the previous colonial government privileging the rich and powerful of
the empire of old. I will establish this argument in a later part of my analysis.

According to the government, it has always been good to local farmers and
provided them with advanced technological aid. During the colonial period, there
was this case of two flower farmers, Poon Sap Yat and Li Leung Kwans farms
were located on a piece of infertile land where even weeds were thin, with a total
area of twenty dou () 30. They used to obtain water from a stream for irrigation.
With the help and guidance of the Agricultural and Fisheries Department,
irrigation sprinklers were installed, water pipes were built to transport water
from its source, and fixed disc nozzles were chosen to suit the need for watering
flowers. Both Poon and Li specialised in growing chrysanthemum. Poon also
grew peach blossoms and bananas. He built a small water tank on the hillside
near his farm, utilizing natural water pressure to save the costs of water pumps
and fuels. The total installation cost was around eight to nine thousand dollars. Li
Leung Kwan also grew tangerines. He built a water tank similar to Poons
because the sprinklers allowed his flowers to thrive and saved him manual labor
and time, as it was not easy to hire workers. Watering was an important but
mostly exhausting step. Now he could save time for fertilizing, levelling and pest
control. He also began to use weed-killer instead of weeding manually (Ho 23)
(Figure 3.5).

30

Dou is a unit of farmland area equivalent to 7,260 square feet. The unit is abbreviated from
dou chong (), which is the area required to plant the amount of grain seeds () of one
specific ladle ().
170

Figure 3.5.

Flower cultivation with the technological aids from the

Agriculture and Fisheries Department of irrigation sprinklers and
water pipe (Source: ibid)

In other words, AFD mainly focused on providing technological aids. The

fading of local growing started when the Hong Kong government followed a
general framework of free market policy on agricultural production, trading and
land use. The allocation of resources in the economy was left to market forces
with minimal government intervention, except where social considerations were
overriding. According to the AFCD, the government was responsible for the
provision of basic infrastructure and technical support necessary for the
171

development of farming, but leaves the industries to adjust to global trading and
market forces. Furthermore, AFCD was responsible for promoting an adaptive
new production method to help industries take advantage of new market
opportunities.

As evident from my interview sample, AFCD seems to be not much

appreciated by farmers. Take the example of the flowering potted plant farm. A
potted plant is a kind of flower product consumed for greenery purpose. The
potted plant farm that I visited is located in Pat Heung, Yuen Long. Person I and
J are typical florists in that they grow flowers in the NT and they sell it in the
Mong Kok Flower Market. This flower farm is a corporation that is relatively
large in size. This company does not only have flower farms in Hong Kong but
also in Guangdong, China. The farm grows violets, poinsettia, orchids and many
different kinds of plantations (Figure 3.6). They import narcissus and tulips bulbs
from the Netherlands and grow it by using their own freezing container. Green
house, refrigerators and water tanks are their company assets.

Figure 3.6.

Potted Plants in a Greenhouse in Pat Heung, Yuen Long

172

Person Is interview demonstrates the cultivators sceptical attitude towards

this department. When I first asked whether AFD helped them in setting up the
farm, or in improving its infrastructure, Person I, who entered the industry in the
late 1970s answered my question immediately this way:

I cant think of any examples of AFDs assistance. I followed the trajectory

of the previous owner, who left the gardening business to me. For my new
farm, this one that youre standing in, all the green houses are built by me.
My farming knowledge was acquired through exchanging with my farming
friends or from seed stores. Even nowadays, AFCD officer visits our farm.
However, what can they do for us? 31

Farmers claim that the AFD and AFCD have not provided them with
practical aids. Or in other words, AFD provides too little or negligible assistance
to farmers. Even if farmers have questions about agricultural knowledge,
governmental assistance and advice are not responsive enough. In this sense,
peoples response is not very positive towards the governments help. I will
demonstrate in Section 3.5 and 3.6 about the actual needs of the farmers that are
not met by the portfolio of the AFD/AFCD department.

3.5

Survival of Flower Cultivation in Contemporary

Hong Kong
Thus, according to the governments developmentlist land use policy, most

arable land with high potential value is now developed or planned for urban
31

Interview with Person I, 21/10/2010.

173

development. Only rare and sporadic pieces of arable land in remote areas can
still preserve their original features and most of these places are land with
ownership protected by Chinese customary law. Those areas continue to supply
arable land to farmers who want to make a living in agriculture. In this light, I
will explain how flower cultivation can still survive in modernised Hong Kong
in this section.

Flower cultivation could support a whole family and the business to grow.
For instance, Person J proudly says,

Flower cultivation is important. Many primary and secondary schools and

housing estates order gardening service from me. Ive expanded my
business even to China. It provides enough money for my whole family. I
have 3 children, huh! The flower industry competition is keen, but
everywhere is like that, isnt it? 32

This is what the potted plant farmers mentioned in the previous section told
me. While there were not able to tell me what the governments AFD/AFCD
department were able to do for them, they want to strongly explain to me what
the postcolonial governments developmentalism has done to damage their
production

and

survival.

Due

to

the

construction

of

the

Hong

Kong-Shenzhen-Guangzhou Express Rail Link (XRL) 33, parts of the Tsoi Yuen

32

Interview with Person I, 2/12/2010.

The 26-km long Hong Kong Section of the Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail
Link (Express Rail Link, or XRL) runs from West Kowloon in Hong Kong to the boundary of
Hong Kong and Shenzhen. The Express Rail Link will connect with the 16,000-km National
High-speed Railway Network and will enhance Hong Kongs role as the southern gateway to the
Mainland. Construction of the Express Rail Link commenced in January 2010, with completion
targeted for 2015 (MTR Corporation Limited).
33

174

Tsuen 34 in Shek Kong, Yuen Long, was demolished. This village practiced
farming up until its demolition, and a large part of Person I and Js flower
plantation was on the resumed and demolished site. Among their 120,000 sq. feet
of land, 50,000 sq. feet were being resumed. The length of the Hong Kong
Section of this XRL runs from West Kowloon in Hong Kong to the boundary of
Hong Kong and Shenzhen. The XRL will connect with the 16,000-km National
High-speed Railway Network and will enhance Hong Kongs role as the
southern gateway to the mainland. Construction of the XRL commenced in
January 2010, with the completion targeted for 2015. A kind of
developmentalism is clearly shown in the governments construction of the XRL,
because developing the link between Hong Kong and mainland China is a part of
a globalised imagination of linking people together, expanding Chinese business
interaction with Hong Kong, and bring more tourists from China. This is in line
with the postcolonial governments developmentalist logic of governance.

Although tenant farmers like Persons I and J obtain money compensation in

terms of crop ex-gratia allowance, and residents of the village get specific
arrangements for relocation, these compensations cannot compare with the
irreparable loss such land resumption policy have imposed on the people of this
farming community. What they need is the ability to continue their farming
practice as the only form of work and livelihood they know. What they need is
the right to keep growing the plants they have tended for years on the soil they
have worked for decades. What they need is the ability to support themselves
through the fruits their trees bear every year. No monetary compensation will

34

Tsoi Yuen is a Cantonese word meaning vegetable, Tsuen is also a Cantonese word
meaning village.
175

ever allow them to do so again. No public housing relocation can allow them to
continue their means of livelihood, their way of life, their form of community
network.

The government however, believes that the mechanism of allowance as a

whole has provided the farmers with reasonable compensation (Hong Kong
Special Administrative Region, Information Services Department c). Even if the
farmers were to simply concentrate on discussing this irrelevant issue of
monetary compensation itself, the farmers do not think according to the
governments logic. Farmers argue that the compensation system has not been
reviewed since the 1960s, leaving the rate not up-to-date (Local Research
Community 11). For instance, Person J complained about the unfair treatment
during the crop compensation negotiation process. She says angrily,

Is it because we (farmers) do not pay as much taxes as the business people,

and therefore the government looks down on farmers? Officers measured
crop heights to decide how much they compensate us. However, they do not
measure the exact height, but record measurements in a way that reduces
the actual height. For instance, the crop is 4.5 inches, but the officer only
writes 4 inches. I feel being insulted when I receive the list of crop
compensation when most of the truly existing crops are not reflected /
included. Also, the government officers seem not ready for the whole
procedure. When I requested the government officers to give me the
compensation list, they only gave me the crop compensation list, but the
lists on compensation for farm equipment and infrastructure are not ready.

176

According to a research conducted by Local Research Community, this

outdated crop compensation practice that has not been updated for 40 years is
merely a settlement without obligation. It is just an anachronistic bureaucratic
practice and not a fairly rationalised government policy. The compensation rate
is totally arbitrary. Further research could be done on this debate, but the visual
representation of the volunteers supporting the farmers clearly demonstrates the
gap between the governments extremely outdated compensation rate and the
actual market price of crops today (Figure 3.7).

Figure 3.7.

Visual illustration by volunteers supporting the farmers clearly to

demonstrate glaring difference between the governments
extremely outdated compensation rate and the actual market price
of the same crops today (Source: Inmediahk)

177

Figure 3.7 illustrates the extremely outdated compensation rate for famers
when the government needs to claim the land for constructing XRL. For instance,
the government compensate HK$0.7 dollars for a piece of sweet corn. But the
wholesale market price is HK$3, while the government compensation HK$0.11
per catty of organic tomato, but the market price is HK$25. The official
calculation of sweet corn is 4,000 pieces in a dou of arable land, but the actual
number of plantation is 12,000 pieces. The government claimed that they obtain
the compensation calculation according to experts advice. But when the
peasants invite the government to bring the evidence, the government refused to
do so. Many peasants feel being cheated and complained that the whole system
is too outdated. However, it is worth noting that not all famers sympathise with
each other as potential victims of the governments developmentalist logic. But
the discussion is out of the scope of my thesis.

I should conclude that survival of flower cultivation is extremely difficult.

The whole society hardly supports this industry and the governments
bureaucratic practices treated farmers unfairly, putting them in a marginalised
position.

3.6

Available Land for Flower Cultivators

Hong Kong is being described as limited supply of land. However, arable

land is available in Hong Kong because land categorised as woodland and

bushes in planning department might be available for agriculture. Remote arable
land that is categorised as woodland and bushes left undeveloped are sometimes
protected by the special status of Chinese customary law, that is tso and tong

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land (, definition and explanation of these terms will be explained in

later part of this paragraph). Farmers who still want to rely on agriculture rent
this kind of land for cultivation. Before industrialisation began in Hong Kong,
most indigenous inhabitants were also farmers who relied on arable land to make
their living. The place of local agriculture was of particular importance to society,
and rice was their main crop 35. After the Second World War, agriculture was an
important industry for food supply36. In other words, farming was encouraged in
Hong Kong after the Second World War because the colonial government was
afraid of food shortages in the case of a future war. Likewise, reservoir building
was understood as a policy of water security, as agriculture was a policy of food
security during that Cold War era. Before the colonial governments decision to
develop the NT, the government intended to reserve NT farmland as a food
supply backup, and this period allowed agriculture to expand. However, a sudden

35

Rice cultivation was an essential economic resource. Chinese farmers have good reputation for
growing crops in difficult conditions. They did not only cultivate at the bottom of valleys but
have also extended their activities by terracing lower slopes of many hills. Most of this land was
used for the growing of rice, which was the principal crop until the late 1950s. Over 80 per cent
of Hong Kongs agricultural land was under rice cultivation before the Japanese occupation
between 1941 and 1945. The quality of this product was said to be very high and a quantity of it
was exported to San Francisco each year for the use of the Chinese residents there. During
Japanese occupation between 1941 and 1945, Hong Kong was an acute shortage of food and a
lack of employment opportunities for the NT villagers. Importation of rice and other food supply
was disrupted, which caused a great demand of local farm produce. In consequence, most of the
irrigated land was used to grow rice. On drier land, vegetables, sweet potatoes and other field
crops were also extensively cultivated. In the post-Second World War period, British colonisers
written in Colonial Agricultural Report that in the period right after war period: paddy is the
most important grain crop of the Colony and every endeavour should be made to extend its
cultivation and improve yields on existing areas. It should not be supplemented by other crops.
The colonial agricultural report implies the importance of governments serious attitude on
agriculture. Bulk of Agriculture Departments resources were devoted to paddy experiments,
demonstrates and extension during this period.
36
In HKRS41-1-6-14, Colonial Agricultural Policy printed for the Colonial Office. January
1945, a ten-page agriculture policy was written by the government to state its importance:
Agriculture, including in this term both the production of crops and the raising of livestock,
large and small, is by far the most important industry in the Colonial Empire and upon it rests the
material well-being of Colonial peoples. The ability of a territory to provide a satisfactory
standard of living for its inhabitants therefore depends principally upon the prosperity of its
agriculture. Agriculture policy is an integral part of the general policy of Government and
within that field must be correlated and co-ordinated particularly with irrigation, forestry,
industrial and economic policy and more generally with health and education policy (HKRS
41-1-6-14 para 6).
179

increase of population after the Second World War intensified the pressure for
developing the NT, since many refugees fled from mainland China.
Non-indigenous inhabitants brought vegetable plantation skills to Hong Kong
and brought a vegetable revolution to Hong Kong. Less people cultivated rice
because it was less economical than growing vegetables (Chiu, and Hung a 237).
At the same time, indigenous inhabitants tended to rent their land to new comers
because renting land is easier than working the farmland. Also, indigenous
inhabitants were new to vegetable farming and lacked the competence of
non-indigenous people. At the same time, the large influx of refugees disrupted
the governments plan for Hong Kong. Because of increased pressure of
developmentalism, such as the building of new towns, roads and railways, the
government encouraged collaboration with the rural elites in the NT. Therefore,
all decisions made by the government favoured the development of the NT, even
if those measures and practices were short term. Arable land that was left
undeveloped became a valuable supply for the people who wanted to farm. Part
of the land reserved was dedicated to indigenous inhabitants in Chinese
Customary Law called tso and tong. Tso is for venerating a common ancestor,
and it is thus named after the common ancestor. It is a common practice that land
belongs to the son or sons as a matter of filial duty according to Confucian
tradition. They will either purchase land in the name of the tso or transfer part of
land inherited from their father in the name of the tso. The income from the land
was used to pay for the maintenance of ancestor worship, such as the upkeep of
graves and the costs of the rites of ancestral worship, including the provision of
food to be divided between the members of the tso after grave sweeping. The rest
of the money could be used to pay for education or provision of financial
assistance to the members of the tso upon the agreement of the tso members.
180

Tong is similar in nature to tso, but people may build a hall to house ancestral
tables 37. Tong may use a familys lucky name, but Tso always uses the name of
the common ancestor. Those lands are difficult to sell and develop because tso
and tong

are the intention of the founders that the parcel or parcels of land or
property must be perpetuated and not be disposed of Tsos and Tongs are
administered by managers and Section 15 of the NTO 38 requires that
these appointments be reported to, approved and recorded by the SHA. The
same session confers on managers the power to dispose of or in any way
deal with the said land as if he were the sole owner thereof, subject to the
consent of the SHA. The SHA must also be satisfied that the sale is for a
good purpose (undefined!) and that all the members have signified their
unanimous agreement to the transaction (Nissim 128).

In other words, tso and tong land is difficult to sell because this trading
needs to obtain unanimous agreement from all members of the tso or tong.
Therefore, this status allows a greater chance of indigenous inhabitants
preserving the land if the area is very remote and has little development potential,
because tso and tong managers need to make great efforts to obtain a unanimous
agreement for transaction, which may involve thousands or even tens of

37

A tong is a customary land trust for the worship of a named ancestor and the upkeep of his
grave. It is usually designed to provide funds for educational and welfare purposes of the
beneficiaries. It could also be extended to business ventures. A tong may also build a hall to
house ancestral tablets, and may use a familys lucky name. Tong land is intentional for the land
to be perpetuated and not be disposed of. The interests of the members of the tong begin when
the ancestor is born and ends when he dies. There are no problems of succession and no death
duties are levied. Business and religious matters of tong require the appointment of managers.
(Nissim 127-128)
38
Roger Nissim refers NTO as New Territories Ordinance.
181

thousands of members, many of which might live overseas or have emigrated.

Tso and tong land and the Chinese customary law have been protected in Basic
Law Article 40 39. It is important to note that history of the policy is not the scope
of my thesis, but the formation of Heung Yee Kuk (HYK) and the recognition of
indigenous inhabitants rights from the colonial to the postcolonial era show that
the colonial mentality continuously affecting the political and administration of
the government. Appendix 10 briefly shows the origin of rural elites and the
rights of indigenous inhabitants.

Because of the rights of indigenous inhabitants is well protected by the

government, the government unintentionally allow arable land not to be
developed. An interviewee, who is an employee of a flower shop at the Mong
Kok Flower Market, was selling flowers in a commercial booth in Hong Kong
Flower Show 2011 40. She told me that their garden rents surname land (
) from indigenous inhabitants in Tong Kung Leng (), Sheung Shui 41
(). This demonstrates that farmers who are non-indigenous inhabitants could
farm using the land that the government reserved for indigenous inhabitants.
Their garden is very remote and people need to cross a large piece of grassland
somewhere in the middle of the valley. Even she couldnt describe it clearly
since it is too remote. It is worth noting that land like this is tso land, which
allows farmers to continue their flower cultivation business even when there is
an intensive development in the NT. Another interviewee is a non-indigenous

39

Article 40 of the Basic Law: The lawful traditional rights and interests of the indigenous
inhabitants of the New Territories shall be protected by the Hong Kong Special Administrative
Region.
40
Interview with Person S, 20/3/2011.
41
Sheung Shui is in northern part of Hong Kong, near to the border of mainland China.
182

inhabitant, but has a relative who is an indigenous inhabitant 42. Their garden was
originally located in Tsz Wan Shan 43 (). Their indigenous inhabitant
status did not protect them from being affected by urban development, but at
least their situation was relatively better because of the reserved land that they
have access to, thanks to a network with other indigenous inhabitants. Their
second move was to the lower part of Tates Cairn (), and not long after,
they need to move again to a remote area near the top of Tates Cairn. The
interviewee explained how remote it is by saying that even the taxi driver was
not willing to drive them to the garden, because the very steep slope makes
driving difficult. These two cases demonstrate that agriculture in Hong Kong
exists, but is limited to very remote areas. Also, those areas are available because
the government observes Chinese customary law that stipulates land for
indigenous inhabitants, which can only be sold after obtaining a unanimous
agreement, and thus makes development more difficult. This creates a space for
local agriculture to survive and not to be totally dissipated in an environment
where economic progress prevails. Regardless of the development potential of
tso land, coloniality exists in such a practice because of the unfair treatment
between indigenous and non-indigenous inhabitants initiated since the colonial
days. This unjust policy continued in the same manner into the post-1997 era,
because of the protection of customary law in Hong Kongs mini-constitution
the Basic Law. This was of course, the result of the lobbying power of the
indigenous rural elite. Thus, a privileged class obtains land share once they are
born. Although people could rent farmland from indigenous inhabitants, the
problem is that non-indigenous inhabitants who wish to farm should know the

42
43

Interview with Person O, 31/1/2011.

Tsz Wan Shan is a residential area in New Kowloon.
183

indigenous inhabitants personally, otherwise, it is difficult for them to find any

vacant land. There is no system to follow and the renting procedures are arbitrary
and fraught with undertable injustices.

At the same time, fragmented land in agriculture is also a kind of problem

spotted by farmers. Li Wing Keung, a Tai Po district councillor from 2004-2008,
is also a flower cultivator running a garden in Tai Po. He argues that many
farmers rent private farmlands or tso tong land to cultivate their crops. Farmers
also hope to rent government land next to their farm to enlarge arable land, and
he asked the AFCD whether the government could allow them to rent land for a
short term. However, the government rejected Lis suggestion, because the Lands
Department charges a market price for the use of government land, which is too
costly for farmers. Therefore, the AFCD did not encourage farmers to use
government land next to their farm (Hong Kong Special Administrative Region,
Tai Po District Council). Rate of leasing government land depends on the
proposed usage, the original zoning of that piece of land and the area. For
example, a one-thousand meter square agricultural plot costs most likely over ten
thousand Hong Kong dollars per year. The high cost discourages farming.

Despite farmers request brought forward by the district councillor, from the
AFCDs reply, we see that an embedded coloniality is hidden in the
governmentality towards agriculture. The bureaucratic measure towards
agriculture suggests governments tendency of privileging more profitable
economic activities to farming, and thus, privileges economic progress to the
preferred agricultural livelihood and way of life that farmers have engaged in for
long. The AFCDs reply reveals a market logic. Industry that is without high
184

economic return could hardly survive in a society where fast economic progress
prevails. Therefore, fragmented and limited land access will continue because of
the governments administrative practice. It is common for peoples
understanding that agriculture is declining in Hong Kong. However, I want to
emphasize that this has never been a natural process. My thesis is to question
this commonly accepted assumption. Rather, it is the result of policy and its
collaborative colonial execution. Thus, Hong Kong farming remains limited by
land resources, small farm size, high rent, competition for labour with other
industries, high wages, limited amount of capital, unfavourable weather
conditions, and acute fluctuation of prices, which are greatly affected by imports
(Airriess 764).

3.7

Flower Market: A Place Related to Flower

Cultivation and Flower Consumption
In the early stage of the Hong Kong flower industry, the term florist still

applied equally to growers, sellers or arrangers of flowers. But as intermediary

wholesalers gradually appeared, industry segmentation began to differentiate. By
the 1980s, growers, wholesale florists and retail florists were distinct trades. New
wholesale florists emerged who aided growers by collecting, sorting, pricing,
packing and delivering product. Flower cultivators, who are the original
dominated group in the flower market, are not entirely popular with wholesale
florists anymore. Person Os interview 44 explains the gap between flower
growers and business operators in the market and the reason why the flower shop
business operators dislike the flower cultivators selling flowers in the market.
44

Interview with Person O, 31/1/2011.

185

She elaborates, It may be because the shop needs to pay for commercial
premises, and they also need to pay protection fee to triad groups to keep their
shops safe, but flower growers run business on the road just for a few days. They
can avoid triad members collecting money from them. Therefore flower shops
never like flower growers who run business on lorries, and flower cultivators are
increasingly being driven away from the flower market. This differentiation
implies that people do not respect those who use the space traditionally. Money
is an important factor controlling who can stay in a place legally. In other words,
business operators in the market do not like the flower cultivators to take free
ride in running business in the market. Therefore, business operators become the
dominant players in the market.

Segmentation of the flower industry also increases over the years. For
instance, Person H, who is the Chairman of Hong Kong Flower Club and a
principal of a flower arrangement school, argues that there is no flower
cultivation in Hong Kong. I made several attempts to ask him about his
perception on flower cultivation in the NT nowadays before he corrected his
sentence, but he still remained sceptical.

There is no flower cultivation in Hong Kong. Or I should say, there are so

few, I have very little chance to work on it. Flowers that I usually work on
are like those fresh flowers from the Netherland, Japan, etc 45.

I was surprised by Person Hs perception that there is no flower cultivation

in Hong Kong. He simply assumes this to be the case because he does not have
45

Interview with Person H, 23/11/2010.

186

to come into contact with the local growers at all. It seems that from the
perceptive of high-end flower consumers, local flowers, such as peach blossom,
chrysanthemums, gladiolus and tangerines are not elegant, exotic or expensive
enough. These flowers are too ordinary and may not reach the aesthetics sense
that flower arrangement schools would treasure. However, one wonders, minus
the transportation cost of imported plantation flowers, are they really that much
more unique, exquisite, expensive or rare in the world, as compared to the
rarity of locally grow flowers and species?

Flower cultivators, on the other hand, understand their situation very

differently. Person R, the Executive member of Hong Kong and Kowloon Flower
and Plant Workers General Union, says,

Local flower cultivators can hardly compete with imported flowers. The
only thing that we can compete on is about the freshness of our flowers. It is
relatively more long lasting than imported flowers. Hong Kong flowers
have thicker petals. It is not only because arable land is nearer to the market,
it is also because the method of plantation ensures that our flowers are more
long lasting. We dont use green house to accommodate the flowers. Our
flowers can receive sunlight directly. But overseas flowers might use green
house or use some transparent cover to control sunlight and temperature.
These are the only advantages that I can think of. 46

In other words, leaders of local flower cultivation expressed his concern

about the competitiveness of local flower cultivation. However, this is also a
46

Person R, interview on 31/1/2010.

187

perception made on very specific concerns. This impression is not based on

extensive market or species research on a globally comparative scale. Perception
of the higher cultural capital of imported flowers from the West and Japan have
over local flowers is an issue that postcolonial cultural research can pursue in the
future. Local flowers are perceived to be less competitive than imported flowers,
but the reason might not only be that of climate and variety. The unequal cultural
perception of flowers from foreign, ex-colonial metropolitan centres as being
better / more sophisticated etcetera. than local flowers is one issue. The
pro-growth developmentalist land use logic and the unfair treatment towards
local flower growers is another. The withering away of local flower production is
possibly the result of policy, residual colonial cultural assumptions as well as
changes in technology and nature and culture of the market, as the next section
will show. It is not as naturally inevitable a process as most would assume.

3.8

Reasons for the Changes in the Flower Industry

in Hong Kong

1.

Decrease in Cultivated Land

As described in the above section, the ratio of local flower supply to import

was largely reduced due to a tremendous decrease in cultivated land (despite the
increase in productivity). Governmental developmentalism, for example, the
construction of railways, roads, expressway and new town development,
required land for development (Two Flower Cultivators). As a result, the
government appropriated the farmers arable land on a large scale. Because the
cultivation industry yields lower economic return in comparison with tertiary

188

industries now prevalent in Hong Kong, farmers are priced out of their original
land and must either move to more remote places in Hong Kong, open flower
businesses in mainland China, or shut down their business entirely.

2.

Changes in Taste and the Increase in Imported Flowers

The changes in flower taste led to increased demands from local consumers.

Because of economic prosperity since the 1980s, people have more money to
buy consumer goods or even luxury goods such as flowers to increase their
living standards. At the same time, flowers are no longer bought only by
individuals. Commercial clients also start to understand flower power to boost
sales or win new business. Commercial clients, such as property management
companies, design businesses and the visual merchandising departments of
retailers, use flowers and plants to add colour and style to their premises. Some
clients from design companies are likely to buy materials such as flowers and
decorative accessories for their own creative use (Flower Power). Thus, a
greater diversity of flowers was needed 47. Therefore, the flower wholesalers
sourced flowers from all over the world.

3.

Increasing Demand for Flowers in Macao

Because of the close border policy, Macao flower shops hired middlemen to

buy flowers from Hong Kong and transport them to Macao. However, this
practice was terminated in the early 1990s, because Macao started to order

47

Local consumers buy different types of flowers. The most popular flowers are the traditional
species, such as roses, carnations, chrysanthemums, gypsophila and orchids. Freesias, statice,
gladioli, etcetera. are in considerable demand. The most popular colour in Hong Kong for roses is
red, followed by pink, yellow and white. Nearly half of the carnations bought from export are
pink, with red, dark pink, yellow and white sold in smaller quantities (Gunnerod 28).
189

flowers directly from Zhuhai, 48 where flower cultivation started to emerge. The
Macao flower industry lowers costs if they order directly from China. It
impacted the trade volume of flowers in Hong Kong.

4.

Improved Cooling Technology

Because of the poor cooling technology and a lack of knowledge in the past,

people believed that flowers could not bloom in refrigerated containers. However,
it was discovered that when flowers were unfrozen, they would bloom again.
People did not realise that the problem was caused by the dehumidifier which
extracted water from the flowers. The dry environment during refrigeration
prevented the flowers from blooming. Therefore, imported flowers were not very
welcome in the past (Law Zhen Tsz). However, improved technology encouraged
more imported flowers.

According to Laws report, the practice of flower importation was new at

that time:

Firstly, long and wide corrugated paper boxes were used. Fresh cut-flowers
were placed inside horizontally to avoid being crushed. Besides, each
bundle of flowers was wrapped with damp cotton at the tip before being
packed into boxes, so that the flowers could draw water from the cotton
while in the box in order to remain fresh Before packing into boxes, a
thick layer of absorbent paper shreds, sprayed with water, was placed on top
of the flowers before the lid is replaced (ibid, my translation).

48

Zhuhai is in mainland China and is adjacent to the Macao Special Administrative Region of
the Peoples Republic of China.
190

The improved technology decreased importation cost and encouraged more

flower wholesalers to invest. Moreover, quality and packaging standards in Hong
Kong are less stringent than in Europe and Japan which further encouraged trade.

5.

The Opening Up of the Chinese Flower Cultivation Industry

All flower cultivation and trade in China were heavily restricted by the

government until 1976. During the Cultural Revolution, non-utilitarian luxury,

such as flowers, were banned as they were seen as the opiate of the people and
as bourgeois decadent indulgence. Flower display and flower cultivation were
prohibited. The Red Guards smashed flower and curio shops. They said only rich
people had the money to spend on such frivolities. New Year ceremonies were
abolished under the Cultural Revolution but were reinstated under Deng
Xiaoping (Goody 405). The renewal of the culture of flowers came after the end
of the Cultural Revolution in 1976, and especially following the opening up of
the economy that began in 1979. Peasants were allowed to cultivate land
themselves providing they produced a quota of grain to be sold to the state at a
fixed price (ibid 412). Flower cultivation was concentrated mainly in Shunde
district (). The market was re-established only in 1984, after a twenty-five
year gap in commercial production under Maos regime. In other words,
horticultural expertise was not readily available among the young, and only
former landlords could carry out the work, which is skilled, intensive and
requires careful planning. Commercial growing supplies flowers, partly for
export to Hong Kong and Macao, and also meets an increasing domestic demand
(ibid 399).

191

6.

Improved Transportation Network

Yunnan is an important flower cultivation source for Hong Kong because of

the climate and Yunnans government support 49. However, the expense of air
freight increases the cost of the flowers. With the expanded transportation
network, flowers are now transported from Yunnan to Shenzhen by air, and from
Shenzhen to Hong Kong by lorry. The cost has therefore decreased tremendously.
Also, because of improved transportation, orders made from Hong Kong to a
foreign exporter, such as ones in Thailand, can be delivered for the next day
(Fresh Flower).

All these factors have contributed to the overall change in the flower
industry, and the transformation of the flower market from heavily relying on
flower cultivation to importation, created further competition and pressure for
change on local flower cultivation

3.9

Colonial Developmentalism in Hong Kong

Another important reason for the decline in local flower cultivation is the

attitude of the colonial government. The pressure for economic growth increased
the pressure on the colonial government to urbanise the NT. The history of macro
development of agriculture also explains the current situation from another
perspective.

Colonial officials had different attitudes towards NT development and the

49

Yunnan provincial government supported the growth of flower industry. A biological resources
development plan was established in 1995 to further diversify production away from stagnating
tobacco and low-margin vegetable crops (Hunt).
192

role of coloniser is never a single entity. The Hong Kong colonial government
went through a period of transition from colonial rule based on conserving
village life to one tied to development and progressive urbanization of the NT.
The earlier colonisers, before post-WWII intense industrialisation and
urbanisation, tended to minimise negative consequences brought by urbanisation
and industrialisation to the rural people as far as possible. Steve Tsang Yui Sang,
a local historian, describes how colonisers met the challenges of the Chinese
community:

Hong Kong was, in any event, developing very fast in the postwar era.
Urbanisation and industrialisation spread into the hitherto mainly rural NT
as the local population expanded. More than ever the work of a district
officer was related to land: applications to purchase Crown land for
building or agriculture, or to convert agricultural land to building status, or
annual permits to occupy Crown land for some purpose, or permits for
temporary structures, or permits for forestry lots on Crown land. Much as
he was devoted to his duties as a special magistrate, District Officer Austin
Coates 50 found himself spending the greater part of his time fighting a
rearguard action against urban encroachment, and to protect agriculture and
village life, wherever this was desirable and possible, in order that the
country people should not suffer by too rapid social and economic changes.

Within his area of responsibility was the town of Tsuen Wan, originally a
group of eight eighteenth-century stone-built villages, situated in a

50

Coates refers to Austin Coates, a colonial civil servant working as a Special Magistrate of the
NT between 1949-1956.
193

particularly fertile rice-growing area. But it also proved an attractive site

for building a new town. Coates saw it as his responsibility as district
officer to protect the welfare of the longstanding residents, though many of
them were quite willing to sell their agricultural land to developers for a
good price. Coates thought that, had they been allowed to do so quickly,
they would have ended up destitute, being people unsuited to industrial
employment. Hence, he tried to keep land for agricultural use for as long as
possible in order to give the original inhabitants time to adapt themselves
to the new environment. Coatess paternalism reflects the attitude of senior
colonial officials at the time, who were concerned that the villagers did not
fully understand the implications of moving from an agrarian to an
urban-based way of life. However, Coates was among the last of the district
officers to take such a view. Indeed, this paternal approach had to be, and
was, balanced against the benefits that urbanisation and industrialisation
brought to the region and its longstanding residents. Even Coates was torn
between these two considerations, for urbanisation brought with it clean
water supplies, modern sewerage, medical and health services, schools and
public utilities (Tsang Yui Sang b 89-90).

Tsangs understanding of the colonisers implies that before the 1950s, NT

colonial officers like Austin Coates spent great efforts in rear guard action
against urban encroachment to protect agriculture and village life so that
villagers could preserve their social and economic way life working in the
agricultural industry, such as farming, pig and poultry rearing, fishing, etcetera.
Colonists, such as Austin Coates, were afraid that the villagers could not adapt to
an urban life, therefore, urban development in rural areas before the 1950s was
194

more restricted. 51 However, even Coates viewed modernisation as an inevitable

project. Coates argues:

The town zone was expanding rapidly, to the communitys general

advantage; but the town officials, from the central government departments,
had inevitably a one-sided approach to their work. To them it was Hong
Kongs industrial and residential development that mattered; villagers, to
most of them, were mere yokels, and village interests were not worth
serious consideration (Coates 92-93).

Coatess

understanding

of

the

colonial

attitude

reflects

that

developmentalism in rural areas was tied to the overall pattern of development in

the NT. In this sense, the coloniser is never a single entity. Coloniser such as
Austin Coates stands on the side of villagers and did not want to see NT became
modernised too quickly. However, after Coates left the position of special
magistrate of the NT, the succeeding colonial government launched a
development programme with greater speed without paying much attention to
the concerns of village life. It implies that the coloniser should be further
categorised into sub-groups. Power dynamics are complex. Tsang gives a more
detailed description about this situation. Tsang argues,

In the end, looking after the welfare of the local residents was a matter of
achieving a balance between protecting their traditional life and helping
them improve their living conditions and life chances in the modern world.
51

In other words, flower cultivation, the focus of my research, was more popular after the 1950s.
People would grow flowers or have mixed vegetable agriculture with flower cultivation,
especially before CNY (Aijmer 12, 22).
195

It was of balancing the interests of the original residents and newcomers,

the refugees from China living in horrific conditions in the numerous slums
that had sprung up all over Hong Kong. Building new towns like Tsuen Wan
gave them opportunities for work and to make a new life for themselves.
For instance, David Akers-Jones, who was the district officer responsible
for Tsuen Wan in 1959, looked at its urbanisation and industrialisation in a
much more positive light. He was pleased about the role he played in
facilitating the transformation of this small country town, a collection of
shop houses serving the needs of many villages in the surrounding
countryside in less than four decades into a great conurbation of an
unbelievable 700,000 people, with marble-entranced shopping malls, an
underground railway terminus, and multi-storey buildings with factories
lodged on each floor What also required careful balancing were the
interests of the longstanding residents and the wider interests of Hong Kong
as a whole. This applied when a district officer found a major development
project, such as the construction of a large reservoir, taking place within his
jurisdiction.

Given

Hong

Kongs

shortage

of

water

following

industrialisation and its huge population expansion, building new reservoirs

was vital to its survival as a modernizing, industrializing territory. As
District Officer South, James Hayes found the most important and
time-consuming part of his responsibilities was the work connected with
the construction of the Shek Pik Reservoir and its ancillary projects. When
a development of this nature or scale happened, the district officer was
generally involved in keeping the peace between local inhabitants and the
contractors over all kinds of disputes, including the disruption of geomancy

196

(fengshui 52), and resolving the more thorny issue of relocating whole
villages whose ancestral lands were needed in the wider interest of
developing the colony. When Hayes first found himself in such a situation,
he sometimes felt hemmed in by the villagers on one side and by the
engineers on the other. Nevertheless, by adhering to the established policy
of seeking to achieve our objectives through agreement by patient
negotiations with all concerned and a preparedness to compromise in all
things, including requiring the district officers to act in line with
time-honoured Chinese notions of how to proceed in such matters, Hayes
was able to ensure that the major developments took place (Tsang Yui Sang
b 90-91).

Tsangs understanding of the colonisers perception of the NT reveals a

positive attitude toward developing the NT from a rural to an urbanised area. To
be more specific, David Akers-Jones, the representative district officer who took
a role in urban encroachment through developing new towns and reservoirs,
argues for developmentalism:

Sir Henry Blake, Governor when the new territory was acquired in 1898,
made a point of reassuring the people that their ancient rights would be
respected and that Chinese law and custom would be followed. Land
required for public offices, fortifications, or the like official purposes would
be bought at a fair price. The official purposes were at first limited to the

52

Fengshui, which literally means wind and water, is an ancient Chinese philosophy that seeks
to guide people into achieving a harmonious balance with their surroundings. The belief is based
on the solar calendar and mathematical systems and incorporates astronomy, geography, the
environment, magnetic fields and physics (Nissim 133)
197

building of roads, public offices and reservoirs, and, generally speaking, the
payment of a fair price settled the matter. The owners of property in the
NT are inclined to take a wholly pragmatic view of things. If there is a more
comfortable living environment to be had than the lightless, waterless,
drainless, centuries-old ancestral home, they have little compunction about
knocking it down, unrestrained by sentiment for things old. If their land, too,
can yield a more profitable return than farming they will not be hindered by
having to turn their backs on a traditional way of life. This attitude was an
important factor when it came to the building of the new towns and
acquisition of ancestral land. (Akers-Jones 18)

Akers-Joness understanding of Blakes promise demonstrates the attitude

of the colonial government at that time as one that represented the peoples
desire for modernisation. However, the blind spot of this understanding is that it
lacks the perception of those people who still want to make a living on their land,
such as those working in pig breeding, poultry farming, fishing, and in particular
for the purposed of this thesis, flower cultivation. This lack of a subaltern
understanding of all aspects and layers of society, and just focusing on progress
and development, indicates that the government was not responding to all facets
of the society but instead, favoured the proponents of economic progress. This
economic progress mentality was never clear cut because it was widely opposed.
As Hayes explains,

The development programme was bound to bring the villagers into at times
potentially serious conflict with the Government. Unhappiness at what was
happening, and resentment tinged with fear, characterised the earlier stages
198

of major encroachment on village land. This was not a single occurrence,

experienced at the outset of major civil engineering works. It took place in
village after village as the development programme affected them one after
another, from the 1950s right into the 1980s. Dissatisfaction with
compensation levels was another factor in the equation. Land was the most
important item in the compensation package. There was strong opposition
to official insistence upon compensating farm land at its non-development
value. However, the introduction of an ingenious letter of exchange 53
system in the early 1960s did much to make resumptions acceptable. Given
initially to the village land owners for the full area being resumed, the
Letters could be sold to would-be developers to use their applications to
government for new commercial and industrial sites. This created a
market that enabled village owners to get more for their land than the
cash offered by government, and sometimes much more (Hayes b 113-114).

The negative consequences of developing the NT should have been a

negotiation between the colonisers and the rural time-honoured Chinese
notions, as described by Tsang. However, the rural elites allowed the
development plan to proceed smoothly. In order to minimise the possibility of
53

Letter of exchange refers to the land exchange entitlement () for resuming

arable land by landowners, which were commonly known as Letter A or Letter B, during the
period starting from January 1960 until 9 March 1983 in the New Town Development Areas of
the NT. Letter A were issued by the government when private land was urgently required for a
public project and the landowners were prepared to voluntarily surrender the land with vacant
possession without going through the process of statutory resumption (Nissim 112). Letter B
were issued to a landowner already affected by a Gazette Notice of resumption under Lands
Resumption Ordinance (Cap. 124) with a choice of either cash payment at a stated rate or an
entitlement to future grant of land in building status in any urban development area in the NT at
some unspecified time in the future (ibid 111). Further discussion of land exchange entitlement
will be given in Section 3.12 as a way for a rise of elite power. Since land exchange entitlement
is not a focus in this dissertation, readers could refer to Roger Nissims Land Administration and
Practice in Hong Kong and Ng Wai Mans dissertation Village Revitalisation/Disintegration: An
Assessment of Suburbanisation, Land Administration and Small House Development in the New
Territories to further understand the policy.
199

resistance from the public, the colonial government tried to recruit rural leaders
and village representatives to persuade the people to surrender their arable land
to the coloniser. In this sense, coloniality is embedded in this political structure,
in which there is a logic that land should be given up to the coloniser without
providing any other choice, because even the rural elites advised or forced
people to sell their land. Various layers of hierarchical and colonial relations are
embedded in this process. I will explain the background of the new town
development in Section 3.4, and explain the coloniality embedded in the political
structure that made it happen in Section 3.9.

The influx of refugees from mainland China increased developmental

pressure on colonial governance, and as James Hayes argues, the development
programmes tended to be in the NT, rather than for the NT (ibid 119). In
connection to the population explosion, the issue of fresh water supply caught
the attention of the government. There have been a few large waterwork projects
in the NT, such as Plover Cove Reservoir in Tai Po, High Island Scheme in Sai
Kung, Shek Pek in Lantau Island, whose catchment areas are extensive in scope
and cut off many sources of irrigation for the villages. Many famers had to give
up farming as a result, and the decrease of agricultural farmland started at this
time. However, since flower cultivation was the most economically valuable
farm produce, the decrease of arable land did not have an immediate effect on it.
From Appendix 8, the estimated values of flower production between 1969 and
2001 increased on average, with a sudden change in 1988 to 1989 from
seventy-two million to more than one hundred million. However, land utilisation
for agriculture during this period was diminishing. The column showing market
garden crops indicates a decrease from 10,015 hectares in 1970 to 720 hectares
200

in 2001 (Appendix 9), which is due to urban development in the NT. Yet even
though new town development was a part of the governments plans, it was not a
top priority; and farming areas still remained. However, the strategy of focusing
on the area around the Victoria Harbour changed and new town development
started in the beginning of the 1970s. This was in accordance with a
recommendation from the Special Committee of Housing based on a projected
population forecast.

In fact the Committee had been strongly influenced in its deliberations and
conclusions by a review produced by the planning staff within the Public
Works Department entitled Proposed Measures for the Accommodation of
Surplus Population 54. The review suggested that about 650,000 might be
accommodated on maximum densities within Hong Kong Island and
Kowloon, with a further 1.5 million on various new-town sites in the NT
(Bristow 65-66).

In this sense, because of the urgent need for development including

reservoirs, roads and railways new towns were mostly built on resumed private
village land, in addition to land reclamation.

Roger Bristow provides an evaluation of Hong Kongs new town

programme that is important for my thesis because it underlies a colonial
governance logic, which I will later consider in the context of arable land
54

According to Roger Bristow, the whole report is: Town Planning Office, Planning
Memorandum No. 1: Proposed Measures for the Accommodation of Surplus Population,
February 1956. A copy was published as Appendix E to the Final Report of the Special
Committee on Housing 1956-1958. The memorandum was one of a series prepared by the Town
Planning Office as preparatory work for regional planning in the Territory (Bristow 75).
201

appropriation. Bristow claims that the colonial government was reactive in

responding to social development. He lists the differences in new town
development between Britain and Hong Kong (as a British colony):

For the British new towns the administrative machine needed to be planner,
financier, developer, and manager all rolled into one. The Hong Kong
government has never really aspired to that all-embracing, interventionist,
paternalistic role, and some of the new-town failings can be placed at its
door for just such a reason. As Scott and Cheek-Milby comment in another
context:

Government, in short, tends to be reactive rather than proactive, except

where it is pursuing an explicitly political objective. And if, as one
commentator has pointed out, it cannot be regarded as anti-welfare, its
response to social problems is still very conservative.

These are terms that we have seen before, yet reactive planning largely
accounts for the fact that the nature and form of the Hong Kong new towns are
born out of short-term thinking and policy-making with limited horizons. Even
though they are creations with major long-term consequences, formative
decisions have proceeded on an incremental, pragmatic basis, as with much else
in Hong Kong planning (ibid 307).

In other words, Bristow challenges Hong Kongs new town policy as

short-term and not comprehensive enough. It is reactive in nature and its
measures change over time because the previous measures were not workable.
202

This government logic led to a limited scope of future planning in the NT.
Bristow further explains:

It is notable in most of the British new towns, for example, that the
Development Corporations set up a detailed monitoring mechanism for
understanding the community and economic development of their towns.
This enabled them to adjust housing and industrial policies rapidly as
circumstances changed and experience grew. Because of the organisational
arrangements for the Hong Kong new towns, such monitoring is currently
largely absent, with the expected result that policy-makers react slowly to
problems as they arise, and information about the new towns in terms of
social and economic issues is sparse and uncoordinated. Without some
improvement problems will not be foreseen and policy will remain reactive.
It would seem likely also that as the towns rapidly grow larger, the
problems will multiply, thus undermining the governments ultimate
objectives of social order in the Territory. Clearly, present evidence is
already beginning to suggest deficiencies in information about the towns
which require remedying (ibid 308).

Bristows understanding of new town implies a colonial developmentalism

that managed affairs in Hong Kong according to a short term mentality without a
sustainable long term plan. The lack of vision in the NT might lead to an
unfavourable factor for agriculture, including flower cultivation because people
have little say on how it could be developed.

203

3.10

Chapter Summary

Chapter 3 has discussed the rise and fall of flower cultivation in the NT. A
large influx of immigrants caused a drastic shift from traditional rice cultivation
to vegetable and flower cultivation. However, because of the tendency of
economic progress, the government expropriated farmland. The following
diagram (Figure 3.8) demonstrates a power relation between the government,
ordinary indigenous inhabitants and non-indigenous inhabitants through the NT
structural management.

Government

Indigenous Inhabitants

Non-indigenous Inhabitants

Figure 3.8.

Relational mapping of colonial government, ordinary indigenous

inhabitants and non-indigenous inhabitants

It is worth noting that coloniser is not a single identity. Some colonisers

supported protecting village life in the NT, some do not. Since the coloniser did
not have any obligation to develop a coherent policy and long-term practices,
once a pro-development coloniser took charge, the whole policy changed. The
seemingly pro-growth development and enhancement of global capital flow is
actually another way for the colonial government to suspend developing a long

204

term strategy. At the same time, my subaltern historiography demonstrates

briefly how AFD and AFCD in responded to the development of cultivation, and
the distrust of cultivators on government departments. These suggest that the
government

will

of

economic

development

might

intentionally

and

unintentionally affect government departments response to peoples requests.

When the people do not think government officials could help them, they need to
think of a way to tackle the issue. In my case of flower cultivation, such farmers
are mainly non-indigenous inhabitants who rented cultivated land from
indigenous inhabitants. I have revealed how local flower cultivators survive in
Hong Kong despite Hong Kong being described as having inadequate land to
allow agriculture, a low economic return activity to survive. Tso and tong land
allow farmers to continue their flower cultivation business even when there is
intensive development in the NT. Most of these lands are located in remote areas
and have relatively low development potentials. These pieces of land are
protected by indigenous inhabitants, that are a system that is unfairly created in
the colonised period (which was later extended to the present through its
preservation in the local Basic Law, Hong Kongs mini constitution.) However,
without renting land from indigenous inhabitants, farmers would face difficulties
for survival. Even though district councillors made several attempts to reflect the
farmers opinion to government officials, it is hard to get any positive and
lengthy feedback from the government because of its short-term and
unsustainable developmentist logic. The coloniser thinks of the colony and
borrowed time, borrowed space. They see no reason to invest long-term if they
could choose otherwise.

205

CHAPTER 4
EMBEDDED COLONIALITY IN
THE FLOWER MARKET:
A STUDY IN THE CONTROL OF
LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS
FEHD officers always chase us away from street obstruction. They make us bad temper
people to release our anger and frustration to tourists. (Person C)

4.1

Chapter Introduction
Hawking and Mong Kok Flower Market are interlinked, as demonstrated in

Chapter 2, the market was first derived as street vending along Boundary Street.
However, because the government imposes stricter control on hawkers, more
regulations are imposed on hawkers in the flower market, and eventually
contribute to the change of flower market industry as described in Section 3.8. At
the same time, shops in the market, mainly located on ground floor, would also
do retail business and display flower goods in their shops. The business
environment in the flower market was difficult due to the frequent patrols of law
enforcement officers from the UC in the past and the FEHD nowadays (who
replaced the UC during government restructuring). They enforce the law and act
on the complaints they receive from residents living above the flower shops 55.

55

In the vicinity of the Mong Kok Flower Market, above flower shops on ground floor are
residential buildings ranging from six to twenty storeys, which also contain other commercial
uses, such as shoe company, school uniforms company, film production studio, dancing academy,
tutorial school, church, all mixed use space in the vicinity of the market.
206

This chapter mainly addresses the issue of the tension between flower traders
and law enforcement officers and investigates the mentality of both parties. I will
demonstrate that flower traders should have more sovereignty over their use of
space. However, frequent patrolling and tension between law enforcement
officers and florists discourages florists from further developing the flower
industry. This chapter explores the genealogy of urban discipline in colonial and
post-1997 Hong Kong with respect to hawker-control and street obstructions in
the front of rented shops in the flower market. Abundant research has been
conducted on the development of the hawker communities and the hawker
policies in Hong Kong (Tse F. Y. a; Tse F. Y. b; McGee; Smart Josephine a;
Smart Josephine b; Leung Chi Yuen). Previous scholars also mention specific
hawker communities, such as in Tung Choi Street, but their perspective is more
about the spatial use (Chan Fung Ping). My research focuses on filling the gap
about the transformation of a hawker community from the colonial to the
postcolonial era. I want to argue that the mentality of not addressing the
provision of a permanent flower market with an agreement between flower
traders and the government manifests a colonial mentality embedded in daily
practice. This mentality of control is structurally designed by the government in
the interest of effective management to reduce street culture and keeping the
street clean and tidy for traffic flow. Although florists have proposed new ways
of solving problems related to the use of space, the government blocked their
ideas due to the governments understanding of city space governance as merely
an issue of surveillance and control, which continues to this day. My chapter
implies that the government should play the role of the facilitator rather than the
police to foster a prosperous flower market by respecting local business and
industry culture, rather than perpetuating a mentality of space regulation that
207

hinders the development of a lively cultural and economic environment.

4.2

Colonialism and the Use of Space

The clustering of florists along the vicinity of Flower Market Road is an

organic formation, which means it was not overtly planned by the government.
Frequent disputes and conflicts between the florists and the control officers have
been raised in the market. Stephen Legg advances the concept of
governmentality, first developed by Michel Foucault, as a way to understand
disciplinary power formations within the police. To explain the concept Legg
references Colin Gordon:

Colin Gordon (2001) emphasised the continuities between the confessional

urge of pastoralism and the surveillance of disciplinary practices to
normalise their behaviour. Police, as such, function as the technological
apparatus of biopower rather than servicing either its micro- or macro- poles
(Legg b 83).

Leggs referral to Gordons idea implies that policing and surveillance

practice normalised peoples behaviour and attempted to internalise specific
processes of self-control. The relationship between the surveillance system and
those being surveilled implies an imbalance of power between the power of
controller and the subject. Legg demonstrates a microcosm of the disciplinary
practices of colonialism in India.

Operating without the liberal checks of Europe, the use of violence was

208

justified in terms of the necessary restoration of order amongst a population

that only understood the language of force. As such, the colonial policing
and military systems represented the indissociable combination of
disciplinary surveillance and ordering, sovereign violence and laws, and
governmental regulation and conduct of conduct. These articulations
advanced during times of crisis and problematisation brought about by
breakdowns in public order. Such breakdowns also occurred in the
biopolitical sphere, understood as the rise of congestion. This led to
advancements in the technology of urban improvement that sought to
regulate the processes of population and urban growth (ibid 148).

Leggs understanding of colonialism and the use of space imply that the
coloniser imposes excessive surveillance and ordering in order to control the
colonised peoples use of city space. Excessive colonial government regulations
and law enforcement in the name of keeping social order and improving urban
environment are forms of political control in the colony. My chapter adopts
Leggs understanding of colonialism and space management to analyse the
surveillance practices and the mentality of law enforcement officers in the Mong
Kok Flower Market, which continues even into the contemporary postcolonial
era.

4.3

Law Enforcement Officers in the Mong Kok

Flower Market
The hawkers control team of the Urban Services Department (USD) and

FEHD are the major law enforcement agencies in the flower market. USD was
209

the executive arm of UC. UC was first established as the Sanitary Board in 1883,
and changed its name to the Urban Council in 1946. Its aim was to make city
life in Hong Kong as clean and safe as possible in terms of public health, and
is made as enjoyable and rewarding as possible in terms of cultural and
leisure-time amenities (Cheung Wa On Derek 14). Managing hawkers is one of
their duties in making the city clean and safe. The government understands
hawking activity as traffic obstruction, and the health and environmental
problems that street trading poses as social costs (Sujanani 76). Therefore,
USDs management of flower hawkers implies a rationality of keeping Hong
Kong clean and tidy, which is premised on the colonial government perceiving
Hong Kong, the racial other, as unhygienic. UC was dissolved in 31 December
1999. The Provision of Municipal Services (Re-organisation) Bill recommended
the setting up of the FEHD and LCSD, and was presented to the LegCo. After
deliberation, the Bill was passed in December 1999 and the FEHD and the
LCSD came into being on 1 January 2000 to replace the USD. Hawkers control
is now under the FEHD, which is generally a continuation of the USD (Li Tin
Yiu 24).

Although the police force is responsible for law and order in Hong Kong,
they are not the major law enforcement agency for handling hawkers. In most
cases, a few policemen physically appear and stay further away from the hawker
control team. The police force serves as a backup for the USD or FEHD officers
and intervenes only when disputes and confrontations happened between the
officers and florists.

210

4.4

Tension between Residents and Flower Shop

Operators
Tension between flower shop operators, residents and law enforcement

officers are commonly found in the market as a result of the mixture of

residential and commercial use in the same area. It is difficult to calculate the
ratio of residents and flower operators because of the loose boundary in the
vicinity of the flower market. But along Flower Market Road, there are nine
residential buildings built between 1972 and 1990, ranging from 9 to 15 floors
for each building. Residents find it impossible to walk along the street because of
the obstruction of flower goods displayed by the shops on the ground floor.
Sidewalks are wet all the time since florists need to water their flowers and this
frequently makes the pavement wet. Because of this, residents complained that it
is dangerous for them to move about the market. Residents also complain that
the large amount of flower leaves and mud placed inside the shops have caused
major environmental hygiene problem in that area 56 (Hong Kong Special
Administrative Region, Legislative Council b 6487). Therefore, hygiene officers
patrol the area twice a day, as previously described in Section 2.11.

4.5

Management of the Flower Market in the Era of

the Urban Services Department
As explained in Chapter 2, flower hawkers occupied the flower market by

selling on the ground which was managed by the USD. Flower hawkers were

56

This claim was made by Wong Ting Kwok, Legislative Council member from Import and
Export Sector (Functional Constituency) (Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Legislative
Council b 6487).
211

selling along Boundary Street outside Fa Hui Park between 1957 and 1982 (as
explained in Chapter 1). Since 15 December 1982, from the encouragement of
USD, flower hawkers were relocate from inside the volleyball court of Fa Hui
Playground. The flowers were subsequently transported from other parts of the
NT to the market. In those days, florists were hawkers who sold flowers on the
street. Failing to provide a permanent premise for the market, the government
was not able to solve the conflicts over street use. The parking problem remained
as the main conflicting issue for florists, and pushing the business to the
volleyball court of the Fa Hui Park failed as a solution and therefore the problem
continued. Person R mentioned at that time USD and the Flower Union
cooperated to run an experimental operation by running the flower market in the
volleyball court of Fa Hui Park between 11 p.m. and 6 a.m 57. The Flower Union
and USD reached an agreement: the Flower Union was responsible for
management inside the park by providing clear instructions about the area and
size of each flower business operator, while USD is responsible for the
management outside the park. However, some flower traders received overseas
flower goods earlier than the official opening hours of the flower market because
of early flights 58. Since the Fa Hui Park had not yet opened for trading, some
flower wholesalers unloaded the goods and carried them to the area of Duke
Street (), Knight Street () and Embankment Road () (Map
3) to prepare and pack flower orders. When flower retailers came earlier,
wholesalers gave them the order which created a nuisance for residents nearby
and other vehicle drivers. Illegal parking by the wholesalers during the day has

57

Interview with Person R, 31/1/2011.

At that time, Hong Kong International Airport was Kai Tak Airport, which is located in
Kowloon City and is near to Mong Kok Flower Market. Kai Tak Airport closed in 1998 because
of the new airport, Chek Lap Kok Airport, in Lantau Island.

58

212

seriously disrupted normal traffic flow. At the same time, the new usage had
created serious problems of obstruction of pavements, which has forced
pedestrians onto the road (Kowloon Flower Market). USD officers therefore
treated them as illegal hawkers because nearby residents complained of the noise
and nuisance to traffic produced by about fifty trucks which parked around the
site (Growers Warn). This also happened during hours when most residents
were supposed to be sleeping. USD law enforcement officers continuously
issued penalties to flowers hawkers and the lorries that were loading and
unloading goods. In addition to the penalties, goods and even lorries were
confiscated.

Law enforcement officers imposed a strict policing on flower traders

whenever they could, because some traders did business that is not legally
permitted. However USD enforcement officers had difficulties charging the
traders, because this area lay on three DCs: Yau Tsim Mong 59 district, Sham Shui
Po district and Kowloon City district (Map 3). USD officers of one district could
not enforce law in another district. Florists escaped from the USDs officers by
crossing the boundary of that USD district, which was merely a line on the same
street. For instance, when USD officers from Sham Shui Po district arrived,
florists would move to Yau Tsim Mong district and Kowloon City district, and
USD officers could not do anything to the florists because the law breakers did
not violate laws in their district. Florists could continue their trading and escape
the USD. The same logic applied when Kowloon City USD officers came,
florists escaped to Mong Kok and Kowloon City district. Person R claims that
this area is san bu guan (), that means law enforcement officers, such as
59

Yau Tsim Mong DC covers Yau Ma Tei, Tsim Sha Tsui and Mong Kok.
213

police and USD officers, could not manage the affairs in this area, because the
three administrative zones allowed the law breakers to escape 60. This area
created troubles for the USD and the police, and as a result, the co-operation
between the Flower Union and USD was terminated.

These incidents of illegal flower trading imply an inflexibility of

government administration. Firstly, the official opening time of Fa Hui Parks
volleyball court for flower trading was 11 p.m., which is after the closing time of
regular sports and leisure activities, and too late for flower traders to do business.
Since flower business was growing rapidly in the 1980s, they expanded by
receiving more orders. In return, the official timing allocated by the government
was too short. Florists broke laws because they did not have a permanent and
stable environment for trading. They needed to use little tricks, such as crossing
a boundary to escape from law enforcement officers, to survive. At meeting
between USD and the Flower Union was held at the Sham Shui Po DC. USD
proposed new suggestions to solve the problem: T. K. Choy, Assistant Director
(Kowloon West) of the USD said the government was arranging a strip of land
that would be shortly acquired from the KCRC and incorporated into the Fa Hui
Playground. He said that this land would be paved by the department for use as a
childrens badminton court during the day and a parking area for the flower
wholesalers at night. He added that the Transport Department had already
endorsed this scheme. Parking facility would be provided (Kowloon Flower
Market). However, this practice could not actualise finally. No concrete
evidence explained why the cooperation between USD and the Union terminated.
However, it is reasonable to deduce that the bad relationship among the two
60

Interview with Person R, 31/1/2011.

214

parties stopped the plan. At the same time, USDs proposal was to extend their
existing planning of temporarily lending governments sport facilities to the
florists when they were unused. Therefore, the proposed timing was at mid-night,
but this could not cater to the florists changing needs of expanding their
business to have more day-time activities. Coloniality is embedded in the law
enforcement of the flower market, because the USD management logic is
oriented toward only hygiene a result of the perception of the colonial city as
an unhygienic and less civilised culture, made from a loaded and racially
informed idea of the coloniser about the coloniseds local culture. This is a
residual mentality the colonisers, developed from their early colonial experience
of epidemics in the tropics, a climate and ecology the colonisers were not
indigenous to and therefore, not prepared for through localizing their diet and
ways of life. This situation reveals the governments lack of patience in dealing
with difficulties, its inability to understand local culture (that is, flower culture
and its operation needs), and a lack of long term planning for what would be best
for the industry. Instead, in neglect of a valid and vibrant local industry, the
government merely created piecemeal solutions that made use of unutilised
resources, that is, the sport facilities that nobody uses at midnight, to plan for the
flower industry in an ad hoc manner. In the entire history of the market, the
government has failed to respond to the industrys request for a permanent
wholesale flower market where florists can operate in a stable, hassle free and
legal environment conducive to the development of their industry.

215

Map 3.

Area of trading before Urban Council opened Fa Hui Park for

florists in 1982. The area lies on the boundary of three districts
Yau Tsim Mong district (bottom left), Sham Shui Po district (top
left) and Kowloon City district (right) (Source: Electoral
Boundary Maps of District Council Election 2011 61)

4.6

Separation of Flower Growers and Flower

Traders Conducting Import Trade
In late 1984, co-operation between the Flower Union and USD on running

the flower market in Fa Hui Parks volleyball court terminated. At the same time,
the government attempted to run the Lunar New Year Fair in Fa Hui Park and
eliminate all flower trading on Boundary Street. The Flower Union strongly
opposed this and requested USD to find a place for flower trading. Since the
conflict occurred close to CNY (the peak season for trading), flower traders, who
are mainly local flower growers doing wholesale trading, were forced to
61

The boundary of DC remained the same from 1982 until 2011. Therefore, I used a new DC
map to illustrate the idea. http://www.elections.gov.hk/dc2011/maps/dc2011f.pdf
216

temporarily trade on Flower Market Road. The government did not respond to
the florists requests for finding a place for them. Therefore, flower traders
continued to trade on Flower Market Road between 9 a.m. and 1 p.m. with lorry
and vans (Yau 40). At the same time, some flower wholesalers who imported
flowers from overseas rented or bought commercial premises on Flower Market
Road and ran formal businesses. They started to complain about the flower
traders doing business on the road without having to pay for commercial
premises. Therefore, flower traders made complaints to the USD about the
flower growers illegal hawking activities. According to Leung Yuk Lam,
Director of the Flower Union, UC experimented with a new form of
counter-hawking practice in 1988 and 1989. It sent out the first few observation
teams to stay right at the site of illegal hawking with the aim of reducing the cost
of occasional raids and law enforcement. Since then, the USDs general duties
team began to interfere and give penalties to some flower growers (Historic
Origin). Later, USD even prohibited car parking on one area of Flower Market
Road, while another part of Flower Market Road prohibited parking from 7 a.m.
to 10 a.m., and from 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. (Yau 40).

This situation created a turning point in the flower industry. Before 1980s,
flower traders are the same as flower growers since they produced and hawked
on the street at the same time. However, as explained in Chapter 2, when I
addressed the reasons for the changes in the flower industry in Hong Kong
(Section 3.8), traders in the flower market were mainly businessmen doing
import trading. I will summarise the cut-flower and potted plant trading in Figure
4.1.

217

Figure 4.1.

Commodity chain of cut-flower and potted plants

Wholesale florists in Hong Kong mainly import flowers from overseas,

such as China, Taiwan, the Netherlands, Thailand, Malaysia, Japan, etcetera.
Wholesalers hire a buyer-export agent to buy commodities in flower auction.
Flower goods will then be transported to Hong Kong through lorry or plane. A
small number of flower cultivators still exist in Hong Kong. They farm in the NT,
and some of these large-scale wholesale florists would open other cultivated
farms in the Guangdong area, because plantation in the mainland is cheaper, both
in terms of labour cost and land price. The proximity of plantations in
Guangdong is feasible, because of the convenience in transportation.
Globalisation of investment keeps production cost at a minimum.

Local farmers, instead of trading in the flower market directly, become

suppliers of the wholesale florists. They would trade in the flower market only
during a period before CNY. I will discuss this in Section 4.19.
218

4.7

Existence of Embedded Coloniality in Urban

Services Departments Intervention
The controlling mentality of USD intensified changes in the flower industry:

flower growers wanted to continue to do business in the vicinity of the flower

market, which meant that both flower importers and flower growers could stay
on the vicinity of the flower market. However, because of USD hawkers control,
they drove flower growers doing informal trading away and only flower
wholesales who rented commercial premises could stay. This implies that the
USD contributed to the changing business environment of the Flower Market,
because of their efforts in law enforcement. Flower growers, who contributed a
lot to the market in the past, and who had the longest history of using the place,
were driven away. The operational logic of the USD further proves the
governments management attitude. The government used a policing logic to
limit the number of illegal hawkers, and claimed that better management was
necessary for solving hygiene and traffic congestion problems; but the
government executed this with strict management and without providing better
communication and understanding for the hawkers situation. According to the
policing philosophy of the USD, street traders competed for urban space with
other activities, which have higher productivity levels. Street trading also posed
obstruction problems, preventing easy pedestrian and traffic flow. In the sphere
of environmental health policy, the government faced a competitive allocation of
limited resources to meet the various needs of the society and the increasing
demands for a cleaner environment, as a result of the rising living standards
arising from economic growth (Li Tin Yiu 47). According to a social sciences
master degree student, Bina Sujanani, street trading activities must be regulated
219

and the number of hawkers must be minimised. It appears that UC policies were
primarily directed towards reducing the social costs of the lower circuit or
informal sector activity of hawking. The social costs of hawking are traffic
obstruction, health, sanitary and hygiene problems, and environmental problems
that street trading poses (Sujanani 76). UC policies were directed primarily
toward reducing the social costs of street trading and not so much on the social
benefits of hawking (ibid 28). As a result, a loss of trust and social dissatisfaction
were created without mutual understanding between the coloniser and the
colonised.

4.8

Opposition to Urban Services Departments Law

Enforcement and the Governments Response
Repeated prosecution made life hard for flower hawkers. A protest was held

in 1989 against the alleged unfair treatment of the UC, which regarded them as
unlicensed hawkers. Florists argued that the vicinity of the flower market area
(Yuen Po Street, Prince Edward Road West, Flower Market Road) had only
limited legal parking space. However lorries had to occupy the space for a long
time because of the loading and unloading of goods, and sometimes they parked
while waiting for another batch of goods to be loaded. Florists complained that
the inflexibility of government management made the situation worse. They
complained to UC, AFCD, USD and DC, but florists requests were declined.
Sixty-three vehicles, including lorries and vans, went for a slow-drive protest
along Yuen Po Street, Prince Edward Road West, Embankment Road, Duke Road,
Knight Street and Flower Market Road. Banners were hung outside of the lorries
and vans to demonstrate against the governments strict control of flower
220

hawkers. Banner slogans included: The activity of the Flower Market will not
be stifled! () and history of the Flower Market must not
be ignored
(
) (Figure 4.2). This slogan called for a respect
for history and the formation of local cultural and economic networks. They
demanded the government to make a flower wholesale market as a long-term
solution to the problem of illegal hawking (Urban Council Repeated;
Growers Warn).

Figure 4.2.

Banners of flower hawkers during the slow-drive protest in 1989.

The slogans read The activity of the Flower Market will not be
stifled! and the History of the Flower Market must not be
ignored (Source: Urban Council Repeated)

4.9

Governments Failure to Create a Permanent

Flower Market in the Colonial Era
Florists requested to have a permanent flower market since the 1980s, but

the government shirked the responsibility of offering a suitable site to the flower
industry. For example, even six months after the protest, another government
221

department, the AFCD, suggested that the florists should move the whole flower
market to the Cheung Sha Wan Vegetables Wholesale Market because vegetables
and flowers, to AFCD officers, have a similar nature (Map 4). Such a plan was
the governments attempt at having better administration. However, both the
florists and the police strongly opposed this suggestion (Flower Farmers).
According to an interview with Person R, the Transport Department also
opposed this because of the possibility of affecting transportation 62. At that time,
transportation in Cheung Sha Wan was poor due to the lack of roads and highway.
But as florists depended heavily on vans and lorries for transportation. They also
opposed the proposed area because it lacked adequate facilities.

Map 4.

Map of Cheung Sha Wan Vegetables Wholesale Market (left

circle) and Fa Hui Park volleyball court (right circle)
(Source: Google Map)

The florists protest and the AFCDs proposal to Cheung Sha Wan revealed
that the government lacked a comprehensive plan. The suggested move was

62

Interview with Person R, 31/1/2011.

222

infeasible owing to the lack of facilities, such as roads and highways. The
colonial government lacked a long term, comprehensive industry policy for
improving flower business in Hong Kong and it treated hawking activities as
issues that they must deal with. Therefore, the government believed that they
must tackle the hawking problems but not focused on dealing with the needs of
finding a suitable place for flower hawkers. Hawkers, as to remain a status of
subaltern, remained to be insecure for the future. They could only find a suitable
way to survive with minimal disturbance from the USD officers.

To summarise, because of the governments indecisiveness, there was only a

fragmented and outdated administrative mechanism used to control the industry.
Flower traders were expanding their business because they changed from a
heavy reliance on local flower production to importing overseas flowers. Flower
traders gradually shifted from the role as being both farmer and hawker at the
same time, to an importer of overseas goods. Because of this transformation of
the flower industry, they required more time for trading activities. However,
because of the inflexibility of the government administration, operating through
a colonial rationality, only a temporary flower market that opened from 11 p.m.
to 7 a.m. was offered in a take-it-or-leave it manner, which did not facilitate
earlier business hours needed by the industry. Thus, florists could only trade
outside Fa Hui Park before it officially opened, but law enforcement officers
charged them for violating hygiene codes and obstructing the streets. The florists
were given no option but to trade illegally or end their business. The inflexibility
of the government administration also reveals its handling of illegal hawking
of the flower traders operating in the intersection of Boundary Street and
Embankment Road. UC of one district could not enforce the law of another,
223

which might only be across the street in another jurisdiction. Heavy surveillance
and punishment directed at the flower traders destroyed morale and reduced their
income because of the penalty fees. The government did not understand or refuse
to understand the industry, and its control mentality, operating under the guise of
public health and hygiene, shows to what extent colonialism was embedded in
administrative measures. This lack of understanding of flower culture and the
needs of traders created tension. It resulted in the florists slow-drive protest
requesting the government to respect the industrys history. The AFCDs
proposal was not feasible because of a lack of transportation infrastructure,
which represented a lack of comprehensive planning to accommodate local
business needs. The lack of action on these matters was the result of the
governments indifference to local culture, which is indicative of a colonial
attitude that disregards the everyday culture of ordinary people and the
specificities of place.

4.10

Management of the Flower Market in the Era of

Food and Environmental Hygiene Department

Previous sections described how USD officers enforced regulations on the

flower traders, based on embedded colonial administrative measures which
sought coercive means to manage illegal hawking activities. In this section, I
will demonstrate how this colonial mentality of control continues to affect flower
traders in the present day postcolonial era, even after the USD was replaced by a
new department called FEHD. As described in Section 2.11, FEHD officers
patrol twice a day along the vicinity of the flower market and gave penalties to
flower traders whom they consider serious offenders. People currently working
224

in the flower market are being treated in a similar way to the flower hawkers of
the past, because the logic of management and control is nearly the same. FEHD
officers and florists reached an agreement that flower traders can occupy a
maximum of 3 feet in front of their shops, with no allowance to occupy parking
spaces. However, as clearly shown in Figure 2.23 in Chapter 2, 3 feet outside a
shop front is not enough for the florists.

4.11

Florists Reasons for Street Obstruction

As described in Chapter 2 concerning how flower traders occupy space in

front of their shops, street obstruction is a common complaint in the flower
market. We need to understand the florists reasons for blocking the street and the
inadequacies of the flower market in order to see how the market situation can be
improved. There are a number of factors that contribute to how florists perceive
the space.

1.

Inadequate Space
Rents in the flower market are high, thus florists need to maximise their

space for goods display. They require space particularly in peak seasons, such as
the period around CNY and Christmas. Peak season allows them to earn nearly
half of their entire yearly revenue. Therefore florists work very hard in the peak
season. All space, either on the ground or on shelves, is filled with goods.
Nonetheless they still do not have enough space, and the only way for the florists
to operate their businesses is to put goods outside their shops.

225

2.

Perception of Consumer Behaviour

As described in point (1), storage might be a problem especially around

CNY, but street obstruction occurs in the flower market every day. One florist
told me that they needed to display goods in their shop front, even outside of
CNY, because displaying flowers on the street attracts peoples attention. It
implies that there is large variety of goods to select in that shop. Until March
2012, there are 105 flower and horticulture shops established in the vicinity of
the flower market selling similar products. Not surprisingly, competition is very
keen. When other florists display goods on the street, all must follow suit.
Otherwise, customers would think that their shops have a limited choice and the
florists chance of doing business might be lost. In this sense, goods display is
important for the florists. It is not only a storage problem, but about how the
sellers perceive consumer behaviour.

3.

Reserving Parking Spaces for Lorries

Florists load and unload goods on parking spaces in front of their shops.

They need to occupy the space with flower goods. Otherwise, their space might
be occupied by other vehicle users, most probably customers who drive their cars
to buy flowers. This might create trouble for loading and unloading of goods,
because parking space is limited, and also workers might spend more time and
effort in moving flower goods if lorries are parked further away from their shops.
Therefore, they need to use the goods to reserve a parking space for their own
lorry.

226

4.12

Local

Community

Leaders

Misunderstood

Florists Needs
District councillors are local community leaders representing the area and
acting as a communication channel between stakeholders of the community
(both residents and businessmen) and the government. However, district
councillors do not understand florists needs. Law Wing Cheung, the Yau Tsim
Mong district councillor who represents the area of the flower market, firmly
supports the upper floor residents opinion and strongly opposes florists
occupying parking spaces and the pavement. He saw the practice of the flower
market as the cause of the deterioration of the environment and hygiene
standards of the area. He suggested that the florists create a multi-level storage
area inside their shops to enlarge storage space so that they did not need to
occupy the street (Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Yau Tsim Mong a).
The district councillor challenged FEHDs efforts in not paying enough efforts in
managing the place. He urges FEHD to seriously consider relocating the flower
market so that residents would not clash directly with florists (Law Wing
Cheung). I attempted to address Law Wing Cheungs ideas, in November 2010,
but his assistant replied that Law is very busy and he refused my interview
request.

Law Wing Cheungs suggestions imply that even district councillors do not
understand the florists actions. As discussed in the previous section, florists need
to place goods outside their shops because of inadequate space and the
perception of customers behaviour. Laws understanding implies that he did not
understand florists needs. His attitude toward the florists encourages FEHD
227

officers to be even more severe with the florists, and shows that he supports strict
street management. Law did not attempt to create mutual trust and a platform for
residents and businessmen to communicate. This situation would drive florists to
an even worse situation because they could only stand for their own individual
rights without their community leaders support.

4.13

Legislation of Hygiene and Street Obstruction

Regardless of flower traders reasons for occupying the street, law

enforcement officers perceive the flower traders encroachment onto the
pavement as a kind of illegal practice of street obstruction, affecting street
cleanliness and causing serious environmental nuisances. FEHD officers then
charge penalties to flower traders. The core function of FEHD 63 is maintaining
environmental hygiene. According to a LegCo meeting about a discussion on
illegal encroachment on the pavement, Chow Yat Ngok, York, Secretary for Food
and Health 64 , explains the operation of FEHD. They will follow up on
complaints against illegal occupation of shop front pedestrian walkways and
obstruction of public places according to its performance pledge. Enforcement
officers will take intense prosecution actions during different time periods
(including at night and early morning) when required. If shops extend their
business without authorisation and place any article on street that is found to
63

FEHD is organised into three branches: the Food and Public Health Branch, the
Environmental Hygiene Branch and the Administration and Development Branch. The
Environmental Hygiene Branch of the FEHD has been formed by combining the Environmental
Health Branches of the former USD and Regional Service Department. Management of the
flower market is related to the Environmental Hygiene Branch of the FEHD, which is responsible
for implementation and coordination of environmental hygiene services, management of public
markets, hawker control and licensing matters, and for directing environmental hygiene services
of the territory (Li Tin Yiu 25).
64
The Secretary for Food and Health is the head of Food and Health Bureau. This Bureau takes
charge of FEHD, AFCD, Department of Health and Government Laboratory (Hong Kong Special
Administrative Region).
228

obstruct the public, the FEHD officers may institute prosecutions under section
4A of the Summary Offences Ordinance (Cap. 228), and offenders are liable to a
maximum fine of HK$5,000 or imprisonment for three months upon conviction.
If shops have placed any article in a public place and caused obstruction to
sanitation operations, the FEHD officers may issue a notice to the owner of the
article under section 22 of the Public Health and Municipal Services Ordinance
(Cap. 132), requiring him to remove the article within a specified period of time,
failing which the FEHD may seize the article. The maximum penalty for
contravention of the above provision is a fine of HK$5,000 and a daily fine of
HK$50 (Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Legislative Council c).

The legislation and penalty imposed to the flower traders implies that the
government is committed to maintain street order. Public cleanliness is
considered by the government as of utmost importance to the city. I do not intend
to argue that the action of street obstruction should be encouraged in town.
However, I want to argue that the existing management logic understate the
importance of having reasonable spatial and material provisions for the
sustenance of quotidian flower culture in everyday life. The frequent law
enforcement officer patrols make a hard life to the flower traders and hinder the
development of flower industry. Flower traders are used to the government
ignoring their fundamental need for a permanent wholesale market. Florists are
busy in facing the everyday struggle with FEHD officers and their own business.
In this light, oppositional voice to the government is kept at a minimal.

At the same time, among all the other districts, Yau Tsim Mong districts
obtain the highest number of prosecutions instituted by the FEHD against illegal
229

occupation of pedestrian walkways in front of shops or obstruction of public

places in the past five years (Appendix 11). At the same time, the number of
hawker control teams in Yau Tsim Mong district is the highest among all districts
in Hong Kong (Appendix 12). This is because there are many open markets for
hawkers in Mong Kok 65 . There is no specific official figure available for
prosecution numbers particular to the vicinity of the flower market. Nonetheless,
from the figures of the Yau Tsim Mong prosecution and the figures of Hong
Kong at large, there is an increasing tendency of hawker prosecution in Hong
Kong.

In fact, most consumers and sellers and even some residents, who have
moved in with the knowledge of the conditions below on the streets as part of the
bargain, and have negotiated an acceptable space sharing culture and are fine
with the conditions. However, the government and local district council elites
maintain a controlling mentality of street management emphasizing legislation of
hygiene and street obstruction. To them, streets are for the use of the public and
the extension of goods display in the street is generally not acceptable in hygiene
terms. FEHD officers will prosecute efficiently to manage the control of the
street once they receive complaints. Law enforcement officers use a mentality of
control for street management. The society rarely understands why and how
traders need to extend goods display.

65

Open markets in the Yau Tsim Mong district includes the Ladies Market in Tung Choi Street,
the Fa Yuen Street open market bazaar, Temple Street Night Market, etcetera.
230

4.14

Difficulty in the Enhancement of Local Culture as

a Result of Law Enforcement

The flower industry has a hard time developing further, both in terms of
business objectives and also to expand the markets flower culture, because of
the FEHDs law enforcement. One florist told me that business was very difficult
because she needed to display goods outside her shop, but she also had to move
the goods away from the street when the FEHD officers arrive, therefore, she
needed to observe the street carefully and be aware when the officers come. In
this light, her workload increased. The florist said many tourists visit her shop
and want to take pictures of the flowers. However, she does not have time and
effort to cater to tourists request. Also, when the visitors are around, they may
distract the shop keepers awareness on the arrival of FEHD officers, especially
when the visitors takes pictures, the camera flash disturbs the florists
observation on the street. Person C explains an embarrassing situation that she
encountered when FEHD officers arrived 66. She says angrily,

FEHD officers always chase us away from street obstruction. They make
us bad temper people to release our anger and frustration to tourists.
Tourists like to come to my shop and take pictures with the cameras flash
on. This is private property. I have the right not allowing anyone to take
pictures. There was this occasion that FEHD officers and tourists came at
the same time, therefore I had to remove my goods from the street
immediately to avoid committing any offense. I could only drive away the
tourists because they blocked my way. FEHD officers saw the whole
66

Interview with Person C, 5/10/2010.

231

situation since they were standing in front of my shop. The officers saw that,
but what could I do except driving away the tourists? When I was being
treated badly by the FEHD officers, I would vent off my anger to the
tourists because I dislike them for affecting my business. This situation
might create bad image to the tourists.

In other words, Person C complained against on the FEHD officers and the
possibility of creating a negative image about Hong Kong. However, there is
very little florists can do. Florists would rather prohibit people to take pictures,
because it is not their primary duty to welcome visitors. Florists cannot indulge
the tourists because they are afraid of law enforcement. This situation is also not
good for tourism, because it gives a bad impression to foreigners. Nonetheless,
florists need to minimise the risk of being charged of street obstruction.

This incident of being unable to respond to the tourists requests for

photographs implies that flower trading has been made difficult and unstable
because traders are working under the pressure of the enforcement officers.
Business people need to display goods more than what is legally permitted, but
at the same time it is illegal for them to do so. How can an industry continue to
grow and nurture when people are working under such threats?

4.15

Frequent Confrontations between Florists and

Law Enforcement Officers

Verbal warnings are given to the florists if they seriously obstruct roads.
Sometimes FEHD officers issue fines to the florists who violate the rules
232

seriously and repetitively. Conflicts constantly arise, for instance one day in 2004
(FEHD Raiding). FEHD officers issued forty penalty tickets to florists in the
whole area. The officers also removed HK$40,000 of goods totally from the
florists. Some florists along Sai Yee Street blocked FEHD vehicles and did not
allow them to remove their property (Figure 4.3).

Figure 4.3.

Florists blocked the road of the FEHD vehicle and argued with
the officers who removed florists property in 2004 (Source: ibid)

Similar hostility occurred between FEHD officers and florists in December

2010. At around 3 p.m., when Ng, a shop owner on Sai Yee Street, was unloading
goods from a lorry and was moving the goods to his shop, around ten FEHD
officers arrived and charged Ng for street obstruction. Ng argued with the
officers because they did not charge the other florists who were doing the same,
unloading goods. Selective law enforcement aroused discontent. Twenty more
FEHD officers arrived, and the police were standing by the area in case any
further struggles developed (Figure 4.4 and 4.5). The issue was finally settled
when Lai Wing Chun, the Chairman of the Hong Kong Wholesale Florist
233

Association (), negotiated with all the parties (30

FEHD).

Figure 4.4.

Tense atmosphere during a struggle between flower shop owners

and FEHD officers in 2010

Figure 4.5.

A flower shop owner arguing about the selective enforcement of

FEHD officers in 2010

Frequent confrontation between florists and FEHD officers implies an

unsatisfactory business environment for the flower industry. Flower traders
234

requests for space on the pavement and the use of parking spaces in front of their
shops results in street obstructions and FEHD officers issuing penalties to florists.
This action increases florists operating costs and discourages florists from fully
embracing flower culture and developing the art of flower display. FEHD
officers inherited the UCs controlling mentality of street management. When
enforcement officers charge florists for unhygienic practices and obstructing the
streets, a strict control of street is imposed. This reflects an inflexibility of the
government administration in not understanding the business culture and
requests of the local industry.

4.16

Serious Tensions and Protest in the Flower

Market before Chinese New Year

As described previously, the period before big festivals, such as CNY and
Christmas, are the peak seasons for the flower industry. Florists stock up more
goods before CNY (especially one week before CNY), because they hope to
boost their sales during this important festival for the flower industry. The lack of
space inside their shops forces the florists to store extra flowers outside their
shops. One of the businessmen, Martin Tsoi, owner of Hung Fat Wholesales
Flower, expressed his anxieties when he heard that landlords had raised rents by
50 percent or even double in some cases. Shop owners complain that they are
unable to afford renting larger spaces. FEHD officers issued verbal warnings for
a breach of hygiene regulations. 60 fixed-penalty fines were handed out within 2
days after the officers received complaints about obstructions of the pavement.
Some businessmen received repeated penalty tickets, with each ticket costing
HK$1,500. A final compromise has been reached as the shops agreed to clean up
235

and stop storing flowers in public areas, while inspectors issued only verbal
warnings for offenders (Lam, Agnes).

Another example demonstrates the issuance of repetitive penalties to florists

to stop street obstruction. The Cheung family has operated a stall in the lane
between Sai Yee Street and Fa Yuen Street () for more than 30 years. The
family shouted at hawker control officers who had just issued them a penalty for
blocking the pedestrian road with their flowers. Every CNY they are fined for
street obstruction. Cheung argued with the officers when they followed the
officers to other flower shops and see that they did not issue and tickets to these
other shops. The daughter of the Cheung family said they had been charged six
times just in one week, while each ticket costs thousands of dollars. Once again,
the selective enforcement aroused discontent. FEHD officers replied that our
duty is to control all of the boxes 67 to make sure they dont obstruct the
pedestrians. Thats all (DeWolf).

In other words, FEHD officers adopted the UCs mentality, which reflects
how a postcolonial government adopts a colonial mentality in controlling people
in the name of hygiene without paying attention to the industrys needs. CNY is
the peak season for florists. Therefore, they need to stock more goods in order to
sell to more customers. At the same time, many customers visit the flower
market during this time of the year because it is a tradition to buy and display
flowers before and during CNY. This creates a disturbance for residents who are
living above the flower shops, and their complaints alert law enforcement
officers, who may issue repetitive penalties to a single flower shop in order to
67

In this context, boxes means long and wide corrugated paper packing flower goods.
236

stop florists from blocking the road. However, we should question this governing
mentality. Are florists blocking the road because they are greedy and want to
make money? Or is it that the business environment is not good enough to cater
to their needs? Is street obstruction due to the florists unreasonable blocking of
the street, or just because the pavement is too narrow to accommodate both the
goods and the customers as they stand on the pavement and choose their flowers?
Why is a feasible, permanent market not planned and instituted for decades when
a culturally necessary and vibrant industry has proved itself indispensable to the
local community and culture? All the florists are asking for is a modest, not too
big, accessible and legal place to do business, just like other wholesale
businesses in the city. Why is that so very impossible for the Hong Kong
government?

In 2006, because of these serious tensions between florists and law

enforcement officers, the florists held large scale protests against receiving sixty
penalties for street obstruction in the space of a few days. Law enforcement
officers came in the morning and in the afternoon, and the action usually took a
few hours, making it hard for the florists to do business and caused them to lose
more revenue during such an important festival. Around seventy flower sellers in
the flower market rallied at the junction of Flower Market Road and Sai Yee
Street and sat on the street to protest against the action of hygiene officers,
claiming that they were being treated unfairly because of the frequent penalties
from FEHD officers (Figure 4.6). Florists blocked the roads for one hour and all
vehicles could not pass. All the protestors shouted FEHD drives us to death!
() Protestors hung up large banners and wrote slogans, such
as the flower market is not a market but a ruin. How can it be a tourist spot?
237

FEHD is too strict, shops will go out of business soon. Without business, all will
be jobless and go for CSSA 68. FEHD gets rich, but shops go out of business
(
) (Figure 4.7 and
4.8). The usual practice was to have a mutual understanding between the
government and the businesses concerning the practice of displaying more goods
on the pavement before CNY. However, one florist claimed that since the FEHD
hawker control team changed their head of management, the hawkers believed,
the of new boss have asked officers to enforce more severe punishments to
intimidate the florists from street obstruction. After that, twenty protestors and
FEHD officers had a meeting in the Mong Kok police station to negotiate a
settlement, and the rest of the florists stopped blocking the roads. In the meeting,
FEHD officers agreed to be flexible when enforcing the law during CNY, but
they warned florists to be self-disciplined (CNY Flower; Traders in).

Figure 4.6.

Hawkers protest against the action of hygiene officers

(Source: CNY Flower Street)

68

CSSA refers to the Comprehensive Social Security Assistance scheme launched by the
Social Welfare Department of the government. It is a safety net for those who cannot support
themselves financially. It is designed to bring their income up to a prescribed level to meet their
basic needs. http://www.swd.gov.hk/en/index/site_pubsvc/page_socsecu/sub_comprehens/
238

Figure 4.7.

Hawkers protest against the action of hygiene officers

(Source: CNY Flower)

Figure 4.8.

Newspaper describing the hawkers protest against the hygiene

officers (Source: Due to Hawkers)

Since the florists would like to reach an agreement about CNY arrangement
with the officers, the florists submitted a written request on 27 January 2007, one
year after the protest, demanding the FEHD to further relax restrictions on flower
vendors to trade on the pavement. In the meeting, FEHD panel members, police
and district councillors supported the FEHDs actions taken and their continued
enforcement efforts. Members commended the departmental officers for their
appropriate and restrained action during the above operations and the members
endorsed that the departments should tolerate pavement encroachment by the
flower vendors up to 3 feet outside their shop fronts, that is, the limit reached at
the meeting with the vendors on 29 December 2006 (Hong Kong Special
239

Administrative Region, Yau Tsim Mong b).

Stringent street management implies that, from governments perspective,

flower traders are barbaric and all activities should be under the governments
control. In the past, flower growers conducting illegal trading on the road were
driven away, but flower import traders, extending their goods from their shops,
are now also considered illegal. This results in frequent arguments between
flower shops owners and the FEHD. Flower traders perceive themselves as
running a business. A less disturbing environment and low rent are required to
run a business in a sustainable manner. However the government officials view
the florist business as a matter of hygiene, and stipulate that no street obstruction
should occur. Therefore, the FEHD officers patrol the market twice a day.
Frequent patrolling of FEHD officers creates a disturbance for the flower traders.
The struggle between florists and FEHD members implies that the surveillance
efforts in controlling the florists are excessive. Low self-esteem among flower
traders eventually developed because they had to continually fight against the
FEHD, and they were made to feel that they were making little contribution to
society and that the government had little appreciation for their work. Despite
these constant disputes between the FEHD and the florists, the FEHD did not
attempt to understand the needs of florists and create a long term policy to solve
the problem, such as providing a permanent site for the flower market so that the
existing disputes could be resolved. In the next section, I will demonstrate the
persistence of the florists requests for having a long-term flower market, and the
governments failure to make a positive response (I will further explain this in
Section 4.18).

240

4.17

Unfeasible Florist Self-management

Stringent street management also reveals the FEHDs opposition against a

proposal for the self-management of traders. FEHD hosted a meeting with flower
shop owners and other government departments in December 2006 to discuss the
issue of street encroachment. In this meeting flower traders promised to establish
their own self-monitoring team, and to give a list to the FEHD of those shop
owners who are not self-disciplined in terms of street obstruction. Some florists
suggested establishing a hotline. When the FEHD receive complaints, they could
immediately contact the Hong Kong Wholesale Florist Association, which would
then negotiate with the individual flower shop to resolve the problem.
Nevertheless, the government officers replied that when the FEHD receives
complaints, they must follow-up and investigate the problem themselves. The
responsibility of the FEHD is to control hawkers and to allow people to walk
unimpeded, and within this remit, all illegal hawking activities must be severely
punished.

The florists suggestions were blocked by the FEHD. Another florist put
forward a scheme that would allow the sidewalk, and one-third of parking spaces,
to be used for the selling of goods and flower displays. But FEHD members
expressed their worries about street tidiness and the hindering of pedestrian and
other road-users. Besides, some impatient drivers would honk when hindered
and disturb residents. Government officials therefore, asserted that florists should
neither unpack, sell nor display goods in the parking areas; and that special
requests during CNY could be negotiated between the FEHD, police and florists
representatives.

241

FEHDs response demonstrates the governments rigid and harsh control

mentality and its inability to consider other options. Cleanliness and tidiness of
the street is the main concern of the government. To this end, the government
expected full control over the people and all trading activities. Other than those
with special permission, all the rest are treated as illegal hawking even if the
florists are just extending their goods display in front of their shops. This
understanding assumes that florists are a barbaric lower-class community, who
are always unclean and who create nuisances on the street requiring government
imposition of strict surveillance, policing and control. Colonial assumptions of
local culture as barbaric, less civilised and in need of civilisation and if that fails,
disciplining, is firmly implanted in the governing mentality of law enforcement
practices in Hong Kong. The discussion between FEHD members and florists
clearly reveals distrust towards the ability of the florists to discipline and manage
themselves. They are assumed to be incapable of civilised self-management. This
is a colonial and dis-empowering mentality of governance. When the florists
suggest establishing a self-patrol team to monitor daily activities of the market
themselves, the FEHD responded by tightening its control and was not open to
empowering others to set up a more flexible reporting system. It demonstrates a
rigid and bureaucratic governing mentality. The distrust and rigid management,
on one hand, creates efficient governing, but on the other hand contributes to a
low morale among the florists. A good self-management team believes in
peoples power and the ability of people to solve questions through negotiation
among themselves. This mistrust, as shown in the FEHDs strict controlling
practices, is a form of paternalistic, condescending embedded coloniality, which
continues to assume that local people are uncivilised and coercion must be
employed to effectively rule over them.
242

4.18

Governments Failure to Respond to a Permanent

Flower Market in the Postcolonial Era

Different members of the flower industry have continuously pushed the

government to offer a permanent flower wholesale market, but the government
failed to give a positive response. According to Person R, he urges the
government to provide them a permanent flower market with the following
arguments 69:

the government does not allocate enough land to flower cultivators to grow
flowers. It seems that the government has a lot of arable land and vacant
land. But in fact, usable land is very little. Most of the land has already been
turned to car parks and open storage area. At the same time, those people
who run business as open storage pay rent monthly. In this sense, return rate
is higher for the landlords. In contrast, the rent of vegetable fields is yearly
and therefore the return rate is slower. Landlord like converting arable land
to non-agricultural use There are lots of flyovers in Hong Kong, could
the government allow us to cultivate flowers under flyovers? Some plants,
such as orchid, dont need much sunshine. We need very little space to
survive. Our union has suggested to the government that we only need one
container to store farming tools and fertiliser, and a small piece of land. It is
more than enough. We could beautify Hong Kong and could also solve the
problem of land shortage. It is better than what the government is currently
practising by making putting rocks in irregular shapes under the flyover to
avoid homeless people to stay there. But the government did not respond to
69

Interview with Person R, 31/1/2011.

243

our requests.

Person Rs frustration in explaining governments unresponsive reply are

with extensive records. Florists requested to have a permanent flower market
since the 1980s, but the government avoids the responsibility and fails to search
for a feasible site. For example, Lo Suk Ching, a LegCo member representing
agriculture and fisheries, suggested the government to help local flower farmers
and flower importers to have a permanent flower market in 1997 (Hong Kong
Special Administrative Region, Provisional Legislative Council a). He followed
up his request in a LegCo meeting on economic services (Hong Kong Special
Administrative Region, Provisional Legislative Council b). AFD replied that they
were aware of the rapid development of the market for flower and ornamental
plants in Hong Kong and would be consulting the trade on the need to provide
wholesale flower market in planning new wholesale marketing facilities. The
Assistant Director of Agriculture and Regulation supplemented that the
consultancy study on development of the agriculture industry would examine the
market potential of flower farming and would propose development objectives.
But there was no follow up action. Lo Suk Ching made a repeated request in
LegCo in another meeting in 1997 but no government response followed. In
1999, there was a rumour saying that Tung Chee Hwa, the CE of Hong Kong
between 1997 and 2005, wanted to build a fresh cut-flower port
(
) by
positioning Hong Kong as an international flower trading centre of Chinas
flower produce exports and made use of the advantage of Hong Kongs excellent
transportation infrastructure (Hong Kong Intend; Chan Cheuk Wah). However,
Tung denied this in public afterwards (Hong Kong Special Administrative
Region, Information Services Department b). The LegCo member made repeated
244

attempts to request a permanent site for a flower wholesale market in 2000

(Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Legislative Council d), but the
government did not take any real action for planning. Wong Yung Kan, a LegCo
member representing Agriculture and Fisheries section in the functional
constitutions, made another effort in 2002 to request the government to fund the
establishment of a permanent flower market (Hong Kong Special Administrative
Region, Legislative Council e 5311). In 2003, the Lands Department proposed a
3,000 square feet flower market in Chai Wan (), Hong Kong Island 70. The
proposed site could accommodate dozens of stalls and operate between 7 a.m.
and 7 p.m. (Law, and Tsui) However, the florists did not like this proposal
because Chai Wan is located at the west end of Hong Kong Island, and
transportation is not as good as Mong Kok, in the centre of Hong Kong (Map 5).
At the same time, many Chai Wan residents strongly opposed the plan over
concerns about noise pollution and sanitation. Also, the proposed site is only on
one street, which means crowd control would be difficult. Because both the
flower industry and Chai Wan residents opposed the plan, the Lands Department
withdrew it (Chai Wan and Law, and Tsui). This situation is similar to the
Cheung Sha Wan flower wholesale market proposal made by AFD in 1989
(Section 4.9), when supporting transportation and public facilities were not
developed to make the plan feasible. This incident implies that the government
did not respond directly and sincerely to the flower industry, but just advanced
piecemeal proposals that suited the governments development plans. If there
was a remote vacant piece of land, it was mindlessly offered to the florists in bad
faith, without planning and infrastructure provisions to make it a practical and
real alternative for flower trading.
70

The proposed plan is in San Ha Street (), Chai Wan.

245

Map 5.

Map of the old and new proposed flower market the Mong Kok
Flower Market (top left) and the Chai Wan Flower Market
(bottom right) (Source: Google Map)

The flower industry made continuous efforts in requesting a reasonable

place for the market. Florists made another attempt in 2007, but no government
officer responded to the request (Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Yau
Tsim Mong a). Up until 2009, Vincent Fang, LegCo member representing the
wholesale and retail functional constituency, attempted to urge the government to
assist commercial tenants in the flower market. Chow Yat Ngok, the Secretary
for Food and Health 71, expressed his view on the flower market. He thought that
the long-term cooperation of florists is essential in solving the problem of traffic
71

Secretary for Food and Health is the head of Food and Health Bureau. This Bureau takes
charge of Food and Environment Hygiene Department (FEHD), AFCD, Department of Health
and Government Laboratory (Hong Kong Special Administrative Region).
246

congestion and road obstruction in the vicinity of Flower Market Road. The
Food and Health Bureau, the bureau responsible for the FEHD, considers that

the best approach to be adopted at present is to enhance the communication

between commercial tenants and the relevant departments through various
channels. The law-enforcing departments will continue to maintain close
communication with commercial tenants, with a view to ensuring traffic
safety and environmental hygiene, keeping public areas unobstructed,
minimizing the nuisance caused to nearby residents and facilitating
commercial tenants operation of business as far as possible (Hong Kong
Special Administrative Region, Legislative Council a 6850).

The governments response after all this years clearly sounds no better than
their usual hollow rhetoric and lip-service throughout the decades of struggles on
the part of the florists. This cynical repetition of government bad faith implies a
refusal to take responsibility for the future of the flower market. Chow expresses
that demolition or relocation of flower market is not possible, but did not give an
explicit reason nor provide a feasible alternative. The government as always
rhetorically invites the business sector or residents living in that area to
contribute some feasible suggestions to solve the existing problem. The
government also highlights that residents nearby complain of street obstruction
by the florist. The government wishes that the florists could communicate with
the government directly or through their representatives more frequently. The
government would adopt a positive attitude in handling specific suggestions and
where necessary, undertake more planning work (ibid). However, the
government did not offer any proactive solutions to solve the current situation.
247

This irresponsible reply shows that the government does not recognise the
culture and industry of flowers as a legitimate and long-established business and
industry. It is assumed merely as an arbitrary obstruction in the area, without any
appreciation of its historical and socio-economic value to the society as a whole
and to the community in particular.

The governments comment as such shows that it ignored previous

comments made by flower traders in the DC and other channels through the
decades (as discussed in Section 4.17). It demonstrates that discussions on the
district level might not be able to affect policy level decision of the government.
The governments response accords with Gayatri Chakravorty Spivaks idea that
the subaltern cannot speak. No matter how earnestly and persistently and
eloquently the flower traders, as a subaltern class, have tried to make their
condition, point or view, needs and alternative proposals heard, their voices have
been intentionally suppressed, muted, mis-interpreted, mis-represented and
distorted by the ruling class, despite the fact that they had participated in
numerous meetings with the FEHD department and district council in 2007 and
since the beginning of the problems decades ago, as discussed in previous
sections (Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Yau Tsim Mong b). The
government simply continue to hold onto its assumptions developed since the
earlier colonial period and to shirk its responsibility for the provision of a
permanent site suitable for the industry. Voices of the subaltern cannot be heard 72
in such a context and the government continues its stringent street control
measure without paying attention to the real needs of the flower industry. For the

72

Please refer to Section 1.6.1 for a detailed discussion of Gayatri Chakravorty Spivaks use of
the subaltern class.
248

subalterns, there is still no reprieve unto this day.

4.19

Contemporary Role of Flower Cultivators and

Flower Traders

As mentioned earlier, before the 1980s, flower cultivators were also flower
traders who sold flowers along Boundary Street and the agglomeration formed
the flower market. However, this situation has been totally changed nowadays,
partly intensified by the hawker control measures of the USD and FEHD.
Florists renting or buying commercial premises view flower hawkers as illegal.
Nonetheless, flower traders think their use of public space for goods display is
legal. This shows that the industry environment has totally changed. The
discrepancy between the flower businesses and flower hawkers is large. Flower
importers remain the major stakeholder in the vicinity of the flower market, and
flower farmers in the NT can only return to the flower market annually before
CNY. However, both parties have become business competitors nowadays.

After the separation between flower wholesaler and flower growers in the
flower market, flower growers rarely trade personally in the market. They
become suppliers to flower shops in the market. However, the growers can
continue their tradition of selling flowers in the market during the period before
CNY under the organisation of the union. At the very beginning, the flower
farmers did business by trading on their goods on vehicles parked along Flower
Market Road and Prince Edward Road West to sell flowers five days before the
CNY (Figure 4.9). The Hong Kong Flowers Wholesale Association enlisted
members complaints since flower traders doing business in shops need to pay
249

rent and rates to operate, while the hawkers only pay for temporary licenses. As
explained in Section 3.7, Person O explains that beside paying money for
commercial premises, flower shops also seems to be required to for a protection
fee to triad groups to keep their shop safe, but flower growers doing business on
the road just for a few days could avoid triad members collecting money 73.
Therefore flower shops did not like flower growers who run business on lorries,
and flower cultivators are increasingly being driven away from the flower market.
This differentiation implies that people did not respect those who use the space
traditionally. Money is an important factor controlling who can stay in a place
legally.

Figure 4.9.

Local flower growers selling flowers along Prince Edward Road

West before Chinese New Year (Source: Yau)

73

Interview with Person O, 31/1/2011.

250

4.20

Temporary Relocation of Flower Cultivators

Reveals the Governments Irresponsibility toward
Flower Growers

The governments irresponsibility in reallocating flower growers clearly

illustrates its misunderstanding of the flower industry. Flower importers remain
the major stakeholder in the vicinity of the flower market, but flower farmers can
return to the flower market only annually before CNY. The Flower Union and the
government negotiated, and eventually, the government allowed flower growers
to rent car park space to sell in the Mong Kok Stadium, located on Flower
Market Road, for four days before CNY since 2002 (SUN Side Story: History).
The florists park their lorries in the car park in order to sell flowers and plants.
This measure indicates that the government has started to recognise the
importance of doing flower business in Mong Kok, which is the traditional
destination for flowers consumers. Locating flower cultivators together with
flower importers creates an agglomeration effect, and could create a win-win
situation boosting sales for all parties. However, because of the two-year
renovation of the Mong Kok Stadium, flower cultivators need to relocate in 2010
and 2011. Once again, this incident shows that the government did not have
long-term and sustainable plans for the flower industry but treating them as
hawkings and avoid them to create disorder to the street. The government seems
does not offer an enduring strategy to develop the industry.

The Flower Union suggested the Home Affairs Bureau to relocate them, and
the union suggested three places: the nursery area in the Flower Market Road, Fa
Yuen Street (from Sportfield Road to Boundary Street) and Prince Edward Road
251

West (from Yuen Ngai Street to Yuen Po Street). All these areas were very near to
the Flower Market Road. However, the government turned down all suggestions
because FEHD and the police were concerned about crowd control and
transportation arrangements (No Area). Wan Chong Ping, Chairman of the
Union, claims that the government only turned down their suggestions but did
not offer them any good alternatives (SUN Side Story: No). One week later,
the Home Affairs Bureau suggested them to use a piece of Government land
beside Jade Market 74 () at Yau Ma Tei for flower selling (Map 6). The
proposed location was very far away from the flower consumption and trading
cluster along Flower Market Road. No buyer would realise that they were there
in this new place. As a result, flower cultivators strongly objected to the
suggestion, because the proposed place was too far away and would have
increased the chance of losing money. Also, flower cultivators complained that
the rent of the proposed venue was too high. The suggestion was rejected by the
Union. The Union negotiated with the government for selling along the sidewalk
of the Mong Kok Stadium (Feature: Flower), but the government declined this
request because the road was too narrow.

74

Jade Market is located on Kansu Street () and Battery Street (). It is a collection
of around 400 stalls selling a wide range of jade pendants, rings, bracelets, carvings and
ornaments. The market opens from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. It is the main gathering place for buyers of
this fine stone who today still communicate with secret hand signals when making a purchase
(Hong Kong Tourism Board b).
252

Map 6.

Map of proposed relocation of the temporary flower market by the

Home Affairs Bureau for flower cultivators in 2010 from the Mong
Kok Stadium (top circle) to Jade Market (bottom circle).

The governments suggestion clearly demonstrates a misunderstanding of

the industrys request for staying in the vicinity of the flower market as a valid
industrial cluster. Their suggested place is a piece of Government land, which is
relatively easier for the government to manage and for the flower growers/traders
to relocate. Although the new suggested premise is located in the Yau Tsim
Mong district, which is the same district of the flower market, the actual distance
is very far. Also, the vicinity of Jade Market would not create many benefits for
the flower industry, because most visitors of the Jade Market are tourists, who do
253

not tend to buy perishables like flowers and potted plants, which are also
restricted by most immigration offices in the world. This proposed venue would
cause the industry to suffer great loss. This is another good example of how
culturally insensitive the government can become and how incapable they are in
considering the consumption practices of customers. At the same time, flower
goods are highly competitive, because they do not vary greatly from shop to
shop, stall to stall. The governments suggestion might be successful if great
promotional efforts were spent on the new premises, but it was foreseeable that
the government would not do so. All in all, the persistent denial of the industrys
needs implies an intractable, embedded coloniality in the governments
administration practice, so much so that it has become a kind of bureaucratic
reflex, even when faced suggestions that were most practical for the government,
as the proposed new permanent wholesale market on government property and
land. The government did not pay attention to the historical and socio-economic
value of the industry. The officials seem not to consider the importance of the
proximity of the flower cultivators to the vicinity of the flower market as an
issue. This implies a complete failure to see a historical industrial cluster as an
industrial cluster, pure and simple.

The flower industry needed to pay large efforts to fight for a suitable place
because the government did not make a decision that could minimise disturbance
created by the renovation of a public facility (the Mong Kok Stadium). After a
long process of negotiation, the flower cultivators spent approximately
HK$10,000 to rent an open area outside Boundary Street Sports Centre No. 1 (
) for six days (Figure 4.10 and 4.11). The sports centre is nearer to
Mong Kok Stadium, the usual place that they ran business. However, the flower
254

cultivators complained about poor business because of the lack of promotion by

the government, the ambiguity of signage for the new arrangement, and LCSD
staff members who were in charge of the sport centre opening only one gate for
entrance, which contributed to few customers (LCSD Harms) realizing the
existence of this arrangement. After the end of the trading period, Person J, a
flower cultivator running a garden at Yuen Long, told me that all flower
cultivators selling in the Boundary Street Sports Centre No. 1 knew each other so
well because of the long term practice of selling together, and all of them lost
money during the relocation of the flower market specialised for flower farmers
in the NT because of the lack of signage and lack of promotion 75. This practice
gave flower farmers a bad start to the year because they could not make money
in such an important festival. This situation means that having a good location
within a culturally and historically recognized cluster know to the public,
capable of accommodating the consumption practices of the customers and the
material needs of the sellers, is very important for a specialised industry with
keen internal competition. Nonetheless, the government does not invest much in
the future of the traditional flower industry because it believes that the survival
of the industry is a matter of market logic, of the invisible hand of the market.
The lack of respect for local culture drives the industry into a tough situation.
Mong Kok Stadium re-opened in 2011. Parking space was provided 76. NT flower
cultivators return to the Stadium to do the trading in the period before CNY in
2012.

75

Interview with Person I and J, 2/12/2010.

The stadium provides 20 parking spaces: 16 for private cars, 1 for person with disabilities, 2
for coaches and 1 for motorcycle (Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Leisure and
Cultural Services Department d).
76

255

Figure 4.10.

Relocation of the temporary flower market for local flower

cultivators outside Boundary Street Sports Centre No. 1 (Source:
77)

Figure 4.11.

Temporary Flower Market for local flower cultivators (Source:

78)

77

HKFPWGU's Gallery Album. Uploaded on 1 Febuary 2011.

https://picasaweb.google.com/107194366147001105431/hKSSZE
78
HKFPWGU's Gallery Album. Uploaded on 1 Febuary 2011.
https://picasaweb.google.com/107194366147001105431/hKSSZE
256

4.21

Chapter Summary

This chapter illustrates the tension between flower traders and law
enforcement officers as an argument about how coloniality is embedded in
administrative and street management practices. The following diagram
demonstrates the power relations between law enforcement officers, flower
importers and flower farmers who are also occasional flower sellers (Figure
4.12).

Law Enforcement
Officers

Flower Importers

Flower Farmers

Figure 4.12.

Relational mapping of the law enforcement officers, flower

importers and flower farmers in the flower market

This chapter demonstrates the controlling mentality of law enforcement

officers. Throughout the colonial and postcolonial eras, the underlying
assumption of the government remains to offer minimum help to the flower
industry and to treat the industry as simply a commercial activity are worse, a
social nuisance. Therefore, although the flower industry and LegCo members
repeatedly fought for a permanent flower wholesale market, the government did

257

not respond proactively to this request. However, the current situation of the
flower market is not satisfactory because the market is located very close to
residential buildings, with residents complaining about how the florists obstruct
the street and make the area unhygienic. Law enforcement officers use an
anti-hawking mentality to control the street, regardless of the fact that hawking
has a long history in this area, and that the traders have already moved into
commercial premises and are just extending their shop fronts to display flowers.
Arguments between the florists and the USD officers, and the florists and the
FEHD officers are similar in nature traders must not obstruct the street. For the
government, spaces must be used according to the law, they do not allow any
other activities, and the law privileges certain uses of public space as against
others. Enforcement officers treat florists as barbaric and uncivilised people, who
disturb activities on the street in order to maximise their profits. The government,
district councillors and residents do not understand why florists need to display
goods outside their shops. At the same, hardly anyone recognises and appreciates
flower culture and the industrys willing to develop a sustainable plan for their
industry. Because of the stringent street management mentality, the flower
industry could hardly expand because of limited space and the continuous
conflicts with law enforcement officers. The way the flower industry could
expand legally is to either rent or buy larger premises, which would imply higher
costs and the need to make even more money to sustain their businesses.
Constant surveillance of law enforce officers in the market was an unreflective
extension of previous colonial assumptions and mentalities. It shows distrust
toward the florists, irrespective of the fact that some florists have suggested
systematic and community organized self-management themselves, so that
problems can be reported to law enforcement officers only when the situation
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surpasses the self-management teams capabilities. The governments opposition

to this proposal demonstrates the lack of an empowerment approach, as a
postcolonial alternative to the authoritative, paternalistic and condescending
view of the flower traders as uncontrollable, barbaric subjects. Therefore, in
Figure 4.12, law enforcement officers are located at the top of this hierarchy,
demonstrating their high level of control and power. Coloniality is embedded in
the governments controlling measures and their non-proactive attitudes towards
the present and future of the flower industry.

This chapter also demonstrates the paradoxical relation of the flower

farmers and flower importers. Historically, flower farmers carried their farm
produce to Boundary Street for sale. The flower market was created by flower
farmers, and they have a long history in that area. However, as discussed in
Section 4.6, because of the changes in the industry, flower importers increased
and they rented shops on Flower Market Road. At this time, flower importers
differentiated their position from farmers by stressing that they paid rent or
owned shops, whilst the farmers only did business informally on the road. Law
enforcement officers intervened to halt all illegal trade. Enforcement officers
played a role in intensifying the hierarchical difference between flower farmers
and flower importers. The government officers pushed flower farmers away from
the flower market, which made farmers the big loser in this power dynamic. As
illustrated in Figure 4.12, flower farmers are at the bottom of this power relation.
Flower farmers still return to the flower market before CNY, but they are at a
lower hierarchy of the structure, because they do not have legitimate rights to use
the space. The government allowed the farmers to use the Mong Kok Stadium
temporarily for trading before CNY, but the renovation of this place rendered it
259

undesirable as a market venue for local farmers. From the case study of the
proposed relocation of flower farmers to Jade Market, we saw that the
government did not understand the needs of the farmers nor do they have any
idea about economies of industrial clustering. Flower farmers remain at the
bottom of this power relation. In contrast, flower traders on Flower Market Road
are mainly comprised of importers; yet in their attempt to extend their shop
fronts, they also entered into conflict with FEHD officers. The tension between
flower traders and law enforcement officers demonstrates the controlling
mentality of the government, and the lack of a long term vision to help the local
industry grow. This controlling mentality in daily practices embeds colonial
assumptions detrimental to the survival of local street culture. To conclude, this
chapter develops the case that the government should create a prosperous flower
market by respecting local business culture, whilst the mentality of regulating
space continues to hinder the development of a good cultural environment.

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CHAPTER 5
EMBEDDED COLONIALITY IN
THE FLOWER MAREKT:
THE CASE OF HERITAGE PRESERVATION
AND REVITALISATION
Is the new plan just for the purposes of flower selling? Why should the URA decide
the local characteristics of this district?
(A forum participant of URAs Mong Kok Flower Market preservation project)

5.1

Chapter Introduction
Due to keen global competition, cities increasingly value their local culture

as a source of competitive advantage in city branding practices. Many cities,

including Hong Kong, are currently facing an intense interest in cultural heritage.
Heritage conservation 79 is seemingly irreconcilable with development or
modernisation. At the same time, world-wide agencies, such as United Nations
Educational and Scientific Organisation 80 (UNESCO) and the World Bank 81 are

79

Heritage preservation or conservation is very a common way to maintain local cultural

characteristics. It is worthwhile to differentiate the terms conservation and preservation to
clarify different concepts and the underlying understanding of governments work. According to
the Burra Charter, conservation refers to all the processes of looking after a place so as to
retain its value or cultural significance, whereas preservation applies to a situation where a
place is kept in its existing state with a minimum level of interference except to prevent or retard
deterioration (Australia ICOMOS).
80
UNESCOs mission is to contribute to the building of peace, the eradication of poverty,
sustainable development and intercultural dialogue through education, the sciences, culture,
communication and information.
http://www.unesco.org/new/en/unesco/about-us/who-we-are/introducing-unesco/
81
For example, Michael M. Cernea, a Research Professor of Anthropology at George
Washington University and former World Bank senior director for Social Policy and Sociology,
argues that the World Bank as an international development agency has paid more attention to
261

actively involved in the promotion and retention of cultural heritage within the
region. Heritage preservation could be a way to improve economic performance
and to embrace local culture. The government commissioned the URA to
conduct a preservation-cum-revitalisation project in the Mong Kok Flower
Market. However, the major problem mentioned by residents, florists and
passers-by remains unsolved: heritage preservation and revitalisation conducted
by the government over-emphasises the architectural value of buildings, and
neglects to pay enough attention to local people, their culture and way of life.
Evidence shows that coloniality is embedded in this process because planning
decisions are made from the top down, relying on assumptions and values long
held by the colonial government. Limited consultation was held with the local
residents. My research found that the Planning Department, the executive arm of
the TPB, twisted the district councillors negative comments about the URA plan
in the TPBs report in order to facilitate the process of heritage preservation. This
chapter mainly argues that the traditional consultation procedure on planning for
the area did not give enough voice to businessmen and residents being affected
by the governments plan. Embedded coloniality is hidden in the structure of this
heritage preservation-cum-revitalisation process. I want to argue that what is
necessary in this situation is to respect peoples voices and to empower them to
do the planning in a participatory manner, which is part of the overall process of
decolonisation and democratisation.

social development and the value of culture in its policies and projects. He argues that every
stage in the World Banks project cycle engages a different set of socio-cultural variables and
issues that must be addressed, there are values, attitudes and expectations to be known and taken
into account. And that at every such stage of the project cycle, a good social specialists would
have specific, and distinct, functional tasks to perform (Cernea 8). He argues for providing
financial investment support to the cultural sector itself and at integrating it with economys
mainstream sectors, particularly financial support for better management of a countrys cultural
endowments and physical cultural patrimony (ibid 16).
262

At the same time, the manipulation of culture, and the simplification of

local culture by mainstream discourse of neoliberal developmentalism goes
against what culture should be in accordance with the UNESCO definition,
which refers to the whole complex of distinctive, spiritual, material, intellectual
and emotional features that characterise a society or social group. It includes not
only the arts and letters, but also modes of life, the fundamental rights of the
human being, value systems, traditions and beliefs (United Nation Educational,
Scientific and Conservation Organisation). This comprehensive redefinition of
culture is a product of post-World War Two democratisation processes, when
anti-colonial movements transform ex-colonies into new nations leading to the
rethinking of what culture is for the ex-colonisers and ex-colonised, the rise of
civil rights movements that question dominant ideologies, the democratisation of
education through open universities etcetera, together, brought about the
inclusion of the culture of everyday life as part of the understanding of culture
(Williams b 3). Ironically, unlike this recent democratisation of the concept of
culture, the present transformation of culture in the age of neoliberal
development in Hong Kong goes interestingly in the opposite direction:
following the trajectory of the Chinese definition of cultivation as being
real-estate focused, we now see a transformation of culture into what Alice Poon
has described as a collusion between government and the property cartel (Poon
14). While the governments gesture of preserving cultural heritage enhances
capital flow, it rarely considers preserving the culture of ordinary people, and to
provide a chance for others to rediscover the diversified values of everyday life
culture. In contrast, the government preserves architectural heritage in the name
of a culture of enhanced capital flow.

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5.2

Heritage from Below

Allowing and supporting the agency of local people to offer their own

history a chance is the latest trend in heritage studies. In other words, buildings
of ordinary people should be treasured for their social value. David C. Harvey
argues that the history of heritage tends to inevitably focus upon the larger
identity politics of heritage control at an official level. However, Harvey reminds
us that we should not neglect the importance of personal and local heritage, or
what he called small heritage 82 (Harvey 20). This means that heritage
preservation is not just about grand narratives, and that buildings of ordinary
people have their own value and should be preserved. Heritage preservation
could therefore be treated as a chance to review how different stakeholders
interpret heritage differently. According to Holtorf cited in Harvey, Holtorf (ibid
20) argues that heritage is often a vehicle, rather than merely a site, where
cultural memory and various phenomena of cultural history reside. Cultural
memory comprises the collective understanding of the past as they are held by a
people in any given social and historical context (ibid 21). Ideas of cultural
memory are, therefore, laden with politics and power relationships as statements
about the past become meaningful through becoming embedded within the
cultural and material context of a particular time. Harvey further argues that the
sense of purpose with which people remember the past serves to underline the
importance of understanding how people situate themselves with respect to the
future. In this respect, heritage may be understood in terms of a prospective
memory, as tokens that represent a desired future. Heritage provides a sense of
82

Although some judgments might be associated with the terminology small heritage, small
in this case refers to heritage of ordinary people and is opposed to big heritage, that is, the
heritage of the elites; but it does not mean it is insignificant. The value of personal and local
heritage also tells the history of the building, the class of the people, the place and the cultural
memory that will be discussed in the next paragraph.
264

purpose, and this purpose changes over time. Harvey further argues that the
history of heritage is a history of the present, or a historical narrative of endless
succession of presents, in which the heritage can have no terminal point. The
recognition of heritage as malleable, present-centred and future-oriented appears
to be the central issue in Harveys project. Harvey attempts to sketch a historical
narrative of how the heritage process has been deployed, articulated and
consumed through time 83. He quotes from Holtorf:

all archaeologists theory for understanding megalithic monuments can be

read as theories about different prospective memories prospective
memories for the future that draw upon a reservoir of symbolic capital (or
heritage) from the past (ibid 23).

In other words, different archaeologists view heritage differently according

to the values of their particular period of time, yet most of the heritage preserved
belonged to the elites. Cultural memory is important in shaping the intangible
value of a place. Harvey further argues that despite George Orwells 84 statement
that history is produced by the winners in society in order to support their moral,
political and economic authority, heritage conservation or preservation today
often appears to be led by the losers in society. It appears that greater cogency
and value has been given to the heritage of those who have been deprived of
agency, who are the downtrodden, the exploited and the defeated. It implies that
83

Harvey uses an example of Avebury in England to explain the important transitions in how
official heritage is carried out, from obsession over site, or over art factual integrity, to viewing
emotion and embodied practice as legitimate and valuable vehicles through which the history
cultures is practiced. At the same time, developments and control of technology went hand in
hand with developments over how heritage was produced and consumed. Harvey describes that
there were great changes in the politics of production and consumption, engaging with questions
of access to the means to promote, display and enjoy heritage.
84
George Orwell (1903-1950) is an English novelist and journalist.
265

the agency of ordinary people is being treasured. As a result, people start to

celebrate small heritage, where resistance to the official order is necessary.
Harvey argues that heritage is used in

the promotion of a consensus version of history by state-sanctioned cultural

institutions and elites to regulate cultural and social tensions in the present.
On the other hand, heritage may also be a resource that is used to challenge
and redefine received values and identities by a range of subaltern groups
(ibid 33).

In other words, heritage is a cultural resource that allows us to revisit and

redefine our existing values and identities. Harveys usage of the subaltern
group refers to underprivileged people, associated with Spivaks concept of the
subaltern. In this light, preservation of small heritage means that the
government recognises quotidian culture and value the importance of everyday
life.

Tong Lau () is Hong Kongs version of heritage from below. Tong

Lau could be called a tenement house, a shophouse or a verandah-type
shophouse. As described by Lee Ho Yin, a heritage conservation specialist
practicing in Hong Kong,

Tong Lau belongs to the generic urban shophouse typology found in

predominantly Chinese cities in Southern China and Southeast Asia, such as
Hong Kong, Guangzhou, Macao, Singapore and Penang. It is a typology
that has infused with material, construction and living traditions of Southern
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Chinese in 19th-century urban centres, particularly towns and cities in

Guangdong and Fujian provinces. The prototype of this typology is the 19th
century urban shophouse of Southern China. Tong Lau in Hong Kong
has been referred to as tenement house. (It is) in response to the
critical shortage of living quarters to accommodate the rising population.
Such a situation became more severe from the 1930s to the 1960s, when
mass influx of refugees escaping from war and political turmoil in mainland
China arrived in Hong Kong. The introduction of a public housing policy
and the construction of large-scale public housing estates that began in the
1950s eventually alleviated the tenement housing problem in Tong Lau to a
large degree (Lee Ho Yin 1).

Tong Lau consists of a row of four attached house units, each of which
consists of a shop on the ground floor and residential quarters on upper floors.
The characteristic form of the shophouse reflects a number of influencing factors:
from exposure to Western architectural aesthetics in a British colony, to local
building regulations, high land and property prices, and an ever-increasing
population. All these factors contribute to the characteristics of the narrow width
of the shophouse, typically of 13-16 feet, employing a Chinese-style column for
the floor and roof beams (University of Hong Kong, Department of Architecture
3). According to Hong Kongs Building Regulations, a building that is used for
tenement housing refers to any building in the domestic part of which any living
room is intended or adapted for the use of more than one tenant or sub-tenant. In
this regulation, living room means any room intended or adapted as a place for

267

cooking or sleeping 85 . The occurrence of small heritage refers to the

celebration of diversity and the multi-cultural qualities of a place. Some Tong
Lau buildings in the vicinity of the flower market are preserved by the URA and
will be illustrated shortly after the discussion on culture and heritage.

5.3

Culture and Heritage

Culture and heritage are highly interlinked, and when preserving a heritage,

its culture and social context should also be preserved. A government could
embrace local culture in a well-designed heritage preservation project. Ron Van
Oers, Programme Specialist for Culture for UNESCO in the World Heritage
Centre, provides another angle on preserving urban historical landscape. He
argues that in the case of threats to the values and integrity of historic urban
landscapes, and as opposed to uncontrolled urban development or large-scale
planned development, a clear emphasis on targeted urban regeneration projects
that use the projects locations in or around the heritage site to attract attention,
investment and visitors might create negative effects. He has argued that there is
nothing wrong with this situation, as long as the sites are not jeopardised or
destroyed in the process of urban regeneration (van Oers 44). Nonetheless, in the
example of Hong Kongs urban regeneration, the flow of tourists and
investments on a scale and nature inappropriate to the context, ironically in the
name of preservation, intensifies the destruction of the urban fabric and social
life of the local people.

Van Oers argues that heritage preservation allows people to revisit the
85

This definition is written in Hong Kong Law Chapter 123F Building (Planning) Regulations,
Section 46 called Tenement House.
268

importance of the city. In this sense, it is the community and lifestyle that should
be studied and revisited. It ought to be a way to recognise the value of the whole
community first, before thinking of what can be preserved. Also, conservationists
should think of how the local community could adapt to the intervention of
heritage preservation (Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Development
Bureau b). In this sense, Van Oers urges people to revisit local culture first,
before thinking of what to be preserved and how. However, how to involve the
community and to incorporate local knowledge into the plan is the key issue for
a holistic approach to heritage preservation. I argue that heritage preservation
should not only stand at the management level, but that we must think further of
how consensus could be reached among different parties in the community. In
Section 5.9, I will challenge the validity of the public consultation in the heritage
preservation process in the flower market, and examine how the government
might not be able to fully address the needs of ordinary people. At the same time,
the traditional role of consultation by the DC has loopholes because, as shown in
the flower market preservation project, the district councillors opinion was
distorted during the discussion process. The role of public consultation through
the DC is questionable. In this light, a limited role for public consultation
contributes to the destruction of the culture of the place to a certain degree
because there is limited public voices and contribution, not to mention the lack
of community consensus (More discussion will be held in Section 5.9.2). The
conservation and development procedures seem to be very sophisticated, but
they could not incorporate the voices of ordinary people. More investigation is
conducted in the following sections on heritage preservation in the flower
market.

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Celebrating vernacular culture could be a way to embrace local identity and

to improve the living conditions of local people through a creative re-use of the
heritage buildings. Chang and Teo argue that

[t]he vernacular is important as it speaks of the socioeconomic history of a

city, provides the requisite urban colour and charm and, as we have seen in
Singapore, an outlet for the creative expression of local identity. However,
the vernacular is a dynamic concept, evolving over time and across space,
and possessing different meanings across different social groups We
have argued that heritages and traditions are inherently unstable and are
always creatively reworked, reused and contested in multiple ways. The
process of creative destruction is inevitable in creative cities. Landscape
and land uses will always give way to new ones, or be transformed in
different and surprising manners to cater to emerging needs, lifestyles and
people ... Amidst this turbulence, we must keep in mind a number of
questions if we are to treasure quality of life and liveability, instead of
only focusing on quality of place and aesthetics. For example, questions
like: who is allowed access into the new spaces of creativity shaped by and
for members of the creative class? How do tourists and local people benefit
equitably from the development of creative urban quarters? And how are
local customs, traditions and communities adapted in the evolving city, and
for whom? It is these questions that must inform planners, researchers and
commentators if we are to create and develop cities that are inclusionary
and democratic (Chang, and Teo 363-364).

Chang and Teos understanding on vernacular heritage admits that there is a

270

process of creative destruction in changing heritage landscapes and adapting it

to contemporary use. However, Chang and Teo assert that heritage and
development do not counter each other, but are in a complementary relationship.
It should improve peoples lives through a more inclusive and democratic
manner, because preservation of a vernacular building directly affects ordinary
peoples culture. Good heritage preservation practices should embrace local
culture and become a platform for the celebration of diverse local cultural
identities.

5.4

Polemical

Relations

of

Development

and

Conservation in Hong Kong

Developmentalism in Hong Kong is so extreme that even a seemingly
unpolitical terrain, such as flower cultivation and heritage preservation of
Chinese buildings, becomes a favourable condition for local land developers to
expand their business interests, but at the cost of suppressing local culture and
socio-economic needs of ordinary people. In the context of Hong Kong,
development and conservation have a polemical relationship. Donald Tsang Yam
Kuen, the Chief Executive (CE) of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region
between 2005 and 2012, offers an official version of this paradoxical relationship
between development and conservation. Tsang argues:

Hong Kong never stands still. We invest heavily in infrastructure to

modernise our city, improve the living environment, to maintain our global
competitiveness and most important, to create jobs. But, there comes a time
during the course of a citys development and evolution when we need to
271

stop and ask: Have we gone too far? Have we done too much? Have
we lost some part of the soul of our city? A progressive city treasures its
own culture and history along with its unique character and living
experience. In recent years there have been higher public expectations on
the Government to preserve our built heritage. This has made us think hard
about how we can best balance the development needs of a modern
metropolis such as Hong Kong with the demands - and need - to conserve
our heritage Hong Kong is a dynamic city, and it has always been my
view that historic buildings here should not be just preserved as if they were
antiquities or a museum exhibit. We believe they should be given a new
lease of life which will benefit the public. In 2008 we launched the
Revitalising Historic Buildings Through Partnership Scheme. This allows
non-profit-making organisations to submit proposals for the adaptive re-use
of Government-owned historic buildings in the mode of social enterprise,
and to transform these historic buildings into unique cultural landmarks
(Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Information Services
Department h).

Tsangs view of development and conservation implies the assumption that

the government treasures economic development and job creation. Even for
heritage preservation, architectural preservation is emphasised. Engaging with
the history of a place and the life of ordinary people is not a focus for the
government. Even in heritage conservation, the economic value of using heritage
buildings to operate in a viable way according to the market is the main concern
for preservation from the governments perspective. As demonstrated in Section
5.11.2, I will explain how the government provides economic incentive to land
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developers to help in heritage preservation in the name of encouraging the

society to have financial viable heritage preservation. In contrast to Hong Kongs
operational logic of developmentalism, according to Some Notes on the
Preservation of Cultural Heritage in a Globalised World prepared by UNESCO,
society must accept the fact that not everything is excavatable, accessible or
marketable, and that the non-consumable dimensions of a historic site are to be
respected. In this way, preservation also means limitation. Cultural heritage has a
right to be protected from the superficially-levelling clutches of the tourism
industry, and to be protected from a sight-seeing culture. Also, a forced
restoration approach invariably means a loss of substance and damage. It is
important to re-emphasise here the fundamental principle of the Charter of
Venice, which stresses the point that preservation of cultural heritage is of
primarily importance and requires continuous care. Practice-oriented strategies
for monitoring, maintaining and sustaining care do not yet exist and constitute
one of the most important tasks for the future (Bacher 9). The contrasting
understanding of development and heritage conservation implies the government
pays little attention to the culture of local places and ordinary people, but instead
focuses on economic development which neglects the need for a decolonising
process in society. Rather, it operates according to the logic of the British
colonisers who sought to develop the society continuously in terms of economic
progress. My research challenges this operational logic restricted to the
economic viability of heritage buildings by providing a detailed analysis of the
Mong Kok Flower Market. As demonstrated in Chapter 2, the flower market is a
culturally rich site that many local people rely on, in contrast to the official
heritage preservation plan with its notion of architectural heritage preservation
that over-simplifies the culture of the place. As a result, renovating means
273

beautifying the area and increasing the value of property, and thus making it
harder for businesses to operate in the market.

5.5

The Conservation Arguments for Flower Trading

Heritage
As described in the above paragraph, culture and heritage are highly

interlinked. Therefore, when the government preserves Tong Lau buildings in the
Mong Kok Flower Market, the government should also preserve its culture and
social context, and treat the preservation project as a chance to enhance the
physical and business environment of all people living and working in the area.
Therefore, the next section will identify the reasons supporting the conservation
of flower trading heritage along with the flower market, and it aims to contrast
the governments current practice of heritage preservation.

1.

Long History of Flower Trading

As explained in Chapter 2, flower trading has a long history in this area of

Hong Kong. Because of the organic formation of the market involving primarily
working class people, no official record could be found about the establishment
of the market. Nevertheless, various sources indicate that the flower market has
been established in the 1890s 86. The original Mong Kok Flower Market was
located at Boundary Street, on the boundary between Kowloon peninsula and the
NT before 1898. The market had moved several times because of squatter fire
(Section 2.9.2), first to an area outside of Fa Hui Park (Section 2.9.3), then into
the Fa Hui Park volleyball court (Section 2.9.4), and then to the Flower Market
86

The sources that indicate that the market has been established in the 1890s include: Ng Ho 76;
Leung To 50; Yi 179 as described in Section 2.7.
274

Road location at present (Section 2.9.5). As can be seen by choice of locations

around the Boundary Street area, situating at the market in Mong Kok is of the
utmost importance. The place demarcates the development of flower growing
and the flower industry as an intact, vibrant and organic industrial cluster.

2.

The Flower Market as a Cultural Resource

The Mong Kok Flower Market supports many local businesses that embrace

quotidian activities. Not only imported flower wholesalers are located in the
market, but other related flower vendors, such as stores selling accessories and
bouquets, wrapping papers, vases, glasses and plastic flowers are located on the
ground floor. The flower market is full of people who are buying flowers or who
want to just wander around and enjoy the beauty of flowers. At the same time,
flower arrangement schools have been set up in the vicinity of the flower market,
which embrace a range of cultural activities. Stores that are related to the flower
industry, such as selling organic farm produce, are located on second floors of
the commercial buildings in the market. Upper floors might also rent space for
storage purposes. Therefore, the flower market is a place that embraces many
cultural activities and small businesses.

3.

Flower Market is a Distinctive Landmark and a Source of Local

Identity
The flower market is a distinctive landmark that is often visited by political

figures, such as Bill Clinton, the former U.S. president, and Leung Chun Ying,
the candidate in the 2012 CE election and the winner of the election, went to the
market to buy flowers as a way to share local culture of ordinary Hong Kong
people (Button; Politics). Clinton also attempted to enjoy local culture and to
275

make a friendly gesture, as he greeted residents along the way (Button).

Politicians visits imply that the flower market is a distinctive landmark showing
how the place is full of local qualities. At the same time, some parts of the flower
market are located in Tong Lau buildings. In fact, the longest remaining row of
Tong Lau in Hong Kong is in the market. The preservation of these special
buildings allows future generations to understand how people lived in the past.

4.

Tong Lau as a Mixture of Residential and Cultural Industries Usage

Tong Lau, or Chinese shophouses, generally comprises a grassroot space.

Therefore this kind of building has been conducive to the organic growth of
grassroots communities and ways of life. The unique cultural value and artistic
importance of Tong Lau can be seen in the way the film industry has set so many
film about Hong Kong in these buildings 87. The Tong Lau form has made a
valuable contribution to the success of the film industry in Hong Kong since the
mid-1950s. Some film production offices remain in the vicinity until now. Woo
Yu Sen (know as John Woo for English speaking audiences) 88 and Chan Gor
(know as Fruit Chan for English speaking audiences) 89 set up their offices in the
URAs planned area for heritage preservation (Town Planning Board b 90). At the
same time, the flower market is not restricted to flower trading only. Many

87

Many of which are either award-winning films (such as the Hong Kong Film Awards) or
box-office successes in Hong Kong, Asia and even North America. For instance, Cinema City
Enterprises Ltd, a film studio jointly managed by Mak Kar, Shek Dean and Wong Bak Ming, was
one of the leading production houses in the 1980s, and produced films such as A Better
Tomorrow. Cinema City ceased production in the early 1990s, but it remains historically as one
of the most influential film studios in Hong Kong.
88
John Wu Yu Sen is a Hong Kong-based film director and producer. His direction in A Better
Tomorrow earned him the Best Picture of Hong Kong Film Award in 1986.
89
Fruit Chan Gor is an independent Second Wave screenwriter, filmmaker and producer based in
Hong Kong. He is an award-winning director, honoured by the Hong Kong Film Awards and the
Golden Horse Awards.
90
Transcription of 946th Meeting of the TPB held on 30/10/2009. The meeting was conducted in
Cantonese. I did the translation of relevant transcription. The whole audio tape could be found in
TPBs webpage (Town Planning Board b).
276

residential buildings are in the vicinity of the flower market. As a result of this
dynamic mixture, the district can be seen as offering an incredible diversity.
However, some residents complain about street obstruction and unhygienic
conditions caused by the florists daily operations. However, are not these
problems a matter of flower trading itself, or the governments inability to
facilitate a dedicated wholesale market as described in Chapter 4? How can
heritage preservation alone resolve the struggles between the flower industry and
residents?

To summarise, heritage conservation should engage with the history and

culture of a place and aim to preserve and value local characteristics through
understanding how and why people use the space. It is a way to recognise the
agency and subjectivity of the local people. In this sense, improvement of the
area should begin with addressing the social relations and transformations.
Preservation strategies should involve a comprehensive planning for the future of
the flower market. Both physical landscape and social context should be
preserved because the vitality of the place lies not only in the remarkable
architecture, but also in the inimitable sociality of the place. The following
section further explores the official version of preservation practices as to
understand the governmentality of heritage preservation.

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5.6

Heritage Conservation and Urban Development

by the Urban Renewal Authority
Heritage conservation in Hong Kong was originally directed by the AAB

and the Antiquities and Monuments Office (AMO) 91. However, as early as 1999,
the first CE Tung Chee Hwa announced in his policy address the importance of
heritage preservation:

It is important to rehabilitate and preserve unique buildings as this not only

accords with our objective of sustainable development, but also facilitates
the retention of the inherent characteristics of different districts, and helps
promote tourism. The concept of preserving heritage should be incorporated
into all projects for redeveloping old areas (Hong Kong Special
Administrative Region, Chief Executive a para 133).

In other words, by 1999 the government was encouraging heritage

preservation as another form of urban renewal and embracing local
characteristics in order to develop tourist attractions. The cultural value of
heritage and how the government should design sites is absent from such policy
addresses. After that, no further official discussion of heritage preservation on
the architecture of ordinary people appears until 2003, when the Culture and
Heritage Commission issued a Policy Recommendation Report. The report

91

The AAB is a statutory body set up under the Antiquities and Monuments Ordinance in 1976
to advise the Antiquities Authority on the matters relating to antiquities and monuments. Under
the Antiquities and Monuments Ordinance (Cap 53), the [Antiquities] Authority may, after
consultation with the AAB and with the approval of the CE, declare any place, building, site or
structure, which the [Antiquities] Authority considers to be of public interest by reason of its
historical, archaeological or paleontological site or structure (Antiquities and Monuments
Ordinance (Cap. 53), Section 3(1)).
278

argues that heritage should be an important consideration in urban planning, and

it recommends that government departments and the URA should consider how
to preserve the cultural landscape in both planning of new towns and the
redevelopment of urban areas. After several heritage preservation movements in
Hong Kong, including Lee Tung Street Social Movement between 2003 and
2007 92, Star Ferry Pier Social Movement in 2006 93 and Queens Pier Social
Movement in 2007 94 , the series of struggles demonstrate that the society
generally launches a resistance identity in opposition to government imposed
heritage developments, following the awareness of local cultural identity politics
popularized by the listed social movements. Some people commented that those
development projects were bulldoser-form slash and burn developments, giving
up the local culture in exchange for economic development. As a result, there
was sentiment and resistance towards the governments decision making process
that usually lacks local participation. In this light, those previous movements are
92

The Lee Tung Street social movement occurred between 2003 and 2007. Lee Tung Street in
Wan Chai is also named Wedding Card Street. The original government plan was to demolish
the old buildings and to build three high-rise residential towers with four-storey podiums
reserved for shops and underground car park. Some residents and businessmen protested against
the governments bulldoser planning and challenged the government against demolishing the
buildings without submitting the required documents justifying its redevelopment proposals. The
H15 Concern Group (a group of people who concerns for the development of Wan Chai, some of
them living, working or doing business in Lee Tung Street) and a group of professionals
submitted an alternative plan for Lee Tung Street to the government. The Hong Kong Institute of
Planners has awarded a silver medal for the alternative plan but the government turned it down,
and demolished the buildings in 2007 (Chan Felix City 4).
93
Star Ferry Pier social movement occurred in 2006. The Star Ferry Pier in Central District was
demolished as the government carried out the Central District Reclamation Phase III as a
provision of land for transport infrastructures, such as the Central-Wan Chai Bypass and P2 Road
network, the Airport Railway Extended Overrun Tunnel and the North Hong Kong Island Line.
On 11 November, 2006, thousands of people gathered around at the Star Ferry Pier in Central
District, some of them were taking photos and some were treasuring their final opportunity to
collectively remember the pier. A few days later, on 19 November 2006, groups of protesters
concerned over the dismantlement of the Star Ferry Pier sat quietly outside the closed pier
showing their dissatisfaction. Their actions escalated in December 2006 with a series of protests.
Some people even barged into the closed pier and occupied it in order to restrict or delay the
schedule to demolish the pier. Although people began to realise the importance of the cultural
heritage, the pier was finally dismantled in 15 December 2006 (Tang 1).
94
Queens Pier social movement occurred in 2007. The Queens Pier in Central was demolished
because the government carried out the Central Reclamation Phase III. Some activists attempted
to save the Queens Pier and filed for a judicial review on 7 August 2007, but the court dismissed
the request. The Queens Pier was completely demolished in February 2008 (ibid).
279

a kind of resistance to the dominant hegemonic policy-making process. The

lack of public engagement and participation in different social processes led to
the generation of resistance identity (Fung 50). At the same time, as Fung Wing
Hang, an urban planning student, argues, the series of social movements allow
more citizens in Hong Kong to raise concern about peoples livelihood, cultural
and social activities in Hong Kong, which is not limited to family or personal
interests. Hong Kong people try to safeguard what is important to them. For
instance, the Star Ferry Pier and Queens Pier instances in 2006, protestors
requested to preserve the Piers and respect the history and culture of Hong Kong
(K.-F. Chan, 2007, ibid). Besides, past demolitions of historical landmarks
including the Lee Theatre, the former General Post Office, the old Hong Kong
Club and Repulse Bay Hotel and the former Kowloon-Canton Railway Station
have provided a growing community awareness of the cost of losing the past,
and a growing desire to strengthen Hong Kongs unique character and identity.
The growing resistance identity is an opposition to the dominant hegemonic
governance and the seeking of new projected identity due to the change in
political structure (ibid).

Fungs understanding suggests that Hong Kong people is going through a

cultural turn against what used to be mainstream Hong Kongs well-accepted
logic of economic development at all cost. More people request that the
government respect Hong Kongs history and culture as a way to strengthen their
own identity. This awareness causes people to reflect and question themselves
and the government on whether the usual, destructive colonial pattern of
development should continue in the postcolonial era. Kwan Chun Wing, a
geography student, coined the Star Ferry Pier and Queens Pier social movement
280

campaigns as the Two Pier Incident, and argues that the incident helped to
change peoples values on heritage preservation. Kwan argues,

[t]he Hong Kong Government adheres to a pro-development mentality and

regards conservation as anti-development. It has long held a presumption
that development is necessarily a good thing; and priority is always given to
it (Kwan 4) Nowadays, many of the locally-born residents do not value
development as much as their government does. They have now placed a
greater importance on their quality of life, focusing more on the citys
history, culture, heritage and environment, than Central District values
( 95) and material gains. They are willing to give way to
practical needs for heritage preservation The residents are now more
actively participating in issues pertaining to environment and heritage, as
manifested in the campaign to protect the citys two important pieces of
heritage (Kwan 5).

Kwan also argues that the Two Pier Incident embraces the rising
aspirations for democracy and a social inclusive participation in policy. He
explains,

[t]he post-colonial Hong Kong Government continues to rely on the

advisory and statutory bodies in collecting and reflecting public opinions. It
still limits the participation of the general public in decision-making
processes. With a growing sense of communal spirit and local
95

Central District values refers to the emphasis on development, efficiency and economic
values which are prevailing in Hong Kong. This terminology was coined by Lung Ying Tai in
2006 (Lung 21-22).
281

consciousness, the general public are more enthusiastic about participating

in governments decision-making and want a real participatory democracy.
Many rising middle class people and youngsters demand a wider scope of
democracy not only in election but also in planning and decision-making
process. They want their views be directly articulated to the government
They were in demand of planning with people and a greater degree of
participation in the planning process of government policies. By
empowering themselves to plan their community, the rising middle class
and young generation envision that the city environment could be greatly
improved (ibid 5-7).

The communitys awareness of heritage preservation and local identity alert

the government about the change of values on heritage preservation. On 25
September 2007, the CE made a policy statement as a response to the changing
views of the public on heritage preservation. Tsang Yam Kuen Donald, CE of
Hong Kong Special Administrative Region said

[to] protect, conserve and revitalise as appropriate historical and heritage

sites and buildings through relevant and sustainable approaches for the
benefit and enjoyment of present and future generations. In implementing
this policy, due regard should be given to development needs in the public
interest, respects for private property rights, budgetary considerations,
cross-sector collaboration and active engagement of stakeholders and the
general public (Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Legislative
Council g 1).

282

The government has decided for the time being to develop a general policy
direction rather than pursue a legislative route to enhance heritage conservation.
The government promised to implement a range of initiatives on heritage
conservation (ibid 1-2). In the 2007 Policy Address, the government invited
URA to extend its conservation work to cover pre-war shophouses 96. The Urban
Renewal Authority Ordinance (URAO) empowers the URA to acquire or hold
land for development and to alter, construct, demolish, maintain, repair,
preserve or restore the building, premises or structure 97. The CE says,

[i]n my view, revitalisation, rather than preservation alone, should be

pursued to maximise the economic and social benefits of historic buildings.
This is in line with the concept of sustainable conservation. The URA has
done a great deal to preserve and revitalise historic buildings. I call on the
URA to extend the scope of historic building protection to cover pre-war
buildings. In so doing, it is necessary for the URA to consider not just
preservation but also ways of revitalisation (Hong Kong Special
Administrative Region, Chief Executive b para 51-52).

CEs policy direction, and the empowerment of the URA to implement

heritage preservation projects, implies a direct response to the series
people-driven preservation campaigns demanding the preservation of local
identity. Therefore, an examination of the URAs heritage preservation projects
requires an understanding of how the government responds to peoples request
for preserving local culture. It underlies the importance of investigating the

96
97

Pre-war shophouses refer to Tong Lau.

Section 29 and 6(1)(e), URAO (Cap. 563).
283

heritage preservation project in the Mong Kong Flower Market conducted by

URA since 2008.

At the same time, the CEs speech implies that economic viability in
heritage preservation is the governments major, if not only concern. Therefore,
regardless of what kind of heritage is preserved, heritage financial
self-sustainability is important. However, I want to argue that too much emphasis
on economic viability would limit the local characteristics of the preserved
heritage, and would also limit the future use of heritage leading to cultural
homogenisation. Lyndel V. Prott 98 argues that uncontrolled development can lead
to intense homogenisation, such as the tourist infrastructures of international
hotel chains, fast food and fashion chains and tourist agencies, which would
decrease the uniqueness of each heritage experience whilst increasing sameness
(Prott 7). Globalisation has considerable potential for benefit, as increased tourist
numbers can generate increased income for the heritage sites concerned, and
indirectly through raising the economic base of the surrounding community.
However, a sound management plan should be made in order to protect the
heritage against the negative effects of tourism and ensures that the funds it
generates go directly to the protection of the heritage concerned. Protts findings
suggest that tourist and other high-end consumer culture could make use of
heritage to create revenue, but the heritage management team should formulate a
plan in order to avoid destroying the original culture and avoid irreversible
effects. This understanding is important for us to judge whether the URAs
proposal for the flower market is sustainable in all aspects, including the

98

Lyndel V. Prott is the Chief International Standards Division, Cultural Heritage Division of the
UNESCO.
284

economic, social, and historical.

5.7

The

Urban

Renewal

Authority

Heritage

Preservation Project for a Cultural-led Flower

Market
After receiving the CEs order for preserving local heritage in 2007, the
URA commissioned a consultancy study on 56 pre-war shophouses within or
near the area. The study identified ten shophouses along Prince Edward Road
West as having Outstanding Heritage Value 99 (the highest category according
to the shophouses under the consultancy study) and the buildings were classified
as Grade 2 historical buildings by the AAB 100 in 2009. The government intends
to carry out two projects in the Mong Kok Flower Market the heritage
preservation project and the revitalisation project.

The URA decided to implement Prince Edward Road West/Yuen Ngai Street
preservation and revitalisation project (MK/02) by way of a development
scheme 101 in accordance with section 25 of the URA Ordinance. URA proposed
99

The URA had commissioned a consultant team, on the advice of Tiong Kian Boon, an
experienced Malaysian conservation architect. The study looked into the need and feasibility of
preserving the shophouses. The study was supervised by a Steering Committee chaired by
Professor David Lung. The study categorises the shophouses into four levels, taking into
consideration their historical value, architectural merit, as well as cultural significance (Urban
Renewal Authority a).
100
For a Grade 2 building AMO views that the buildings should be preserved in such a way
which is commensurate with the merits of the buildings concerned. Demolition works or building
works such as alternation/renovation works which may affect the heritage value of the building
are not encouraged. Other definitions of the Gradings of Historical Buildings include Grade 1,
which refers to buildings of outstanding merit in which every effort should be made to preserve
if possible. Grade 3 means buildings of some merit in which preservation in some form would
be desirable and alternative means could be considered if preservation is not practicable Website of Antiquities and Monument Office (Hong Kong Special Administrative Region,
Leisure and Cultural Services Department, Antiquities and Monuments Office b).
101
The development scheme means that the URA has the right to decide what portion of the land
is owned or leased by the URA, and about the acquisition of any land not owned or leased. It also
285

a culture-led preservation project aiming at preserving and revitalising ten

pre-war verandah-type shophouses of significant heritage value located at
Prince Edward Road West 102 (Figure 5.1 and 5.2).

Figure 5.1.

Buildings (Modern Flat) along Prince Edward Road just before

Yuen Ngai Street in early 1930s (Source: HKRS 03-06-167)

contains an assessment by the URA, and how it is likely in effect of the implementation of the
development scheme, including the how the existing residents are displaced, and how the future
residents could be accommodated.
102
These 10 shophouses were part of a single development which originally covered Nos.
190-220A Prince Edward Road West. After the Second World War, the buildings were sold over
time to different owners and the shophouses at Nos. 206-208 and Nos. 214-220A were
demolished and redeveloped to three 15-storey residential blocks as currently witnessed on the
site. The remaining 10 shophouses at Nos. 190-204 and 210-212 Prince Edward Road West,
which are the subject of the Development Scheme, form a unique cluster with a uniform faade
of one building typology along Prince Edward Road West and is the largest cluster of this type of
shophouses in the urban area.
286

Figure 5.2.

Contemporary verandah-type shophouses before the Urban

Renewal Authoritys preservation plan
(Source: The Urban Renewal Authority b)

The boundary of the development scheme plan 103 (DSP), which is shown in
the map (Map 7), covers a total area of about 1,440 m2. It is located at the
junction of Prince Edward Road West and Yuen Ngai Street. The area is
separated by two buildings at Nos. 206-108 Prince Edward Road West, which are
both 15 storey buildings completed in 1966, and are in a relatively good physical
condition. These buildings are not included in the plan.

103

The Urban Renewal Authoritys DSP are special plans relating to the re-development of old
areas. These plans are considered by the TPB under the URA Ordinance, and if found suitable are
published under the Town Planning Ordinance for public comment. Each DSP includes a Land
Use Diagram and a set of Notes. A Land Use Diagram indicates broadly the types of planned uses
and form of development; the Notes set out the permitted uses and the requirements for
submitting a Master Layout Plan to the TPB (Loh 13).
287

Map 7.

Urban Renewal Authority Prince Edward Road West/Yuen Ngai

Street development scheme plan with a highlight of shophouses
for commercial and/or cultural use (Source: TPB a)

The DSP involves 10 pre-war verandah type shophouses at Nos. 190-204,

and Nos. 210-212 Prince Edward Road West, for preservation and revitalisation
purposes (Urban Renewal Authority b). These 10 shophouses have been
accorded the highest Level 1 heritage rating because of their historical, cultural
and architectural significance indicated in the commissioned heritage report.
According to the report, the buildings were designed by a Belgian architect for a
Franco-Belgian construction firm and completed in the 1930s for wealthier and
better educated families (Figure 5.1). The buildings were occupied by the
Japanese army during the Second World War and used as governments
dormitory and warehouse after the war. The cluster is the longest row of pre-war
verandah-type shophouses in urban Hong Kong (Figure 5.2). The area was
mainly zoned Residential (Group A) (i.e. R(A)) 104 and partly shown as

104

Residential (Group A) R(A) zone is primarily for high-density residential developments.

Commercial uses are always permitted on the lowest three floors of a building or in the
purpose-designed non-residential portion of an existing building.
288

Road (public footpath) before the exhibition of the Plan. On the DSP, the area is
zoned as Other Specified Uses (OU) annotated Shophouses for Commercial
and/or Cultural Uses.

In other words, the government attempts to pay more attention to heritage

buildings outside of elitist conceptions of value and including the heritage of
ordinary people. However, as shown in the evidence below, the governments
emphasis is mostly on preserving architectural buildings and neglects existing
community and social, economic life. In the governments argument, the history
of the building is foremost. The URA does not mention the history of the flower
market and how and why a particular architectural form was developed in
connection to the social and historical context. As a result, the local culture of the
people and the vibrant and existing flower industry has been ignored in this
articulation

The URAs explanation in their plan reveals their top-down understanding

of art and culture. The URA claims that they hope to preserve shophouses that
have witnessed the development of Hong Kongs architectural and cultural
landscape. Tong Lau represents a part of the history of the development of Hong
Kong and carries certain cultural significance in respective localities, making it
worthwhile to dedicate appropriate public resources as part of the overall urban
regeneration strategy of the URA. The URA initially proposed to reserve the
street level shops for selling flowers and the units upstairs for cultural and art
uses so as to develop a Cultural-art Flower Market (URA 1.3 Billion).
Cheung Chun Yuen Barry, the Chairman of the URA, said: The URA aims to
enhance this local feature with the retention of as many of the compatible
289

existing businesses on street level as possible. There are only thirteen residents
living in the buildings in the DSP, because the DSP is mostly for commercial
purpose. Most of the occupants are running cultural businesses, such as a
dancing academy, a film production studio and a tutorial school. The URAs
initial idea was to introduce some art and culture-related shops, such as a
bookstore and dancing studio 105 in the future site (Figure 5.3).

Figure 5.3.

Illustration of the future verandah-type shophouses after the

Urban Renewal Authoritys implementation of preservation plan
(Source: The Urban Renewal Authority b)

In the URA development scheme, flower shops will continue to be the

anchor business of the area (Urban Renewal Authority c). The Land, Rehousing
& Compensation Committee of URA offered HK$9,391 per square foot of
saleable floor area for the existing DSPs property owner. In URAs press release,
the spokesman said,

105

190 204 210 212 7

13

(URA 1.3 Billion)

290

[i]n view of the local characteristics of the Prince Edward Road West
project, the URA is considering introducing a local flower and school shop
arrangement () for existing operators
in the businesses who are interested to re-establish their operations upon
restoration of the premises. Subject to meeting the eligibility criteria, they
will be given priority to lease ground floor shops of shophouses within the
project area at the prevailing market rents (ibid).

According to the URA, upper floors of the buildings are intended for arts
and culture as well as food and beverage uses. This proposal is in line with the
Urban Renewal Strategy that the preserved heritage buildings should be put to
proper public use, as well as private and residential, to allow maximum
accessibility106. The restored buildings are expected to revitalise the area and be
more vibrant and attractive to visitors and the public.

Although the official plan suggests to have a culture-led flower market, the
URA ignores the existing quotidian culture. The URAs scheme does not address
the business operation of flower traders who are operating in the DSP. URAs
DSP assumes that the flower industry is merely a number of isolated commercial
retail businesses. Accordingly, existing operators should work within a market
logic, and therefore URA offers them current market rents in return for the
106

In the Urban Renewal Strategy Review conducted by the Development Bureau (DevB)
between July 2008 to May 2011, heritage preservation should be part of urban renewal, and the
URA should preserve heritage buildings if such preservation forms part of its urban renewal
projects. Preservation should include
(a) preservation and restoration of buildings, sites and structures of historical, cultural or
architectural interest; and (b) retention of the local colour of the community and the historical
characteristics of different districts. The URA will only undertake self-standing heritage
preservation projects which are outside its redevelopment project boundaries if there is policy
support or a request from the Administration. (Hong Kong Special Administrative Region,
Development Bureau c 11)
291

renewed heritage development. This involves the current owners being first
forced to sell their premises to the URA, and the tenants to first be evicted, with
the possibility of them returning after years of disruption to their businesses, to
rent the venue again according to premium market rent in the future gentrified
premises, way above the level they are paying now. We should challenge this
URA logic because heritage preservation is not merely a commercial decision,
but a matter of benefit for the community at large. The URA promised to offer a
compensation package for acquisition of affected properties (for example an
eligible owner-occupier of a domestic property will receive an acquisition price
that is comparable to the value of a seven-year-old flat of similar size in a similar
locality) and rehousing arrangements for affected tenants. However, in the
example of the relocation of business operators in the flower market, reality has
already proven that the amount of money is inadequate to buy and/or rent a
similar premise seven-years-old or more in the vicinity. Such premises are either
non-existent or very limited in availability in the actual housing stock, and, due
to the large number of evicted businesses fighting for relocation nearby as can be
projected for the renovation period, we can forsee that the costs of relevant
premises will be pushed sky high to levels way above the amount the business
got in compensation. Not to mention the lost to businesses losing income due to
the permanent or temporary termination of business and the loss of the well
known industrial cluster, and with it, the economic network of buyers and
suppliers as a result of relocation. Moreover, there is a time lag between the
agreement on compensation and the actual date the victims got the compensation
and can look for alternative premises, leading to significant market changes
meanwhile, which almost always price the evicted victims out of options
previously available and affordable.
292

Until January 2012, two ground floor shops in the DSP have moved away.
For instance, a shop doing landscape design and selling bonsai, had to relocate to
the third floor of an industrial building located at Kwun Tong 107. Another ground
floor shop, which is a shoe company, relocated to a ground floor shop in Sham
Shui Po108. With the evidence of the relocation of ground floor shop, my research
finds that URAs promised compensation level could hardly be actualised. Future
research direction could be on tracing study about the economic income,
business network and psychological damage suffered by comparing the condition
of the businesses, business operators and residents before and after relocation
due to urban renewal projects.

In URAs proposed planning, URA only allows existing business operators

to use future prevailing market price to return the site. This implies that the
existing business operators will face the same competition with other new
business operators who wish to rent the renovated premises. In other words, the
government compensates the premises only for eviction, but neglect peoples
business networks and sustainability. The URA have not calculated some
negative social consequences: since the shops existing business network needs
to be re-established when a business leaves the site and relocate, there is a high
chance that they will lose customers and get their supply chain and business
network disrupted. Such negative externalities are not calculated into the
compensation. At the same time, the URA focuses too much on improving the

107

The shop is called Art Mount (). The new address is Podium, 3/F, East Sun
Industrial Centre, 16 Shing Yip Street, Kwun Tong. Kwun Tong is an area situated in the eastern
part of Kowloon and is a major industrial area (Art Mount).
108
The shop is called Po Shing Shoe Company (). The new address is 165 Un
Chau Street, Sham Shui Po. Sham Shui Po is located at northwestern part of Kowloon. It is an old
developed area with a mixture of commercial, industrial and residential land use.
293

physical structure of the buildings without seeing how heritage preservation

practices can actually relate organically to the whole flower market in general.
The URA scheme focuses on the architectural buildings of the DSP, but not in a
way that could use heritage preservation as a way to enhance the inherited value
of the flower market as an industry in general. The URA intends to maintain the
idea of a flower market only in terms of place-branding. This refers to a
process of applying branding identities and images to geographical locations,
with disregard to the actual nature of the place or culture, which is a burgeoning
activity within advertising and marketing fields (Julier 31). This can be an
extremely decontextualised market representation/calculation totally alienated
from the way of life of those the branding image is extracted from. Such
estimations ignore the fact that a place is not a primary and singular product but
an agglomeration of identities, activities and histories. Place-branding projects
however, while claiming to identify, articulate and nurture these, nonetheless
often add up to merely the most generic and stereotypical collection of images
and values in terms of place-wide marketing (ibid 34).

I want to argue that place marketing in this market should be based instead
on concrete local and sustainable industrial development, together with plans to
sustain and enhance the existing strong social, cultural and economic network.
Otherwise, it would easily fall into the trap of a superficial culture branding. The
URA proposed to establish flower shops and flower arrangement schools, but
this plan would not enhance the current practices nor resolve the conflict
between the law enforcement officers and florists, if policy changes are not in
place. Another proposed usage is to have a bookstore and a dance studio in the
future site. However, this arrangement would homogenize the cultural content of
294

the place, and any site could develop this kind of imposed culture. There is no
organic necessity to having such cultural content in a flower market. The existing
URA plan does not attempt to strengthen the social and cultural network of the
flower industry and other existing cultural-related business operations. This place
branding mentality shows that the government does not value the specific social
fabric of the place, but treats it merely as a place to attract tourists. However,
developing the market with the tourist gaze in mind might not be able to create a
sustainable and positive environment for the industry, and might even be
adversarial to local development. John Urry and Jonas Larsen argue,

[t]here is no simple relationship between what is directly seen and what this
signifies. We do not literally see things. Particularly as tourists, we see
objects and especially buildings in part constituted as signs. They stand for
something else. When we gaze as tourist what we see are various signs or
tourist clichs. The notion of the tourist gaze is not meant to account for
why specific individuals are motivated to travel. Rather we emphasise the
systematic and regularised nature of various gazes, each of which depends
upon social discourses and practices, as well as aspects of buildings, design
and restoration that foster the necessary look of a place or an environment.
Such gazes implicate both the gazer and the gazee in an ongoing and
systematic set of social and physical relations (Urry, and Larsen 17)

Urry and Larsen understand the tourists gaze as a social construction

produced through external media. It affects how we perceive what a place should
be. In other words, the authenticity of a place can easily be undermined by the
tourists and the markets socially constructed view, or the corresponding notion
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of heritage preservation with its over-emphasis on aesthetic value and its neglect
of community life and social relations. In contrast, local culture might be small
and mundane, without spectacular content, but it expresses the culture of
ordinary people. As described by a British scholar Raymond Williams famous
quotation on culture:

[c]ulture is ordinary that is the first fact. Every human society has its
own shape, its own purposes, its own meanings. Every human society
expresses these, in institutions, and in arts and learning. The making of a
society is the finding of common meanings and directions, and its growth is
an active debate and amendment under the pressures of experiences,
contacts, and discover, writing themselves into the land. The growing
society is there yet it is also made and remade in every individual mind. The
making of a mind is, first, the slow learning of shapes, purposes, and
meanings, so that work, observation and communication are possible
(Williams a 93).

Raymond Williams understanding of culture implies that culture is unique,

and different societies shape their own purposes and meanings of what their
culture is. It shows that different people, in various strata of the society, have
different cultures due to their specific geo-historical conditions, experiences and
understandings of the world. To move further into Williams argument, if culture
is ordinary, then the culture of ordinary people should be preserved to a larger
extent rather than only colonial and elite culture celebrated through high art and
spectacular architecture. However, the government does not treasure the use of
space in everyday life. In the following section, I will demonstrate how this vital
296

social life can be recognised in Tong Lau spaces.

5.8

Florists Use of Space in Tong Lau buildings

The government ignored the discussion of spatial interaction between the

Tong Lau and the flower market in the heritage preservation project. Space,
which has no pre-existing meaning, becomes a meaningful place as it is
constructed by users during cultural-social interactions. However, in the planning
of the URAs heritage preservation and revitalisation projects, the social
interaction between florists, residents, and other commercial users were absent in
the governments discussion. The official explanation ignores the social
interactions and the specific quotidian use of space. In the following section, I
attempt to reveal how florists make use of the space of Tong Lau for their goods
display area, which is ignored in the governments analysis of the flower market.

Tong Lau structures along Prince Edward Road West, in the preserved area
stipulated by the URA, are four storeys high and set back from the street. The
veranda supported by bricks over the whole width of the pavement to form a
covered arcade at street level. Strings were tightened among two pillars so that
some hanging plants, like orchids, could be displayed (Figure 5.4 and 5.5). Also,
plastic bags of goods are hanged on the wall for the convenience of selling
(Figure 5.6). Some workers even hang their gloves for loading and unloading of
goods at convenient spaces. The flower market is an organic and local industry,
integrated into the tempo and pattern the communitys ordinary way of life. At
the same time, flower traders place plants on the ground along the road. This use
of space is unique because only the ground-floor shops in Tong Lau buildings

297

along Prince Edward Road West can take advantage of using Tong Lau columns
in such a way, as support and protection, as a site of display and an anchor for
work. All flower shops along Flower Market Road, Sai Yee Street and Playing
Field Road cannot do so because the modern building structure does not have the
pillars outside the shops. Another important feature is the veranda that forms a
covered arcade (Figure 5.7), which protects flower traders doing business in
adverse weather, so that customers can shop under protection from the weather,
while ordinary flower shops use awnings. These interactions in the space form a
unique business environment.

Figure 5.4.
Figure 5.5.
Potted plants hanging along a pole Florists tied wires along Tong Laus
suspended between two columns
column to expand area of goods display

298

Figure 5.6.
Figure 5.7.
Plastic bags are hanging on the column of Tong Lau veranda forms a covered arcade
Tong Lau for sale of goods
However, the social context of using Tong Lau space in flower trading and
other kinds of businesses was not mentioned in the governments heritage
preservation report, nor was enough attention given to it in the social impact
assessment (Stage 1) report 109 . In the official report, under the section of
Cultural and Local Characteristics, Characteristics of Local Business Activities,
the government explains,

Mong Kok is a district with mixed residential and commercial use. Many
aged residential buildings in dilapidated conditions are witness. The
location in which the Scheme Area is situated is characterised by the
109

The URA Social Impact Assessment is done in two stages Stage 1 and 2. Stage 1 is
non-obtrusive SIA, whilst Stage 2 SIA is a detailed SIA using data collected as part of the
freezing survey () conducted immediately after the publication of the commencement
notice of the project in the Government Gazette. The freezing survey determines a persons
compensation in URAs projects. The URA has been using the occupation status of the property
as at the date of the freezing survey to determine whether the owner is entitled to a House
Purchase Allowance or a Supplementary Allowance. The change in the occupation status of the
property after the freezing survey will not affect the amount of allowance payable to the owner.
(Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Information Services Department b)
299

proliferation of ground floor flower shops. These shops form part of the
larger Flower Market business cluster bounded by Flower Market Road in
the north, Yuen Po Street in the east and Yuen Ngai Street and Sai Yee Street
to the west.

There are 10 retail shops on the ground floor of the buildings within the
Scheme Area. They are listed in the Table 4 below. Seven of these shops are
flower retailers. Two sell other goods shoes and school uniforms, whereas
one is currently vacant.

300

Address

Current Use

Details

No. 190 Prince Edward Road West

Retail

Florist

No. 192 Prince Edward Road West

Retail

Florist

No. 194 Prince Edward Road West

Retail

School uniform tailoring

No. 196 Prince Edward Road West

Retail

Florist

No. 198 Prince Edward Road West

Retail

Florist

No. 200 Prince Edward Road West

(vacant)

(vacant)

No. 202 Prince Edward Road West

Retail

Florist

No. 204 Prince Edward Road West

Retail

Florist

No. 210 Prince Edward Road West

Retail

Shoe retail

No. 212 Prince Edward Road West

Retail

Florist

Table 4. Ground floor commercial activities within the Urban Renewal

Authoritys Preservation Area (Source: Site Survey on 14 August
2008, Urban Renewal Authority d)

The whole cultural and local characteristics of governments report are

listed above. The quotation and Table 3 indicate that the government merely list
the usage of ground floor shops in the vicinity of the flower market without
paying much attention to how current users interact with the Tong Lau buildings.
Also, there is no further explanation on the culture of the place, and how and
why users agglomerate in Prince Edward Road West. From this we can see that
the quotidian and industrys use of space is not the focus of governments social
impact assessment.

301

5.9

Non-transparent

Consultative

Procedures

in

Government
In one sense, the URA preservation of Tong Lau might be seen as a good
attempt at embracing local culture. However, as described earlier (Section 2.7
and 5.2), Tong Lau is a mixture of commercial and residential use. It is not
confined to any particular purpose. Therefore, the existing Tong Lau usage is an
organic agglomeration of art and cultural activities, including the flower shops, a
shoe company, a school uniforms company, a film production studio, a dance
academy, a tutorial school, a church, a godown and residential flats. After the
URAs proposed renovation work, the premises would belong to the URA, who
would be responsible for its management. Therefore, the URA has a large say in
the future usage. However, as described in Section 5.7, URAs plan is to embrace
art and culture that fits their theme, and this involves restoring flower shops, the
bookstore and the dance studio. However, all the decisions are finalised by the
URA. Public consultation might not be able to incorporate peoples suggestions
very well into the URAs and the governments preferred plan. In the following
section, I will elaborate how coloniality was embedded in the governments
decision making process with an underlying assumption that peoples opinions
are not valuable and that the authoritative voice of governance is the most
important for decision making.

302

5.9.1

Non-transparent Consultative Procedures with Urban

Renewal Authoritys Initial Consultation

Public consultation launched by the URA and TPB aims at allowing people
to participate in the process and voice their concerns to the decision makers, but
in the following sections, I will demonstrate how the mechanism could not only
incorporate peoples voices, but also how the government even played some
tricks to reduce negative views. I argue that this mentality of diminishing
peoples voices reveals the governments paternalistic and condescending belief
that people are barbaric, backwards and uncivilised, and not capable of making
decisions best for themselves and society at large. The lack of ordinary peoples
agency emphasises the governments authority embedded in the decision making
procedure. This mentality is shown in the governments insincere public
consultation.

Before the URA launched the proposed DSP, the URA held a public
consultation session which they called as a brainstorming session on 4 October
2008. Some 100 people from the community attended, including owners,
residents, academics, professionals, Yau Tsim Mong DC members and the Yau
Tsim Mong District Advisory Committee of the URA (Vartisvist a). The
official-stated objective was to explore the appropriate and viable adaptive
re-uses for the 10 shophouses at Prince Edward Road West. The discussion was
divided into six groups and was facilitated by an architect. The director of
Planning and Design for the URA, Michel Ma, said

[w]e want to stress that we do not have any preconceived idea of how the
shophouses should be revitalised. We are completely open to any sensible
303

and practicable theme and activities that may be proposed, as long as they
are deemed sustainable and compatible with the goals of preserving these
shophouse buildings and enhancing local characteristics (Urban Renewal
Authority d).

The official stated objective seemed to be open-minded and sincere.

However,

from

the

arrangement

of

the

brainstorming

session,

this

open-mindedness of the URA becomes questionable because it is just a one-off

session without any follow-up for peoples concerns and worries. Some
stakeholders opinions were very sensible, for example, one participant 110 in the
meeting raised four key points. I transcribed those points because her opinion
reveals the micro-politics in heritage preservation in this area. Firstly, the
participant stated:

[t]he first point is related to the future use of this site. Is the new plan just
for the purposes of flower selling? The URA proposed to have a dance
studio. But we have many dance studios already. Those studios run very
well. Why should the URA arrange a new dance studio? Why is it better
than the original ones? There is a very historical school uniform company
and a very old shoe company. These two are characteristics of Prince
Edward Road. Does it mean that they are not in the heritage preservation
plan and just flower shops and businesses related to art and culture can stay?
Why should the URA decide the local characteristics of this district?
110

The participant does mention her identity, that means either she is an owner or tenant of this
site. But according to her suggestions, she is very familiar with the district and other peoples
suggestions. From her speech, she emphasises on the business of ground floor shops. I deduce
that she has worked, or even run a business in the district for a long time (Vartisvist b). Watch
from 1 minute 22 seconds to 4 minutes 28 seconds in the video.
304

The participants first concern shows that ordinary people do not understand
the URAs concept of the project. They question why a place could not develop
organically without the URAs intervention. People challenge the appropriateness
of the URA as the decision-maker for the planning. This implies the participants
view that the government lacks a citizen empowerment approach to planning,
because it rarely involves people proactively in designing a plan. The
government usually solely designs the future of a district. Therefore, people
worried about why the URA decided on the theme of flowers, art and culture,
and why it did not involve other organically pre-existing and culturally rich and
unique operations. This question is legitimate because it involves an imbalance
of power between the government and people on designing the future of the
place.

Another point that this participant challenged is about the future

management plan of the site.

The second point is about the inadequacy of facilities. If you want to plan
the site for flower shops, there are insufficient parking spaces and no taxi
stands. Flowers are placed 3 feet in front of the shops. Florists also place
objects another 3 feet onto the pavement. Florists only allow 2 feet for
people to walk around. If you want the future purpose as a flower market,
the management team should manage it well.

The participants second concern on the lack of facilities demonstrates

doubts toward the management plan, and the comprehensive planning for flower
market as a whole, but not just focusing on a single site in a district. The lack of
305

facilities and disturbance created for the other businesses, people and residents is
the common concern of the whole district. A comprehensive plan is required, but
I will demonstrate in Section 5.10 that, even though the URA has the mandate to
plan for the future of the whole district in this revitalisation project, the URA did
not work to improve the business environment and facilities, which is of the
highest priority for the local community. Instead they just focused merely on
improving the physical landscape for tourists and consumers.

The third concern raised by this participant mainly refers to the URAs
arrangement for consultation.

The third point is that some property owners did not attend this brainstorm
meeting. Will you ask for their opinion? Although the URA conducted a
freezing survey and opinion survey 111 to relevant owners and tenants on 19
September 2008, the same day as the publication of this project. But the
survey was done in the morning, and the whole procedure was so rushed.
The URA consulted the people all of a sudden and people did not have any
psychological preparation before. How could people offer thoughtful advice
to the government? Wouldnt it be nicer if the URA conducted the opinion
survey again, either through conducting meetings or surveys, so that people
could digest URAs planning before they give advice? Otherwise, the
peoples opinion will not have been represented.

This procedure of conducting a freezing survey and gathering opinions of

111

This opinion survey refers to URAs Social Impact Assessment Stage 2. Detailed
explanation could be found in footnote 169.
306

future planning is a standard procedure of all the URAs development projects.

The URA staff members visit households or commercial premises early in the
morning without giving any prior notice. The freezing survey is conducted in the
morning of the public announcement because the URA wants to avoid any
people who are not living the place, but occupy it after the announcement to be
eligible for URAs compensation. This compensation should only be given to
people who occupy the place before the announcement. The arrangement of the
freezing survey is acceptable because it is a way to avoid people cheating for
extra compensation. However, it is questionable about the URAs practice of
asking for peoples comments on future usage, because stakeholders might know
very little about the general situation, or know very little about governments
plan at that point. At the same time, as mentioned by the participant, people
receive the news suddenly in the morning, and they are psychologically
unprepared to offer advice. How can this arrangement be a legitimate way of
asking for quality advice and opinion? People should also be fully notified and
well-equipped before they are consulted. Their opinion could also be as valuable
as other professional opinions because they are the existing users of the place,
and some of them have even lived or worked there for a long time, and thus, are
experts on the place. However, the URA might not pay enough respect to the
local community in its public consultation.

The last point that the participant made was about a specific situation of a
church. This situation is not applicable to all people, but it nevertheless helps to
show how a standard procedure might not be applicable to all cases.

The last point is related to the church located in the URAs plan. The church
307

said they would not sell their property because it is their church. Would the
URA be able to relocate them in the same district so that they could serve
Mong Kok people and spread the gospel?

This participants question implies a shop-for-shop

compensation

arrangement, in which the URA would help stakeholders find a place in the same
district for relocation. A shop-for-shop compensation should be an option for
people if they want to continue to do business in the same district. People might
challenge that it is difficult to find a suitable site in the same district, with similar
shop size and customer flow. Monetary compensation provides flexibility in the
arrangement. However, people need to bear the responsibility of searching for a
site, and negotiating a price and moreover, bear the negative externalities and
costs caused by the relocation. Would it be possible for the URA to help the
people? The URA has carried out a number of urban renewal projects in the same
district 112. Could they hold on to some properties from the older projects to
accommodate people who have been recently affected? Some people might argue
that flexible arrangements might create inequality among people because
different sites and locations might get different treatment under various situations.
This problem could be solved if the arrangement for each case is openly
discussed and different people know the others arrangements. When the
procedure is transparent and people are given enough options to choose, people
would choose the one which is best for them, and also respect others choices.
However, at the moment, the URA only offers one choice for people: monetary
compensation. The limited choice and inflexible of the arrangement is the easiest
112

Other URA projects in Mong Kok include Sai Yee Street Project, Argyle Street/ Shanghai
Street Project (Langham Place), Waterloo Road/Yunnan Lane Project (8 Waterloo Road),
Reclamation Street Project (MOD595).
308

for the administration, but it minimises options for the people.

To summarise, the one-off brainstorming meeting was the only official

meeting that allowed people to express their views on the issue. There was no
follow up meeting for people to openly discuss their views and to allow
government officials and professions to clarify their worries. The proposed plan
reflects the governments response after listening to peoples opinions, but it
seems that the government did not directly address the problems raised. The
URAs plan might also not be able to directly deal with peoples concerns and
worries about their arrangement of reallocation. This situation shows that
coloniality is embedded in the planning procedures through a non-transparent
consultative procedures and an authoritative decision making process. The public
consultation ignored peoples requests for quality of life and do not address
peoples request for research on the citys history, culture, heritage and
environment. The heritage preservation practice seems not to improve a lot after
the Two Piers Incident when people urge for more participation in decision
making of city planning as described in Section 5.6.

309

5.9.2

Non-transparent Consultative Procedures with Planning

Department and Urban Renewal Authority

The non-transparent consultative procedures were held not only by the URA
itself, but also by the Planning Department 113. This section will examine how the
Planning Department manipulated the district councillors negative comments on
the flower market heritage preservation project through the politics of translation,
in order to allow the URA to have a smooth consultation process. The DC is
supposed to represent the opinion of different stakeholders in the district. Law
Wing Cheung, the Yau Tsim Mong district councillor who is responsible for the
area of flower market originally, wrote:

There are many buildings, spots and structures of historical, cultural or

architectural value in Yau Tsim Mong district and nearly 10 redevelopment
projects are under planning and consultation, which evidenced that the
URA plays a very important role in the future package community
development of Mong Kok district. Regrettably, the URA does not have a
package concept while considering the surrounding environment or possible
hindrance to the overall planning of the whole area. Such type of
piecemeal

redevelopment

results

in

many

ridiculous revitalisation/preservation projects in Hong Kong and neither

residents nor visitors realise the value of the historical buildings from those
redevelopment projects. Lacking a comprehensive redevelopment concept
113

The Planning Department is the executive arm of the TPB. This department is responsible for
creating, monitoring and reviewing town plans, planning policies and associated programmes for
the physical development of Hong Kong. It deals with all types of planning at the territorial,
sub-regional and district levels. It provides technical services to the TPB and serves as its
Secretariat. It also carries out enforcement actions if someone carries out an illegal land use, such
as open storage on agricultural land. Other government departments provide technical advice to
the TPB on matters such as transport, environment, engineering and land administration (Loh 9).
310

means waste of money and create non-stop nuisance to residents (emphasis

added).

However, in the summarised version prepared by the Planning Department,

the word development/revitalisation projects has been translated simply as
redevelopment projects. The paragraph becomes

[t]he

URA

does

not

have

comprehensive

plan

for

implementing redevelopment projects in Yau Tsim Mong district. The

piecemeal redevelopment projects resulted in developments incompatible
with the surrounding environment. The residents and visitors do not realise
the value of the historical buildings from the piecemeal redevelopment
projects. Lacking a comprehensive redevelopment concept means waste
of money and create non-stop nuisance to the residents (emphasis added).

Playing around with the words redevelopment and revitalisation/

redevelopment through a mis-translation by the Planning Department seems
trivial. However, as shown in the evidence below, the different use of the words
allows the government institutions to ignore suggestions offered by the DC. The
URAs response to the DC is just two sentences:

The project is not redevelopment projects. It is a preservation project aimed

to preserve and revitalise the existing historic shophouses.

In this way, the government created an excuse to completely dismiss the

DCs opinions. This example reveals how a government institution incorrectly
311

translated comments, and in so doing, was able to ignore comments not in their
favour by distorting the cultural imagination of the society and twisting ideas.
The original letter of Law Wing Cheung challenges the URA by having a
piecemeal

redevelopment

in

Mong

Kok

and

no

comprehensive

revitalisation/preservation planning in general. However, because of the

Planning Departments error, the URA can dismissively comment only on the
wrong terminology. The whole idea of the DC is more sophisticated than the
terminology itself. The DC is actually criticising the URAs piecemeal plan as
lacking a comprehensive revitalisation/preservation plan for the district.
However, the URA escapes this criticism without direct referral to the original
DCs question. This incident implies a micro-politics of decision making process
in which the government deflects and silences unfavourable comments through a
skilful co-operation between various government departments on the
transmission and translation of public opinion. This skilful co-operation protects
the URAs original plan from legitimate challenges and makes it seem perfect
and unchallenged / undefeatable. Law Wing Cheung might not be able to use the
word accurately, but his criticism of the current heritage preservation project is
generally comprehensible. This mis-translation reveals that peoples negative
assessments cannot be truly reflected by the government, and the
reduction/elimination/mis-representation/mis-recognition of subaltern voices can
happen on a systematic and regular basis in the governments well oiled machine
for processing out public opinions not entirely in agreement with its own. This
systematic silencing of peoples voices is routinely practiced based on the
governments belief that ordinary people do not have enough understanding of
the situation and lack the sophistication to provide relevant opinions and
proposals. Colonial arrogance is embedded in the practice of mis-translation/
312

mis-representation / dis-articulation since this practice allows a public

consultation that is not democratic and not socially inclusive enough for true
participation to go without saying.

5.9.3

Non-transparent Consultative Procedures with the

People at the Town Planning Board Meeting

A series of public consultations denying real public participation

demonstrates how coloniality is embedded into the consultation system. Another
example of this is the way the TPB handled public consultation. This meeting is
important because the TPB holds a hearing of representations from the public.
After that, TPB decides whether or not to amend the draft plan proposed by the
URA. Chiu Tsz Man, the owner of 2/F of No. 204 Prince Edward Road West,
made a presentation in the TPB meeting on 30 September 2009. He helped the
URA to analyse the current situation and made the following suggestion.

There are a total of 40 flat units in the whole URAs plan. That means there
are 40 land ownership agreements. Six people hold 26 units. My company
owns 4 units. Wong Pak Ming, the boss of Mandarin Film Company (
), own 3 units. Tso Tong Company () owns 7 units. In
addition, Golden Dragon School Uniforms () and Po Shing Shoe
Company (), said they absolutely dont want to move. They really
want to stay! They are willing to join this renovation work. Also, 8 owners
of No. 210 and 212 own more than 20 units. Actually URA has a very good
chance for negotiation because of a limited number of owners. I propose
taking one year to decide the future of these Tong Lau. If it is unsuccessful
after one year, that means the URA failed to persuade the 40 owners to
313

participate and sell to the URA, and in such a case, the government could
then use the DSP at that moment (Town Planning Board b 114).

Chius comment criticises the URA for its narrow view on culture and its
ignorance of other kinds of cultural activities that have long existed in the area.
Tong Lau is by nature, a mixed use building. Chius understanding implies that
culture should not only be limited to flower activities, but includes film
production, housed on the upper floor, which is also another cultural industry
that contributes to the culture of the area. Film-making workshops and film
production houses have been operating in the DSP for over 50 years. They
remain as a unique, peculiar but invisible feature of the Scheme Area. After the
1990s, florists started moving into the DSP and eventually transformed the area
into an integral part of the flower market. However, only the cultural value of the
flower as an industry cluster has been preserved in the plan. Nevertheless, the
usage of the film studio is excluded from the intended uses despite the fact that
they are still actively operating in the area.

The URA plan fails to embrace the diversity of various existing cultural
values and cultural industries as part of the organic changes of the place. URA
uses public money to revitalise the area and is bound by the imperative of
financial self-sustainability packaged into the concept of adaptive re-use. Local
characteristics are embraced for the purpose of developing and marketing the
place. In this way ordinary peoples practices start to be treasured and valued by
114

Transcription of 946th Meeting of the TPB held on 30/10/2009. The meeting was conducted in
Cantonese. I did the translation of relevant transcription. The whole audio tape could be found in
TPBs webpage (Town Planning Board b). Chinese version of the meeting minutes is more
detailed (Town Planning Board c). The message of Chiu was not recorded in the minute. English
version of the minutes is even very brief (Town Planning Board d).
314

the government only when it fits into their place-making and marketing plan.
However, culture, from the point of view of the institution, is in practice, not as
inclusive and tolerant as its initial rhetoric would claim initially. Tong Lau
building is originally a public asset, but in the URAs plan, will now become
privatised, commodified and gentrified in the name of heritage preservation.

To summarise, the existing public consultation process is merely a standard

set of procedures with no mechanism to ensure that the publics opinions are
seriously considered by the government. Coloniality is embedded in this public
consultation design because the agency of ordinary people is suppressed by the
government. The mechanism is seemingly designed as an open-ended process
that allows government officials to listen to peoples opinions, and the system
seems to be democratic in responding to and incorporation peoples comment on
paper. However, in reality, the mechanism operates in such a way that the
governments decision is protected by all means, to the point of outrightly
mis-representing, silencing and editing out the opinions of the public. Thus, the
operational routine in effect allows the government to implement their planning
without complications. For instance, in the example of the mis-translation by the
Planning Department of DCs comments, the URA was allowed to evade all the
DCs legitimate and representative objections. Such a high-handed and
dismissive attitude in the governments planning towards public and community
opinion implies the routine, matter-of-fact operation of a dismissive and arrogant
colonial mentality in disregard of valid opinions and concerns of ordinary people.
Subaltern opinions are simply considered unqualified for serious government
concern and are routinely dismissed in bad faith, as an operational rule of thumb.
This operational silencing of public opinion has become so habitual for the
315

government that no one in the government needs to be conscious of ones role in

this obliteration machine. The government, in principle, does not believe in the
wisdom of the public who are using the place all the time, including some who
have lived or worked there for several decades or all their lives. The government
treasures professional opinions but it does not empower ordinary people in their
planning process. It also implies a habitual one-way communication between the
government and ordinary people. The government feels no need to clearly
explain their reasoning to the general public. Officials are only required to repeat
generic, stated model answers according to the official line to every different
question or concern form the public without actually addressing the meaning and
content of what is said by the citizen. This dismissive practice in bad faith has
been so obviously a habit of government consultation practices that the public
have a nickname for the practice such officials are called human flesh MP3s,
meaning digital recorders in the human form of the official. Thus, not only was
the government unwilling to take peoples suggestions, it did not communicate
why it could not do so. This non-transparent decision making process implies a
coloniality because ordinary people are not fully informed on the decision
making process, and can only follow the governments plan. There is no option
for alternatives or amendments. The public is told condescendingly to take it or
leave it, and the government plan is assumed to be best for their good and for
public good.

In this manner, public consultation becomes a standard procedure for all

planning, without true communication, understanding and response between the
government and the public. The government never in fact have to face up to
public opinion directly and positively. This heritage preservation practice only
316

allows superficial branding and commodification of local culture and fail to

respond to any of the requests of the impacted community. Neither can it respond
sincerely to any of the demands of the heritage preservation movements
embraced by the public after the Two Pier Incident. The preservation of the
architecture is not enough. Ordinary peoples culture is not considered in the plan,
which does not address peoples request for the preservation of local history and
culture embedded in their ways of life. The URA was commissioned by the
government to deal with a series of heritage preservation projects in response to
the general publics rising concerns about the preservation of Hong Kong
cultural identity and the urge for a more democratic planning process with a
higher degree of participation. However, in the above public consultation
analysis, we can see the government maintaining the mentality of
developmentalism emphasising the speed of project implementation and the
economic viability of the project. For example, the dismissal of the district
councillors oppositional voice is justified in the name of the smooth
implementation of the project, elevated to the status of the highest, overriding
public good. Thus, in practice, government does not truly attempt to incorporate
public wisdom into their plan. The government does not pay enough attention
and respect to the people of the community. The denial of peoples agency is a
classic example of the continuation of coloniality. In contrast, it is important to
have a mechanism to genuinely incorporate peoples opinions and needs into the
decision making process. Peoples concerns ought to be addressed by relevant
professionals, or better, people should be empowered to co-create a plan that
could benefit all parties and society at large through a participatory, consensus
building, democratic process.

317

5.10

The Revitalisation Project in the Flower Market

The revitalisation project the second URA project held in Mong Kok
Flower Market also demonstrates the URAs plan not being able to address
peoples needs. It merely attempts to beautify the place by placing installations
and street furniture 115 in the area. Along with other urban landscape elements,
such as architecture and urban space, street furniture plays a role in determining
the quality of an urban environment and urban life, and in representing the image
of a city (Wan 2). However, placing installation and street furniture in the market
might be appealing to local and foreign visitors, but it is irrelevant to the
improvement of business and living conditions for the existing flower traders and
residents. I want to argue that the practice of addressing merely the physical
environment from the perspective of the tourist and middle-class, gentrified
consumers, while neglecting the needs of the community, is a kind of embedded
coloniality. This understanding implies the focus on hardware facilities and
cosmetic beautification of a place for the imposed consumption of the other with
disregard to the welfare and livelihood of the local community and culture.
However, is the character of a place revealed through upscale street furniture? Or
does it lie more in the authentic culture and social life of the people actually
living and making a living there? I will explain more about the URAs
revitalisation project in relation to their street management mentality in the next
section.

Themed-streets have become very important for a new kind of tourism

promotion that emphasises local character. In order to enhance neighbourhoods
115

Street furniture refers to the objects and facilities located in urban public spaces that provide
various services and functions to the public (Wan 2).
318

special characteristics, the Planning Department invited the URA to devise a

series of themed-street revitalisation projects in Mong Kok 116, including Flower
Market Road, Goldfish Street 117 (), and Sportwears Street 118 ().
Over the years, the flower market has become a distinctive place with local
characteristics and has also developed into a tourist destination in Hong Kong.
The revitalisation project aims at improving the streetscape and pedestrian
walkways, and greening the environment. These measures will enhance the street
ambience to match the specialty of the themed streets and to highlight the variety
and character of the Mong Kok district. The plan also calls for the installation of
themed street furniture, special directional signage and decorative pavements.
The flower market revitalisation is located on Flower Market Road, Yuen Po
Street and part of Sai Yee Street (Map 8). Although many flower shops are
located on Prince Edward Road West, the URA does not include that section in
its revitalisation project, because the real operation of the market does not
provide good conditions for such cosmetic and touristic make-overs.

Map 8.

The URA revitalisation area in the flower market (Source: Hong

Kong Special Administrative Region, Yau Tsim Mong c)

116

The URA intends to adopt themed plans that feature cheerful scenes of birds and flowers,
ideal fish environments, leisurely shopping and the sports world (
).
117
The official name of Goldfish Street is Tung Choi Street which has an abundant supply of
aquarium products.
118
The official name of Sportwear Street is Fa Yuen Street where many trendy sportswear and
equipment shops agglomerate.
319

In the revitalisation feasibility studies, various stakeholders, including

pedestrians, residents and flower traders were interviewed in order to ascertain
their priorities for improving the district. From the result, we can see a view that
certainly contrasts with the governments. The results are as follow:

Items for Improvement

Average 119

Pedestrian

Resident

Shop

1. Environmental Improvement

86%

90%

76%

84.0%

2. Resurfacing Roads

82%

90%

72%

81.3%

3. Same colour of canopies for all 56%

ground level shops

72%

70%

66.0%

4. Widening pavements

92%

93%

92%

92.3%

5. Greenery

83%

88%

72%

81.0%

and 56%

73%

47%

58.6%

7. Placing special rolls, lamp 65%

posts and street installations

80%

55%

66.7%

8. Improvement of loading and 92%

unloading of car and passenger
facilities

85%

81%

86.0%

6. Placing art sculpture

themed installation

Table 5.

Survey Result in the Urban Renewal Authority initiates

area-based revitalisation plan for Mong Kok conducted by
Associated Architects Limited, an officially sanctioned
consultancy firm (Source: ibid)

According to the survey, all parties including pedestrians, residents and

traders, rank widening pavement as the top priority (92.3%). The second
priority is listed as Improvement of loading and unloading of car and passenger
facilities (86%) and the third is Environmental Improvement (84%). However,
the official revitalisation project did not directly respond to these major publics
priorities, but instead, addressed other issues. As shown in the governments plan
119

I add this Average column to have an easier comparison among all items. The calculation
of average refers to the addition of the percentage of pedestrian, resident and shop along the same
row and then divides the sum by three.
320

(Figure 5.8 and 5.9), the revitalisation project focuses on beautifying the place
and enhancing the image of the flower market, for instance, by resurfacing the
pavement with granite, using coloured materials to repaint the road, installing
potted plants to decorate the area, etcetera. However, requests to resurface roads
(81.3%) and provide greenery (81.0%) in the survey, garnersa relatively lower
priority among the respondents. The project proceeds with the aim of enhancing
the characteristics of the place, which benefits the physical environment and
creates a pleasant shopping atmosphere for customers and tourists who come
occasionally (Figure 5.10). However, the needs of the industry and the residents
are ignored without any reason. In this sense, according to the existing plan, the
problems of florists street obstruction would not solved (as described in Chapter
4); conflicts with the law enforcement officers is expected to continue, and the
local industry would still suffer. It further proves that the revitalisation project is
oriented to the physical appearance of the street for the benefit of the imagined
tourist and consumer, and will not create a better business environment for the
actually existing businesses in the flower market and the district because the root
problems remain unsolved.

321

Figure 5.8.

Proposed revitalisation work by the Associated Architects

Limited, an officially appointed consultancy firm 120
(Source: ibid)

120

Translation of Legend: 1. Newly-paved pedestrian road granite (Fig. 1) 2. The existing

loading and unloading remains unchanged 3. Newly-paved road with coloured platform 4. A
special greenery landmark will be added to the existing garden 5. The existing garden will
become special fence 6. Repainted wall at the refuse collection point 7. Added plants along the
pedestrian way 8. Coloured flag pole 9. New plants will be added by Architectural Services
Department 10. Plant decoration will be added in the existing slop 11. Added decoration frame to
the Hundred-bird Picture 12. A sign on the ground
322

Figure 5.9.

Mong Kok street-based revitalisation scheme (First Draft)

produced by the URA and Associated Architects Limited 121
(Source: Ibid)

Figure 5.10.

Illustration of the proposed flower market after the

implementation of the Urban Renewal Authoritys revitalisation
scheme (Source: The Urban Renewal Authority e)

121

Translation of Legend: 1. Beige Granite (Fig. 1) 2. Grey Granite (Fig. 2) 3. Coloured

Platform Paint (Fig. 3) 4. Plant (Fig. 4) 5. Coloured Flagpole (Fig. 5) 6. Existing Loading and
Unloading Area remains unchanged
323

The governments response in the URAs revitalisation project further

confirms its mentality of developmentalism in planning what is the best for a
district. Chow Yat Ngok, the Secretary for Food and Health 122, explains that
heritage preservation and revitalisation are ways to create a better tourist
attraction. He says,

the URA has drawn up a plan in this regard and the successful
implementation of the plan can further promote the development of that
area. Apart from this, flowers also have their artistic side. As Members
(LegCo members) are aware, flower arrangement is a form of art. For that
reason, the cultivation of a better environment can serve to attract more
investment and people seeking development in this field. I believe this can
further develop the Mong Kok Flower Market into a better tourist attraction
(Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Legislative Council a 6847).

Chows understanding implies that the government treats the URAs

revitalisation project as a way to attract more tourism and arts and crafts-framed
investment and entrepreneurialism to the flower market. In other words, the
upgrading and revitalisation of existing vibrant socio-economic networks is not
among the governments real concerns in the preservation of historical buildings.
Understanding the governments operational logic of heritage preservation and
revitalisation allows us to glimpse its actual understanding of culture. The
emphasis on the enhancement of streetscape hardware through stereotypical
cultural themes; and the use of local cultural motifs to create the themed

122

Secretary for Food and Health is in charge of FEHD that raised frequent conflicts to florists
as described in Section 4.15.
324

Cultural-art Flower Market are both gestures that imply the governments
cultural assumptions. This understanding of cultural tourism is the continuation
of a colonial, orientalist desire to fetishise the culture and identity of the exotic
other for enjoyment and consumption of the cosmopolitan tourist.

In practice, the global process of tourism does not necessarily end up

erasing cultural authenticity. It might even help in the development of the tertiary
industries of a place. However, careless management of cultural resources can
lead to irreversible and adverse effects on the place, if cultural tourism is done in
such a way that local cultural and industrial networks become displaced, and
culture meaningful to the local community become decontextualised and overly
commodified. Ironically, becoming too attractive for tourists can be a curse in
blessings disguise. If pursued uncritically and without restraint, the
appropriation of cultural heritage for commercial exploitation can cause more
harm than good for local communities and for the nation in the long run. The
imagined and over-sell of culture can turn a place quickly into a generic, touristic
sense of placelessness, of dj vu, of predictable exoticism all the more
ubiquitous everywhere and anywhere in the world the more tourism hungrily and
desperately hunts down the last vestiges of difference in the global landscape. In
return for touristic businesses, local industries get displaced and the local way of
life gets irreversibly distorted. As Edward Relph argues,

placelessness describes both an environment without significant places and

the underlying attitude which does not acknowledge significance in place. It
reaches back into the deepest levels of place, cutting roots, eroding symbols,
replacing diversity with uniformity and experiential order with conceptual
325

order. At its most profound it consists of a pervasive and perhaps

irreversible alienation from places as the places as the homes of men (Relph
143).

Relphs understanding of placelessness refers to the way urban spaces are

transformed through standardisation of culture and the encroachment of tourism.
Moreover,

the way in which urban spaces are being transformed through cultural
regeneration, often resulting in the creation of international tourism arenas
for mass consumption has arguably led to an encroaching standardisation
or placelessness, manifesting itself in the kind of could-be-any-where
feeling experienced by tourists in many global cities (Smith 91).

Smith also examines how the transformation of a place could be less

destructive to the local stakeholders, and still survive the challenges of
globalisation. Greg Richards further discusses the importance of a sense of place:

[p]lace matters in a very practical sense, not just to the residents for
whom a place is home, but also to those who are visiting that place,
and to those who are marketing and selling it. [T]he current lack of
planning regulations and control that allow placeless environments to
proliferate indicates that there is perhaps a need for place to be given
some priority on government agendas (Richards 108).

In other words, the governments heavy-handed make-over of cultural

326

motifs and themed architecture might create a hollow sense of artificial

placesslessness. The way cultural tourism is a key indicator of the degree of
colonial cultural assumptions still operating in a western, global mainstream
understanding of culture. Developmentalism remains one of the underlying
principles in the governments formulation of policies concerning the future of a
place. The government did not respond to the frequent requests for having a
permanent flower market (Section 4.18), and did not respond to the publics
desires for wider pavements (as described in this section). Even when the
government imposed some developments, it seems to be superficial. Thus, the
needs and the sustainability of the local culture is not a concern of such
government heritage preservation projects. Against this background, any
pretence to solicit public opinion on how to improve the place would remain
rhetorical if not outrightly cynical. The non-transparent decision making process
did not allow room for genuine communication between people and the
government. The demand for greater and more democratic participation of the
people in policy, planning and decision making on issues affecting their lives has
fallen on dead ears, irrespective of the effort the Hong Kong civil society made
in raising their own awareness on the significance of culture and heritage to the
dignified democratisation of a place.

327

5.11

Gentrification:

The

Consequence

of

Urban

Renewal in the Flower Market

In the next section, I will demonstrate the negative consequence of heritage
preservation and revitalisation framed urban renewal on the Mong Kok Flower
Market. A strong living tradition of street life, street markets and street vendors
are common in vibrant Asian cities (Vines 30).This is a crucial cultural condition
that must be preserved and incorporated into any heritage strategies. The intrinsic
and unique characteristic of the place, including the activities that occur in the
streets, should be preserved during streetscape upgrades. However, as
demonstrated in the previous section, the government focuses more on
improving the physical landscape, aimed merely at attracting more investment
and development in the district without any concern for the enhancement of
social life for the existing quotidian community. Such upgrading with disregard
to local quotidian livelihood is a form of gentrification a kind of upgrading that
socially and economically excludes the original community of the place.
Gentrification is a process of capital inflow, in the form of urban renewal, that
goes into an already existing place in the metropolitan region whose value is
depressed and whose physical condition is in decay. This usually takes place in
distressed sections of the urban centre where there is a significant rent gap,
offering real estate developers a high potential margin of profit. It is the
investment of capital returning to depreciated segments of the urban centre to
turn it around into a more affluent neighbourhood than the one currently
occupying the space. Gentrification,

to put it bluntly and simply, involves both the exploitation of the economic
328

value of real estate and the treatment of local residents as objects rather than
the subjects of upgrading. Even though population movement is a common
feature of cities, gentrification is specifically the replacement of a less
affluent group by a wealthier social group a definition which relates
gentrification to class. Whether a result of city council policies or real estate
pressures, gentrification stands in contrast to earlier attempts to improve
deprived neighbourhoods by addressing the built environment, the central
objective of urban renewal up until the 1970s. More recently, the betterment
of deprived neighbourhoods has taken a completely different form as the
improvement of living conditions is no longer considered the task of the
state (to enlighten the masses), but rather a side effect of the development
and emancipation of the higher and middle classes. The state seems to have
acknowledged its inability to influence the welfare of its residents directly
and has left that task to the workings of the supposedly objective agency of
the market. Gentrification has become a means of solving social malaise,
not by providing solutions to unemployment, poverty, or broken homes, but
by transferring the problem elsewhere, out of sight, and consequently also
geographically marginalizing the urban poor and ensuring their economic
location and political irrelevance (Berg, Kaminer, Schoondrbeek and
Zonneveld cited in Lees, Slater, and Wyly xv).

Understanding Berg et al on gentrification illustrates the Hong Kong

governments mentality of developmentalism, which displaces real social
problems by spatial fixes of urban renewal. In this way, the problems and
problematic people are relocated out of sight to the city outskirts and satellite
towns. Gentrification as a form of urban transformation benefits only those who
329

can afford the renovated place, and is accomplished at the cost of lower income
people being further marginalised. The preservation and revitalisation of the
flower market is such a form of gentrification, of state intervention that allows
capital to reinvest in the urban core at the expense of the relatively subaltern
traditional industry and its urban small proprietors and home owners. Hackworth
suggests that

[w]hen the appropriate political and economic forces combined,

gentrification closed the gap as investors rehabilitated the property to
actualise its higher potential rent the reinvested (urban) core has
tightened the pressure already exerted on affordable housing close to the
(urban) core (Hackworth 136).

The deterioration of the urban centre provides a rent gap for private
investors to renovate or rebuild properties to increase ground rent (Figure 5.11).
The neoliberal turn of the government is biased in favour of developer interest at
the expense of community interest. Thus, the government intervenes heavily on
capital reinvestment issues but minimally on community issues.

Figure 5.11.

Mechanism of the rent gap in gentrification (Source: ibid)

330

Hackworths rent gap theory shows how ground rent gradually decline in
the deteriorating old urban area where there is no development. However, after
urban renewal, investment sharply boosts up the potential ground rent. This kind
of revitalisation is however, only an ephemeral spatial fix in favour of capital
but is one which serves only to displace negative externalities and accumulate
problems and social cost for future governance. Thus, under such neoliberal
forms of developmentalism, both the vitality of community culture and economy
suffer long term in return for the short term benefit of real estate speculation and
global consumption.

I will examine, in the following two sections, the impact of neoliberal

developmentalism on the Mong Kok Flower Market. This form of gentrified
urban renewal in the name of heritage preservation inevitably changes the
cultural and economic landscape in the vicinity of the flower market. The area
around the Mong Kok flower market is exactly the kind of debilitated urban core
targeted by the above-mentioned type of gentrified urban renewal due to the
existence of a sizeable rent gap. As of February 2012, the heritage preservation
work is still in the process of land acquisition, and the actual construction work
has not officially commenced. However, the physical landscape of the vicinity of
the flower market is already being gentrified. I will discuss the cases of No. 1
Flower Market Road (in the market), and No. 179 Prince Edward Road West
(surround the market) (Map 9) in the following sub-sections.

331

Map 9.

Map of No. 1 Flower Market Road (top circle) and No. 179
Prince Edward Road West (bottom circle) (Source: Google Map)

5.11.1

Urban Renewal and Change of Nearby Landscape

The Case of No. 1 Flower Market Road

Enhancing streetscape hardware and the use of the Cultural-art Flower

Market theme manifests a cultural tourism-driven approach to planning and
development. According to this logic, businesses that are not in line with the
URAs themed redevelopment will be driven away. In 1968, Honda Motors Ltd.
established their open air display room at the entrance of Flower Market Road
(Simon) (Figure 5.12). But it has moved away since July 2010 because the URA
found an excuse to evict it. The Buildings Department was called in to
persistently charge the Honda showroom premise for building many illegal
structures (Wong Wai Chun). Since the eviction, a 4-month renovation ensured,
turning the area into a market bazaar 123 (Figure 5.13) befitting URAs theme.
Middle-class shops have opened at the back of the bazaar, such as Pacific
123

The One Flower Market has operated for one year since October, 2010 by offering
temporary stalls for people to rent. The format is like running a hawker pitch. However, this flea
market has terminated because of some contract disputes. The area allocated to parking space has
been changed to temporary hawker stalls. Rents starts from HK$10,000 to HK$15,000 per month,
but the area has stopped running as hawker stalls now (Mui A08).
332

Coffee 124, an oyster bar, a grill restaurant and a flower shop (Figure 5.14). The
entry of middle-class shops into this part of the city, such as the coffee shop and
the oyster bar, and different kinds of rented street stalls represent the gentrified
middle class enterprise and lifestyle welcomed by URA. The landscape of these
new shops clearly targets middle class customers. The bazaar functions as a
buffer between up-scale development and the remaining, more grassroot
residential area, with its occasional flower market customers.

Figure 5.12.

Honda display room before 2010 (Source: Google Earth)

124

Pacific Coffee is a chain of coffeehouses first founded in Seattle, in the United States. The
corporation first established a store in Hong Kong in 1992. It aims at providing world-class
coffee, food and comfortable surroundings with in-store internet facilities. As of 2011 in has
opened 102 stores in Hong Kong.
333

Figure 5.13.

Market bazaar of No. 1 Flower Market Road

(Source: The One Flower Market)

Figure 5.14.

Middle-class shops behind the market bazaar of No. 1 Flower

Market Road

However, what makes this kind of gentrified urban renewal harmful to the
local community is that, although the shops are relatively welcoming to the local
people, rent is driven up quickly to levels no longer affordable to the original
community and existing flower businesses. There is already signs of rent
pressure and displacement of original businesses. Urban renewal as such might
appear to be aesthetically pleasing to the passer-by and the consumer, but it is
334

done at the cost of much hidden and violent destruction and displacement of
ordinary culture and quotidian livelihood.

After the announcement of the heritage preservation project in the flower

market in 2010, average rent has increased from HK$40 per square feet in 2008,
to HK$60 per square feet in 2010. Rent in commercial premises in the vicinity of
the flower market ranges from HK$50 to HK$90, depending on the location. The
closer to Flower Market Road, the higher is the rent. For instance, rent for a 600
square feet commercial premise at Prince Edward Road West costs HK$40,000
per month, at HK$67 per square feet (Flower Market). The mere anticipation
of the URAs heritage preservation and revitalisation project has already
succeeded in raising real estate market expectations for the area, proved by the
rapid rent increase in both commercial premises and residential buildings in the
vicinity. Thus, gentrified urban renewal allows the rich to accumulate capital,
while dispossessing the capital of working class people and small and medium
enterprises. Heritage is commodified and becomes a spatial fix that leads to a
form of class domination and capital accumulation. The requirements of capital
not only applies to the trade of goods, but also leads to the investment of
profitable ventures of a place with a high flow of people, such as Mong Kok.

335

5.11.2

Gentrification around the Flower Market: No. 179

Prince Edward Road West

The URA project also increases the development potential in the nearby
area. The government attempts to preserve a nearby Grade 3 Tong Lau
buildings 125 listed by AMO by offering incentives to private property efforts. The
Tai Hung Fai Enterprise Company () successfully bid for the
ownership of a 74-year-old shophouse at 179 Prince Edward Road West, Mong
Kok (Ng, Joyce b; Qiao Si 69) (Figure 5.15). The shophouse, and one next door,
were built by Wong Yiu Nam, whose father Wong Wong Choi was a co-founder
of China Motor Bus Company. Leong Siu Hung, chairman of developer Tai
Hung Fai Enterprise Company said that he has been considering a demolition of
this site since 2007, but changed his mind after the DevB approached him with
the incentive of relaxing the plot ratio restrictions on the site. The faade of the
grade-three historical building will remain, whilst a 13-storey hotel rises behind
it (Figure 5.16). Preserving only the faade appears to have become the norm for
grade-three buildings, which have no legal protection from demolition. This is an
Art Deco building with features such as the veranda, balconies, curved corners,
pediments and timber staircases. The construction of a 13-storey hotel would
cost tens of millions, but the preservation work would double the sum to about
HK$120 million. Leong plans to preserve the faade and the front garden as the
hotel lobby. The second floor of the shophouse will be open to the public for free
as an exhibition gallery, featuring old photographs of the building and Prince
Edward Road. The other two floors will be restaurants.

125

Grade 3 means buildings of some merits in which preservation in some form would be
desirable and alternative means could be considered if preservation is not practicable. More
details of AMO grading could be found in footnote 160.
336

Leongs planning implies that heritage preservation is merely a way to

market a themed boutique hotel. Its emphasis is on appreciating and protecting
the faade/appearance of the architecture, but not the social life or cultural
character of the district. The government argues that the form of economic
incentive should be commensurate with the heritage value of the historic
building. The DevB takes account of other relevant factors, including planning
parameters, land status and condition, as well as the special circumstances of
each case. The preservation of this Tong Lau building involved a minor
relaxation of plot ratio (Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Legislative
Council h 5). The bureaus provision of economic incentive directs developers to
preserve buildings in such a way that developmentalism and economic viability
of buildings are prioritized over historical and cultural preservation. For the
DevB, giving a corporation millions in profit through relaxed plot ratio implying
much less land premium revenue for the government and allowing it to demolish
a Grade 3 Tong Lau building and preserve only the faade is acceptable so long
as the project does not hinder development and in effect, prioritizes
development.

To conclude, the DevBs adaptive re-use measure is a way to repackage

urban redevelopment and gentrification in the name of heritage preservation.
This is but a new culturally-framed bottle of old developmentalism. For the
government, conservation and development are opposed goals. Conservation is
an obstacle to development for the government. Therefore, economic viability is
the top priority in its heritage preservation policy. As a result, the government
provides economic incentives, such as the relaxation of plot ratio to attract
investors to such projects. This is in effect, a form of corporate welfare, or what
337

Mark Purcell calls aidez-faire, the rolling-out of pro-market neoliberal policies

(Purcell 18). In the process, the DevB has also encouraged developers to adopt
its condescending, orientalist and fetishistic attitude towards local culture. Thus,
the cultural assumption of this 21st century neoliberal developmentalism that
relies on the repackaging of urban renewal in the name of heritage revitalisation
follows the same cultural logic and orientalist mentality of the 19th century
colonialist developmentalism. In essence, their cultural assumptions are the
same.

This kind of developmentalism fetishizes vernacular culture, reducing it to a

mere means to theme and market a hotel development. Tourists might be able to
happily indulge in the cheesy replica of local history, but where in the project is
there improvement for the local communitys quality of life, as claimed by the
mission statement of the URA? How has any one from the present local
community benefitted from heritage preservation projects as such?

How can heritage revitalisation become really viable for the existing
community? The answer seems to be viable forms of reusing vernacular culture
in ways that are gently and positively transformative but not violently disruptive.
Heritage and tradition are unstable concepts. With reference to Chang and
Teo discussed in Section 5.3, heritage preservation ought to be a way for
improving quality of life, but not only the quality of place. Preservation should
not over-emphasise the architectures aesthetic value, and should also value local
needs.

338

Figure 5.15.

Existing Tong Lau building at No. 179 Prince Edward Road West
(Source: Google Earth)

Figure 5.16.

Illustrations for the future of No. 179 Prince Edward Road West
heritage preservation development
(Source: Singtao Daily - Old Western)

339

5.12

Chapter Summary

This chapter investigates a culture-led heritage preservation and

revitalisation projects launched by the URA. As shown in my case studies, the
government seems unable to respond to the change of values of heritage
preservation launched after a series of bottom-up heritage preservation
movements, including Lee Tung Street social movement, Star Ferry Pier social
movement and Queens Pier social movement, which demanded a genuine
democratic structure. The following diagram demonstrates the power relation
between the URA, the government officials in the Planning Department, and
ordinary people in which coloniality is embedded through different measures of
top-down and dictatorial government decisions (Figure 5.17).

URA

Business Operators in
Flower Market

Figure 5.17.

Relational mapping of the Urban Renewal Authority and flower

traders in the flower market

The government designed a comprehensive planning system that allows it

to legitimise its reasoning of heritage preservation and revitalisation without
responding to peoples request. Although the government launched public
consultation, it did not incorporate peoples questions and suggestions. The
340

process even allowed the government to twist the DCs negative comments and
misled people so that the URA could avoid directly addressing the issues. This
manipulation implies that the government departments are co-operating with
each other by reducing negative opinion so that the planning process could run
smoothly. On the other hand, people might not fully understand governments
reasoning of heritage preservation and how to improve the business environment.
Public consultation remains a standard procedure of planning process without
considering peoples opinion. It implies that the government believes that
ordinary people are unworthy of genuine consultation and not sophisticated and
knowledgeable enough to give relevant advice. Government officials believe that
ordinary people do not understand the governments complicated, long term
planning. What we can observe in this urban renewal process is how he
government distrust ordinary people and treat them condescendingly and
paternatlistically, not unlike the way early colonisers used to assume the
colonised as petty, sly and untrustworthy rabbles only aiming to maximise their
profits or seek compensation. Therefore, the government avoids dealing with real
measures to improve the business environment and solve the daily struggles
between law enforcement and florists once and for all (as described in Chapter 4),
but instead, attempts merely to enhance the physical environment of the place,
hoping to embrace local characteristics in the branding. Therefore, as shown in
Figure 5.17, government officials, such as the URA, are located at the top of the
power play foreseeing the general picture of how the project should run and the
power of having an authoritative decision making power. Ordinary people
however, regardless of how knowledgeable they are about the place, and how
strong their arguments, are not as credible and trusted as the professionals. At the
same time, for the government, too many view points from the public creates a
341

chaotic situation and an unfairness might result since certain peoples opinion
could be adopted while others opinions are not. The government would rather
hold the final decision and not consider all view points. This mentality implies
that the government believes the people to be by and largely incapable of
understanding the reasoning of their decisions. Therefore, embedded colonial
arrogance and elitism is hidden in the public consultation measures operating
through an underlying principle that is undemocratic and non-transparent.

At the same time, gentrification is the result of the governments heritage

preservation and revitalisation projects. The government does not consider using
Tong Lau space, and other social contexts of the place, as a local characteristic;
rather it treats them as merely enhancing the streetscape, as their main duty is to
upgrade the physical environment of the place. It results in attracting investors
and predominately middle and high class consumers to shop in the place. This
leads to land speculation and might even make the rents even higher, which is
unfavourable to business operators. However, the problem of the conflict
between law enforcement, florists and residents remain unresolved. This implies
that the government focuses on development, which is to say, using economic
viability as a measure of the success of the place. It implies that the
governments logic puts conservation and development into opposition with
economic development being privileged and prioritized. Therefore, the
government provides an economic incentive to developers for heritage
conservation, such as a relaxation of plot ratio in new buildings, and the
allowance of drastic destruction to graded heritage buildings, as in the example
of Tong Lau in No. 179 Prince Edward Road West where only a faade remains.
The mentality of fearing heritage preservation as a hindrance to development is a
342

result of an embedded coloniality because the subjectivity of ordinary people and

local history are not well-regarded by the government. To conclude, the newly
launched culture-led preservation heritage and revitalisation projects in the Mong
Kok Flower Market cannot respond to the changing attitude of heritage
preservation raised after the Two Pier Incident.

343

Chapter 6
CONCLUSION
Throughout the thesis I have defined subaltern studies and subaltern
historiography as involving the whole process that colonised people go through
to re-discover and reflect on their historical and current relationship with the
colonisers in terms of governmentality. In this light, I regard postcolonial
theories as a way to help in a process of decolonisation. The British
government implanted coloniality firmly in Hong Kong society through a
sophisticated network of colonial relations in daily operational logic and in the
practice of the city. This coloniality is hard to be conscious of but affects all
manner of everyday life. Therefore, this research studied Hong Kongs flower
industry as a demonstration of the effects of coloniality on society. Embedded
coloniality is a process in which injustices are institutionalised into societys
accepted values and into the logic of daily experience, and thus normalises and
legitimates these injustices. These inequities are also integrated into executive
protocols, bureaucratic practices and laws directly governing the government and
semi-governmental bodies, and indirectly shaping the general public. Such
practices imply that colonial mentality is practiced in daily life, in routines and
familiar circuits, and therefore its unfairness remains unquestioned. This
mentality lies not just in ideology, but has also been shown in daily life practices.
Coloniality, similar to other political ideologies, integrates cultural practices as a
way to make people follow its logic unconsciously. I will conclude my thesis in
five sections: (1) The necessities of acknowledging embedded coloniality, (2)
Negotiation between government and elites, (3) Ignorance of the needs of the
344

flower industry, (4) Public policies as a tool for facilitating economic progress
and (5) Complexity of an agency.

6.1

The Necessities of Acknowledging Embedded

Coloniality
All the way through this thesis I have stressed that embedded coloniality

exists in well-accepted values operating within the logic of everyday life.

Acknowledging embedded coloniality in government practices, protocols,
bureaucratic practices and laws is important because it is indispensible for
decolonisation. Coloniality is indeed celebrated by governments for the fact that
the continuation of previous colonial rule is the means through which hegemony
is established. A rediscovery of quotidian culture empowers people to have a
certain agency and reclaim their subjectivity, and it allows a point of intervention
which moves them toward a deconstruction of an elitist social order. By
exploring the flower industry as a case study, we see how the government treats
vibrant quotidian culture as merely a matter of leisure activity, and offers very
little assistance for industrial development. As a result, this hinders the
professional development of the flower industry. Embedded coloniality allows
people to re-think their past and recognise that things could have been developed
in other ways. My use of subaltern historiography enables readers to have a deep
understanding on the history and social development of a place. It allows people
to notice their own situation as never being a natural process but a well planned
situation designed by the government. Subaltern historiography allows people to
understand their past trajectory and would be able to open up future possibilities
for new suggestions on their own situation that mainstream discourse has not
345

mentioned. I do not intend to argue that all development is undesirable; actually,

economic and social progresses clearly have benefits for society since it
improves peoples lives and makes things more convenient. My thesis challenges
a hegemonic and unbalanced approach to development that places too much
emphasis on a single direction of societal development and assumes that ordinary
people should be grateful for economic progress the fruits of which may not be
available to the underprivileged, and the cost of which is born by the poor and
marginalised.

6.2

Negotiation between Government and Elites

My research findings reveal that the government adopted negotiation as a

mode of governance in a way that injustice became institutionalised into

societys well-accepted values. The importance of negotiation was also identified
in the governments planning process through collaboration between various
departments. As shown in Chapter 5, a heritage preservation project was carried
out in a row of Tong Lau buildings. In this process the TPB misrepresented a
Mong Kok district councillors criticism about how piecemeal the plan was for
the community. The skilful collaboration between various government
departments allowed the URA to twist unfavourable comments in a way that the
URAs original plan remained unchallenged and was seemingly unassailable.

The government could not succeed in constant negotiation and manipulation

without the rural elites assistance, since resistance would have been easily raised
among the public. Only through a sophisticated network could coloniality
operate in the logic of everyday practice.

346

6.3

Ignorance of the Needs of the Flower Industry

The government tended to use a laissez-faire policy in the flower industry

without seriously considering the needs of the workers. For instance, a Tai Po
district councillor who was also a flower cultivator, as discussed in Chapter 3,
showed the need of expanding his farm by renting government land that was left
undeveloped, as an indigenous inhabitants tso tong land. However, the AFCD
rejected the district councillors suggestion with an explanation that the Lands
Department charges a normal price for the use of government land which costs a
lot of money. Therefore, the AFCD did not encourage farmers to use government
land next to their farm. The inflexibility of the government in land administration
discouraged farming activities because they generate relatively less income than
other industries.

The government also tends to ignore the frequent requests of creating a

permanent wholesale flower market for flower traders. In Chapter 4, I
demonstrated flower traders repeated requests for a permanent market. LegCo
members also helped the industry in making its requests, but the government did
not respond proactively. In the late 1980s, the AFCD attempted to provide a
wholesale market in Cheung Sha Wan for the flower traders, but the suggested
location was not amenable to the needs of the florists. In the early 2000s, the
Lands Department also suggested offering a flower market in Chai Wan in Hong
Kong Island but the location was too remote and the government abandoned the
plan finally. The flower traders could only remain in their existing location that
was organically formed but the problems exist in the market continues: since
flower traders rent or buy commercial premises on the ground floor of high-rise

347

residential buildings, the residents constantly complain about the florists

obstructing the street and creating hygiene problems. Therefore, law enforcement
officers patrolled the vicinity of the flower market twice a day. The officers
would issue penalty fines to serious offenders. However, the government seems
not to have considered the needs of the florists and the reason why they need to
display goods in front of their shops. This led to an unstable business
environment for the florists which hindered industrial development.

In the revitalisation project, the URA had a chance to renew the vicinity of
the market. According to a feasibility study, various stakeholders, including
pedestrians, residents and flower traders were interviewed in order to ascertain
their priorities for improving the district. All of them listed the top priority as
widening the pavements in the market. But the URA did not respond to this
particular request. The focus of the revitalisation was to beautify the place. At the
same time, the URAs heritage preservation project in the market inclines toward
preserving architecture without paying enough attention to the socio-cultural
elements of the market. Public consultation has not been carried out thoroughly.
Peoples opinions were not included in a hegemonic decision-making process.
The enhancement of heritage buildings was not only unable to address peoples
request for greater participation in decision-making, the URAs heritage
preservation and revitalisation projects helped to improve the physical
appearance of the place, and thereby attracted investors to renovate the market
and its surrounding areas and thus opened the way for gentrification. As a result,
the URAs work created negative consequence for ordinary people, who are
supposedly within the URAs development plan.

348

6.4

Public Policies as a Tool for Facilitating Economic

Progress
My findings reveal that the government used public policies as a tool for

facilitating economic progress without paying much attention to a diversity of

culture in the city. For instance, Chapter 4 described how the USD and FEHD
adopted a hawker control policy to regulate the flower traders in the vicinity of
the flower market in the colonial and postcolonial period. The government
emphasises on economic progress and neglects other culture, such as the
hawking culture that makes a street lively. Instead, the government coerces
hawkers in the street so that it is easier for the government to manage and the
government attempts to minimise hawkers in Hong Kong since they were seen as
a nuisance to society. Therefore, the policy managed the hawkers and kept their
number as low as possible. This mentality was also shown in the relocation of
the flower hawkers to the volleyball courts of the Fa Hui Park in the late 1980s.
Despite the need of longer business hours for the flower hawkers, the official
opening-time of the legitimate flower market was mid-night, after the closure of
sport activities in the park. Other unofficial trading activities were treated as
illegal. In the postcolonial period, even flower traders working from rented or
owed commercial premises had problems because of their need to display goods
in the front of their shops proved unbearable for local residents. As a result, law
enforcement officers punished the flower traders for street obstruction and
nuisance. The governments street management mentality was oriented toward
more powerful economic sectors. But this mentality increase the financial burden
of hawkers since they tend to this form of trading as to save operation costs in
renting or buying commercial premises. In this light, land developers have
349

benefited the most from public policy.

Chapter 5 demonstrated that gentrification was the result of the URAs

heritage preservation policy and practice of revitalisation. Since the URAs effort
of upgrading the physical condition of the market areas caused a sharp increase
in rents in the vicinity of the flower market. I also concluded that the DevB
provided economic incentive to land developers for Tong Lau preservation
around the flower market. All these practices indicate that the government is
pro-development and is eager for economic progress without paying much
attention to the quotidian culture of ordinary people.

6.5

Complexity of an Agency
Researchers should handle historical and social complexities with great care.

Researchers should look at the mix of intended and unintended outcomes in

history, disjuncture of thoughts and actions, institutional rigidities and chance
happenings, clashes of agents, and the complex nature of the subalterns instead
of romanticising people as one big bloc of people. Without having mutual
understanding of each other, even people within the same category might have
different opinions. At the same time, the coloniser is also not a single entity.
Some colonial officials might support the continuation of village life in relatively
undisturbed forms. Other officials believe in developing rural Hong Kong. We
should not reduce the complexity of opinions even among people within the
same category. However, because the government does not have a coherent and
sustainable policy, it is hard to do long term planning, and the coloniser, as can
be observed in the main thrust of its policies over most of the time, is clearly one

350

that sees itself as an agent to assist the accumulation and growth of capitalism,
whether it be the colonial brand of global capitalism or the postcolonial brand of
neoliberal global capitalism. In any case, the main thrust of its policies cannot in
any way claim to be one that consistently prioritizes the welfare and priorities of
the local subaltern population.

My thesis does not only add to the scholarship of subaltern studies which
generally has a more narrow focus on the agency of subalterns, but also
continues to disclose the unwritten power dynamics between the government, the
elites and ordinary people.

351

Geographical Names
English
Argyle Street

Chinese

Battery Street

Boundary Street

Boundary Street Sports Centre No. 1

Chai Wan

Duke Street

Embankment Road

Fa Hui

Fa Hui Park

Fa Hui Village

Fa Yuen Street

Fanling

Flower Market Road

Goldfish Street

Jade Market

Kansu Street

Knight Street

Kowloon City

Lee Tung Street

Mong Kok Flower Market

Mong Kok Road

Mong Kok Stadium

Nathan Road

Playground Field Road

Prince Edward Road

Prince Edward Road West

Queens Pier

Sai Kung

Sai Yee Street

Sai Yeung Choi Street

San Ha Street

Sham Shui Po

Shanghai Street

352

English

Chinese

Shataukok

Shatin

Sheung Shui

Soy Street

Sportwears Street

Star Ferry Pier

Tai Po

Tates Cairn

Tong Kung Leng

Tsuen Wan

Tsz Wan Shan

Tung Choi Street

Yau Ma Tei

Yi Wah Avenue

Yingge

Yuen Long

Yuen Ngai Street

Yuen Po Street

353

Glossary
English
Central District values

Chinese

Flowers, Blossoms, Prosperity

fresh cut-flower port

one city two systems

Art Mount
blissful funeral

China Mail

Chinese-Hong Kong Cut-flower Industry

Association Flower Market

dawn market

di chan

dou

dou chong

fengshui

Flower Workers Association Flower Market

Section
freezing survey

Golden Dragon School Uniforms

grain seeds

Heung Yee Kuk

Hong Kong and Kowloon Flower and Plant
Workers General Union

Hong Kong Wholesale Florist Association

ji

ladle

Land Exchange Entitlement

light intensity for the control of flowering
chrysanthemum

Lunar New Year fair stalls

Mandarin Film Company

Ota Floriculture Auction Co. Ltd

Panku

Po Shing Shoe Company

354

English

Chinese

san bu guan

shen tai hua

Shiji

shou sui

Shunde district
Tai Hung Fai Enterprise Company

Tang dynasty

Tong land

Tong Lau

Tso land

Tso Tong Company

Tuan nian fan

xu

yin tat

355

Appendix 1
Semi-structured Interview Guidelines
A. Interview with Flower Shops in the Mong Kok Flower Market
(Translation)
History of the Flower Market
1. How did the Flower Market form?
2. Did it first start in Flower Market Road?
Network of Flower Shop
3. When did you move to the Flower Market? Why did you move here? Have
you changed your shop location among the market?
4. Do you have any partnership? If yes, how did you collaborate?
Probes: Among different flower shops, flower arrangement school, hotel
decoration, wedding banquet service, funeral service, etc.
5. Where do your goods originate?
Probes: Gardens/ farms in the NT, any other countries
6. What is the standard of FEHD officers they ask you to move away your
goods in your shop front?
7. What is the role of policeman in the market?
8. What do you think about infrastructure in the market? Is there enough
places, toilet and drainage system?
Customer Network
9. What are your customers (including individuals, companies and retail
flower shops)? Do they pick up your goods by themselves, or do you
deliver goods to your customers?
Future Development
10. What do you think the future Flower Market should be?

356

A.

1. ?
2. ?

3. ???
4. ?? ?
Probes: ,,,
5. ?
Probes: ,,?
6. ?
7. ?
8. ? ??

9. ()? ?

10. ?

357

B. Interview with Flower Shop (Outside Flower Market)

(Translation)
Operation of a Flower Shop
1. When did you and your family first start running a flower shop?
2. What is your daily operation (receiving goods, purchasing goods, delivery,
etc)
3. Where are your goods come from? How did you get your goods?
4. What types of customers do you have (e.g. ordinary customers, company,
wedding, funeral, hotel, etc)
5. Do you have any criteria of hiring a staff member? What do you think about
the certificate courses of flower arrangement? Is it necessary for being your
staff?
6. What is the peak and not-so-peak season?
Flower Industry Development
(including wholesale and retail flower shop, flower arrangement school, etc)
7. Where do your flowers come from? What types of flowers would local
flower cultivators provide?
8. When did people import flower goods?
9. Are there any regulations among the flower industry?
10. Is there any change in consumption habits, and the habits of flower
decoration?
Activities and Organisations related to Flowers
11. What do you think about the Mong Kok Flower Market? What is the
advantage? How could you improve it?
12. How do you order goods from wholesalers?
13. Are you a member of Hong Kong Flower Retailers Association? Is there
any union that is related to flower?
14. What do you think about the Hong Kong Flower Show organised by LCSD?

358

B.

1. ?
2. ? ()
3. ? ?
?
4. ? ()
5. ? ?
6. ?
()
7. ??
8. ?
9. ??
10. ?

11. ???
12. ?
13. ?
?
14. ?

359

Appendix 2
Interview List
Pseudonym Sex

Occupation

Brief Background
Descriptions

Date of
Interview

1.

Person A

Employee in a
flower shop
located at the
Mong Kok
Flower Market

She has started working in

the flower shop for 1
week. Her knowledge in
flower caring is from her
employer and webpages
that she searches.

5/10/2010

2.

Person B

Employee in a
flower shop
located at the
Mong Kok
Flower Market
(inside the area of
heritage
preservation)

She has started working in

the flower shop for 4
years.

5/10/2010

3.

Person C

Business operator
in the flower
market

She has started her

business for more than 10
years.

5/10/2010

4.

Person D

Principal of a
flower
arrangement
school

He has started the business 8/10/2010

for 4 years. He started to
appreciate the beauty of
floral art when he was
travelling in Taipei, a
place called Yingge ()
where is full of ceramics.
Flowers are arranged
nicely. He started learning
floral art when he returns
to Hong Kong.

360

5.

Person E

Principal of a
flower
arrangement
school

She sets up the school in

10/11/2010
1989. The school offers the
professional flower
courses in various style,
such as British, the
Netherland and Japanese.

6.

Person F

Online flower
shop operator

She sets up an online

flower shop with a partner
that she knows during a
flower arranging course.

7.

Person G

Son of a flower
shop owner

He runs a flower shop

21/11/2010
inside a wet market in Wan
Chai. He works in the shop
full-time after Secondary
7. He has worked in the
industry for more than 10
years. He also sells flowers
online through Internet
bidding service.

8.

Person H

Chairman of
Hong Kong
Flower Club,
principal of a
flower
arrangement
school

He provides floral
consultation and design
services ranging from big
events, such as weddings
and corporate occasions, to
small couture items such
as bouquets and corsages.

9.

Person I
and J

M
&F

Flower cultivator
in Yuen Long

Person I and J are couples. 2/12/2010

Person I was interested in
flower when he was in
primary school. He started
cultivating flowers since
Secondary 2, and has been
working for more than 30
years. His first farm was
located in Shatin, but
because of the construction
of Shing Mun Tunnel, their
land was reclaimed in

361

19/11/2010

23/11/2010

1985. He moved to another

land in Shek Kong, Yuen
Long, but his land was
partly being reclaimed
because of the construction
of XRL.
10. Person K

Flower shop
owner next to a
funeral home

He works in the flower

industry for 20 years.

9/12/2010

11. Person L

Flower shop
owner in a 5-star
hotel

He works in the flower

industry for 10 years.

1/1/2011

12. Person M

Wedding planner

He runs his wedding

1/1/2011
planner business for 3
years. He provides various
price range of flower
service to the customers.
He would contact the floral
designer.

13. Person N

Flower cultivator
in Mui Wo,
specialise in
peach blossom

He is a part-time flower
cultivator. He has a full
time job and return to the
field one month before
CNY. The field was
inherited from his father,
who is an AFCD
ex-officers.

14. Person O

Flower cultivator
in Shatin

Her family runs a

31/1/2011
gardening business in
Shatin for 30 years. She
helps before the period of
CNY since it is busy. Their
garden was originally
located in Tsz Wan Shan,
because of governments
development, their garden
was moved to lower part
of Tates Cairn, and later to

362

28/1/2011

the top of Tates Cairn.

15. Person P

Flower cultivator
in Shatin

He is the brother of Person

O. His family runs a
gardening business in
Shatin for 30 years. He
works full time in the
business. He attended
arboriculture course and
help to diversify the
business in writing tree
risk assessment reports.

31/1/2011

16. Person Q

Flower cultivator
in Shatin

He is the uncle of Person

O and P. He works in the
business for 30 years.

31/1/2011

17. Person R

Executive
member of Hong
Kong and
Kowloon Flower
and Plant Workers
General Union

He works as a flower
cultivator for 40 years. He
is also the chairman of
Hong Kong Florists
Association and a member
of AFCDs Advisory
Committee on Agriculture
and Fisheries.

31/1/2011

18. Person S

Employee in a
flower shop
located at the
Mong Kok
Flower Market.
She sold flowers
in a commercial
booth in Hong
Kong Flower
Show 2011.

20/3/2011

363

Appendix 3
Timeline of Development of the
Mong Kok Flower Market
Date
Before 1898

Descriptions
Flower Market at Boundary Street organically formed

1955

Fire hazard in Flower Market Village

1957

Street flower trading along Boundary Street

1965

Termination of flower trading along Boundary Street because

of the opening of Lunar New Year Fairs at Fa Hui Park;
Trading around the area of Flower Market Road

1982

Urban Council arranged flower trading in Fa Hui Parks

volleyball court

8/4/1989

Slow-drive protest in flower market

10/1989

AFD proposed to move to Cheung Sha Wan Vegetables

Wholesale Market

27/8/1997

Legco member Lo Suk Ching proposed to the government

about allocation of land for the construction of a wholesale
flower market in a Provisional LegCo Meeting

6/10/1997

Legco member Lo Suk Ching explained the development

potential of Hong Kongs flower farming and enquired about
the government about its plan to promote this sector in a
Provisional LegCo Meeting, Panel on Economic Services

8/1999
4/9/1999

Rumour of the development of fresh cut-flower port

CE clarifies that there is no such a plan of developing fresh
cut-flower port

27/4/2000

Legco members proposed to the government about developing

a permanent flower market

10/5/2001

Former U.S. President Bill Clinton visited Flower Market

3/3/2003

Lands Department proposed a 3,000 square feet flower market

in Chai Wan

28/7/2003

Lands Department withdraw the land for Chai Wans flower

market

21/8/2004

Intense conflict between FEHD and flower shop operator

364

Date
15/1/2006
2/2006

29/12/2006

Descriptions
Protest in flower market about the intensive issuance of
penalty tickets before CNY
The Planning Department commissioned a consultancy firm,
Maunsell-EDAW Joint Venture, to conduct a feasibility study
the Area Improvement Plan for the Shopping Areas of Mong
Kok
Meeting between FEHD, DC members and flower shop
operators about the street obstruction

30/1/2007

Summary of discussions and decisions of the third special

meeting of the Yau Tsim Mong District Council. Meeting on
Proposal for Flower Trading by Vendors in the Vicinity of the
Flower Market to establish an agreement with the florists to
regular the space of extension of shop front

19/9/2008

The URA notified in the government gazette the

commencement of implementation of DSP

20/9/2008

URA announcement of heritage preservation in Prince Edward

Road West and Yuen Ngai Street. Freezing survey was done on
the same day to record current usage of the flat

4/10/2008

A brainstorming session was held by the URA aiming to gauge

stakeholders views on the future adaptive re-use

16/1/2009

The URA submitted a draft DSP to TPB

29/4/2009

LegCo Meeting. Speech by Chow Yat Ngok, York, Secretary

for Food and Health

7/2009

Planning Department completed its consultation and published

Area Improvement Plan for the Shopping Areas of Mong
Kok

31/8/2009

URA initiates area-based revitalisation plan for Mong Kok

17/9/2009

URA proposed to Mong Kok DC about the revitalisation

project in Flower Market Road

9/2009

Temporary closure of Mong Kok Stadium for repair. No

carpark space

365

Date
9/2009

30/10/2009

Descriptions
The Flower Union suggested the Home Affairs Bureau to
relocate NT flower cultivators to three places: the nursery area
in the Flower Market Road, Fa Yu Street (from Sportfield
Road to Boundary Street) and Prince Edward Road West (from
Yuen Ngai Street to Yuen Po Street) but all suggestions were
turned down
Discussion of URAs plan in TPBs meeting

28/1/2010

Home Affairs Bureau suggested NT flower cultivators to use a

piece of Government land beside Jade Market at Yau Ma Tei
for flower selling

2/2010

NT flower cultivators able to go to Boundary Street Sports

Centre No. 1, a place that is nearer to Mong Kok Stadium, and
run six days before CNY

25/3/2010
6/7/2010
4/12/2010

Property acquisition for the preservation and revitalisation

project starts
URA reports to DC about a survey report on citizens
comment on the use of facilities
Intense conflict between FEHD and a flower shop operator

2/2011

NT flower cultivators went to Boundary Street Sports Centre

No. 1 to run business six days before CNY

2/2011

URA announcement of the revitalisation plan in the Flower

Market

16/10/2011
11/2011

Mong Kok Stadium Reopening

First flower shop move away from the URA proposed site for
heritage preservation

7/11/2011

Leung Chun Ying, candidate of CE election 2012 and the

winner, visited the flower market

18/1/2012

Flower farmers return to car park of Mong Kok Stadium to

sell flowers five days before CNY

366

Appendix 4
Ground Floor Distribution of the
Mong Kok Flower Market
(Updated on 17 March 2012)
Name (Chinese)

Name (English)*

Address

Types

Pacific Coffee Co.

Shop D, 152 Prince Edward Road West C7

At One Garden

Shop E, 152 Prince Edward Road West C6

Lotus Seafood Bar and Grill

Shop E1 , 152 Prince Edward Road

(Closed down)

West

C7

Chat Hei Flower Shop

O/S, 215 Sai Yee Street

C3

()

Brighten (Orchid Centre)

215 Sai Yee Street

C3

Tong Lau

215-217 Sai Yee Street

Sweet Blossoms

217 Sai Yee Street

C3

Hyponex

219 Sai Yee Street

C6

Tong Lau

219-221 Sai Yee Street

Mountain City Plant Co.

221 Sai Yee Street

C4

King Yuen Garden

223 Sai Yee Street

C4

Tong Lau

223-225 Sai Yee Street

Evangelical Free Church of China

227 Sai Yee Street

C7

King Yuen Garden

227 Sai Yee Street

C4

Japan Flowers

229 Sai Yee Street

C4

Circle Garden

229 Sai Yee Street

12-14 Playing Field Road

C4

() Hings (City Farmer Product Series)

12-14G Playing Field Road

Kam Ming Court

12-14 Playing Field Road

Art Garden

Shop F, 12-14 Playing Field Road

C6

Donkey Gardening

Shop E, 12-14 Playing Field Road

C2

Sweet Talk

Shop D, 12-14 Playing Field Road

C2

Fong Fong Florist

Shop C, 12-14 Playing Field Road

C2

Ah Chee Yuen Ngai Trading Co.

Shop B, 12-14 Playing Field Road

C2

Andy Property Agency Co.

Shop A1, 12-14 Playing Field Road

C7

Shop A2, 12-14 Playing Field Road

C4

Shop A, 232-242 Fa Yuen Street

C4

367

Name (Chinese)

Name (English)*

Address

Types

Honey's Flower

Shop B, 232-242 Fa Yuen Street

C4

Shop C, 232-242 Fa Yuen Street

C4

()

Safety (HK) Limited

Shop D, 232-242 Fa Yuen Street

C7

Peacelife Property Agency

Shop E1, 232-242 Fa Yuen Street

C7

Shop E2, 232-242 Fa Yuen Street

C3

Shop E3, 232-242 Fa Yuen Street

C7

Fashion Boutique
(No Name)

New World Flower (Trading) Co.

()

Ltd.

Shop F, 232-242 Fa Yuen Street

C1

Te Flowers Ltd

Shop G, 232-242 Fa Yuen Street

C6

Mongkok City Building

154-158 Prince Edward Road West

C7

()

Brighten (Green Spring)

158 Prince Edward Road West

C6

Ho Tat Building

160 Prince Edward Road West

C7

Ho Tin Tong

Shop A, 160 Prince Edward Road West C7

Sum Kee Yuen

162-164 Prince Edward Road West

C4

Workingbond Commercial Centre

162 Prince Edward Road West

C7

Shop 13-15, 162-164 Prince Edward

Wayfoong

Road West

C2

162 - 164 Prince Edward Road West

C2

Celebrity

164 Prince Edward Road West

Natural Buy Limited

166 Prince Edward Road West

C6

166-168 Prince Edward Road West

Natural Buy Limited

168 Prince Edward Road West

C6

Home Essence

170B Prince Edward Road West

C7

PALETTA

PALETTA

170C Prince Edward Road West

C5

Tak Hing Building

170-172 Prince Edward Road West

Alno Shoes Co.

172 Prince Edward Road West

C7

CIRCLE K

CIRCLE K

174 Prince Edward Road West

C7

Wai Yip House

174-176 Prince Edward Road West

The Supreme

176 Prince Edward Road West

C7

7 Eleven

7 Eleven

178 Prince Edward Road West

C7

Tai Wah Mansion

178-180 Prince Edward Road West

() Hings (City Farmer Product Series)

180 Prince Edward Road West

C6

UNCLE FONG

UNCLE FONG

182-184 Prince Edward Road West

C7

Cambo House

182-184 Prince Edward Road West

Far East Flora Co. Ltd

184 Prince Edward Road West

C2

368

Name (Chinese)

Name (English)*

Address

Types

Beauty Garden Art Co.

Shop A, 186 Prince Edward Road West C6

Wai Wai

Shop D, 186 Prince Edward Road West C6

Chun Fat Trading Co.

Shop A, 190 Prince Edward Road West C4

Tong Lau

190-192 Prince Edward Road West

()

Sing Kai Co. (Closed down)

192 Prince Edward Road West

C4

Golden Dragon School Uniform

194 Prince Edward Road West

C7

Eden Garden

194-196 Prince Edward Road West

C4

Tong Lau

194-196 Prince Edward Road West

Plant Ter

196 Prince Edward Road West

C4

Shang Sheung Garden

198 Prince Edward Road West

C4

Tong Lau

198-200 Prince Edward Road West

() Hings (City Farmer Product Series)

Shop A, 200 Prince Edward Road West C6

()

Art Mount (Closed down)

202 Prince Edward Road West

C6

Tong Lau

202 Prince Edward Road West

Kwan Kwan Garden Co.

204 Prince Edward Road West

C4

Pang Yuen Garden Co.

206 Prince Edward Road West

C4

Tong Lau

206-208 Prince Edward Road West

Pang Yuen Garden Co.

208 Prince Edward Road West

C4

Po Shing Shoe Co. Ltd

()

(Closed down)

210 Prince Edward Road West

C7

Tong Lau

210-212 Prince Edward Road West

Wah King Garden Arts Co. Ltd

212 Prince Edward Road West

C4

Wah King Garden Arts Co. Ltd

214 Prince Edward Road West

C4

Pobjoy Court

214-212 Prince Edward Road West

Rich Garden Restaurant

216 Prince Edward Road West

C7

La Fontana

218 Prince Edward Road West

C7

Long To Flower Co. Ltd

Shop A, 220 Prince Edward Road West C4

Kam Luen (Paul Lam) Tailors Ltd

220 Prince Edward Road West

C7

()

Brighten (Flori-Art Plaza)

1 Flower Market Road

C6

154 Prince Edward Road West

C4

Kai Kai Flower Shop

160 Prince Edward Road West

C2

Exland Nursery

Shop F, 160 Prince Edward Road West C4

Shun Tung Flower Shop

6 Flower Market Road

C2

Flower Villa

2-8 Flower Market Road

()

Brighten (Garden Centre)

8 Flower Market Road

C4

Mountain City Plant Co.

Shop A, 10 Flower Market Road

C4

369

Name (Chinese)

Name (English)*

Address

Types

Japan Trading

Shop B, 10 Flower Market Road

C4

King's Court

10-16 Flower Market Road

Connie Garden

Shop D, 10-16 Flower Market Road

C5

()

Brighten (Cut Flower Centre)

16 Flower Market Road

C2

()

Brighten (Great Time)

16 Flower Market Road

C2

Vogue Court

18 Flower Market Road

Universal Trading

22 Flower Market Road

C1

Barry Florist

24 Flower Market Road

C2

Ever Court

22-26 Flower Market Road

()

Brighten (Pot Plant Centre)

28 Flower Market Road

C4

Mandarin Court

28-36 Flower Market Road

Wah King Garden Arts

32 Flower Market Road

C4

Grand International Trading Co.,

()

Ltd.

34 Flower Market Road

C7

Sunlights Horticulture

Shop A, 34 Flower Market Road

C4

Sakura

36 Flower Market Road

C2

Coloured Thoughts

Shop F, 5 Yuen Ngai Street

C2

Perfect Flowers

Shop E, 5 Yuen Ngai Street

C2

Charming Florist

Shop D, 5 Yuen Ngai Street

C2

Sik Ngai Trading Company

Shop C, 5 Yuen Ngai Street

C2

()

Ashfield House (Block 2)

5-7 Yuen Ngai Street

Sin Fa Hin

Shop B, 5 Yuen Ngai Street

C2

Fu Kee Florist

Shop C2, 4-8 Yuen Ngai Street

C1

()

Ashfield House (Block 1)

4-8 Yuen Ngai Street

Po Hing Flower Co. Ltd

Shop B, 4-8 Yuen Ngai Street

C1

Shun Hing

Shop A, 4-8 Yuen Ngai Street

C1

Lun Li

38 Flower Market Road

C3

Tong Lau

38-40 Flower Market Road

Hung Fat Trading Co.

40 Flower Market Road

C6

Flower Trading Company

42 Flower Market Road

C1

Tong Lau

42-44 Flower Market Road

Chun Shing Trading Co. Ltd

44 Flower Market Road

C3

Florilegium Florist

46 Flower Market Road

C1

Florilegium Florist

48 Flower Market Road

C3

Luen Yick Flower Wholesale Ltd

50 Flower Market Road

C1

The Morning Sky

Shop 4, 50-56 Flower Market Road

C7

370

Name (Chinese)

Name (English)*

Address

Types

Springfield Court

50-56 Flower Market Road

Shing Hills

Shop 3, 50-56 Flower Market Road

C7

()

Brighten (Flower Wholesale)

56 Flower Market Road

C1

()

Hing Fat Flower (Wholesale)

56-58 Flower Market Road

C1

Tong Lau

58-60 Flower Market Road

Flora Flower Trading

60 Flower Market Road

C3

Hay Fever Floral and Gifts

62 Flower Market Road

C2

Ka Hing Court

62-64 Flower Market Road

66 Flower Market Road

C4

Tong Lau

66-68 Flower Market Road

Flowerland

68 Flower Market Road

C4

New Kin Shung Flower Trading Co. Shop A, 68 Flower Market Road

C1

Sun Kee Trading Co.

Shop A, 5 Yuen Po Street

C4

Shop A, 5 Yuen Po Street

C6

Nice Garden

Shop A and B, 3 Yuen Po Street

C3

Tong Lau

3 Yuen Po Street

Yee Fat Trading Ltd

1 Yuen Po Street

C4

Long To Flower Co. Ltd

Shop A, 5 Yuen Po Street

C4

Kingly House

218-220 Prince Edward Road West

7 Yuen Ngai Street

C1

Tong Lau

7 Yuen Ngai Street

Flora Flower Trading

5 Yuen Ngai Street

C3

Natural Buy Limited

3 Yuen Ngai Street

C6

1 Yuen Ngai Street

C1

Ling's Flowershop

Shop A, 188 Prince Edward Road West C1

186-188-188A Prince Edward Road

Yee On Building

West

Fai Kee Florist

188 Prince Edward Road West

C1

Pui Kee Florist

4-8 Yuen Ngai Street

C1

Tong Lau

2B Yuen Ngai Street

Prince Florist

Shop A, 2 Yuen Ngai Street

C1

Shop A, 2 Yuen Ngai Street

C1

Wah Thai Luen (HK) Trading Co.

190 Prince Edward Road West

C1

Shop B, 190 Prince Edward Road West C1

Clingo Florist Trading Ltd

371

Other Flower Shops outside the centre of the cluster

Name (Chinese)

Name (English)*

Address

Types

8 Playing Field Road

C1

Chun Tin Garden Limited

Shop 7-9, 15 Playing Field Road

C3

Mori Organic Garden

Shop C, 17-19 Playing Field Road

C6

Yee Ka Flower

227 Fa Yuen Street

C2

Thanks Floral Design

144 Tung Choi Street

C2

177 Prince Edward Road West

C5

Legends
Types
C1
C2
C3
C4
C5
C6
C7
R

Nature of Business
Cut Flowers Commercial
Flower Gift Commercial
Orchid Commercial
Potted Plants Commercial
Silk Flowers Commercial
Gardening Commercial
Non-Flower/ Horticulture Commercial
Residential

Colour shown in Map 2

Red
Pink
Purple
Dark Green
Orange
Light Green
Blue
Yellow

Remarks
*
Name of the shop is based on their Chinese name. English name might be
missing since some shops have not shown in the public.

372

Appendix 5
Agricultural Land Utilisation
(including land outside rural Outline Zoning Plans)
Unit in hectares
Year

Fresh water Market garden

paddy
crops*

Field
Crops

Orchard

Fish Pond

Abandoned
fallow

Total

1970

11,288

10,015

1,978

1,584

2,470

5,655 32,990

1971

9,319

10,332

1,759

1,570

2,689

6,935 32,604

1972

7,360

10,370

1,550

1,540

2,880

8,190 31,890

1973

5,640

11,190

1,120

1,590

3,290

8,610 31,440

1974

3,710

12,190

1,080

1,590

3,550

8,810 30,930

1975

1,110 (2,750)

4,980 (12,290) 380 (930)

650 (1,600) 1550 (3,840)

3,590 (8,860)

12260

1976

1,130 (2,780)

4,790 (11,840) 240 (590)

620 (1,520) 1880 (4,640)

3,240 (8,010)

11900

1977

330 (820)

4,090 (10,100) 100 (240)

500 (1,250) 1920 (4,740)

3,980 (9,830)

10920

1978

110 (280)

3,550 (8,760)

90 (220)

530 (1,310) 1960 (4,850) 4,150 (10,240)

10390

1979

40

3,410

90

580

1,830

1,120 10,070

1980

30

3,180

80

620

1,820

4,240

9,970

1981

10

2,970

80

690

1,840

4,260

9,850

1982

10

2,930

70

680

1,890

4,220

9,800

1983

10

2,810

60

670

2,100

4,100

9,750

1984

10

2,760

60

600

2090^^^

4,110

9,630

1985

10

2,720

50

540

2,080

4,150

9,550

1986

2,660

50

540

2,130

4,070

9,450

1987

2,510

50

530

2,110

4,070

9,270

1988

2,400

50

540

1810^^

4,060

8,860

1989

2,230

50

560

1720#

4,060

8,620

1990

2,090

50

580

1,660

4,040

8,420

1991

1,980

60

620

1,650

4,030

8,340

1992

1,810

50

620

1,620

4,100

8,200

1993

1,740

50

620

1610^

1,110

8,130

1994

1,600

50

630

1,580

1,040

7,900

1995

1,350

50

670

1,560

4,200

7,830

1996

1,240

40

670

1,480

4,240

7,670

1997

1,080

40

670

1,410

4,290

7,490

373

Year

Fresh water Market garden

paddy
crops*

Field
Crops

Orchard

Fish Pond

Abandoned
fallow

Total

1998

1,050

40

680

1,370

4,290

7,430

1999

880

40

670

1,370

4,310

7,270

2000

800

40

590

1,280

4,250

6,960

2001

720

40

570

1,250

4,180

6,760

Source: AFCD Annual Report

Remarks
( )
*
3
^
^^
^^^

Numbers in blanket represent discrepancy in annual report year

1978 and 1979
vegetables and flowers
including 340 ha of idle pond
including 280 ha of idle pond
including 410 ha of idle pond
including 450 ha of idle pond

374

Appendix 6
Number of Members in Hong Kong & Kowloon
Flower and Plant Worker General Union
Year

No. of Members

1989

4274

1990

4128

1991

4036

1992

3889

1993

3782

2000

2376

2001

2157

2002

1996

2003

1754

2004

1680

2005

1521

2006

1501

2007

1381

2008

1311

2009

1255

2010

1157

Source: Annual Statistical Report, Registry of Trade Unions, Labour Department.

375

Appendix 7
Farm Working Population by Industry
Industry

1961
1971
1976
1981
1986
(Full
(Full
(By(Full
(ByCensus) Census) Census) Census) Census)

1.

Farming,
Principal Crop - Rice

14,266

2,004

940

116

2.

Farming,
Principal Crop Vegetable

16,414

16,245

13,210

13,224

3.

Farming,
Principal Crop Flower

885

1,342

1,230

1,329

4.

Farming, Principal
Crop Fruit

372

304

--

105

5.

Farming,
Principally Pig Keepers

6,297

4,798

4,920

4,267

6,104

6.

Farming,
Principally Poultry
Keepers

5,501

5,852

4,460

4,830

5,110

7.

Farming,
not elsewhere classified

2,127

2,732

1,110

793

756

8.

Forestry and Trapping

736

736

260

35

413

46,598

34,013

26,130

24,699

26,131

Total
(Excluding pond fish farmers)

13,748

Source: Figures listed in the Proposal Study of Agricultural Land Uses and
Development, prepared by Central Data Section, Planning Department
in August 1990

376

Appendix 8
Summary of Agricultural Production
Estimated Values (Crops Only)
Year Flowers* Fruits Vegetables

Rice
Rice
(Paddy) (Straw)

(Mush- Field
room) Crops

Total

$000
1969

15,650

5,030

115,786

16,280

2,840

6,230

161,816

1970

16,434

6,460

159,106

13,831

2,680

6,500

205,011

1971

15,969

6,944

149,180

9,082

1,329

6,462

188,966

1972

19,995

7,370

186,297

6,959

1,812

7,623

230,056

1973

24,501 10,719

224,608

12,399

2,812

6,718

281,757

1974

26,001 10,288

191,595

5,284

2,030

6,236

241,434

1975

23,577

5,427

251,257

4,525

1,160

4,821

290,767

1976

35,510

8,191

281,110

4,339

1,437

5,456

336,043

1977

37,509

7,812

292,405

1,711

713

2,236

342,386

1978

41,692

7,641

347,741

488

174

2,406

400,142

1979

45,623

3,403

429,120

198

48

3,445

481,837

1980

42,449 22,191

456,181

169

32

2,975

523,999

1981

55,547 19,334

477,766

73

18

2,753

555,491

1982

72,929 31,075

468,100

91

23

2,240

574,458

1983

76,383 26,268

472,770

38

10

2,174

577,643

1984

75,313 12,496

380,010

85

19

2,169

470,092

1985

82,500

5,603

356,360

39

11

2,037

446,550

1986

86,279

7,068

345,700

16,002

1,828

440,876

1987

67,854

9,841

359,450

15,157

2,103

439,248

1988

72,686 10,722

331,701

13,697

2,269

417,378

1989

112,552 11,898

359,362

6,857

2,152

485,964

1990

111,996 19,568

294,295

4,661

2,132

427,991

1991

134,974 23,488

256,158

5,124

1,774

416,394

1992

156,646 13,764

271,191

2,925

817

442,418

1993

117,369 20,428

273,148

1,073

412,018

1994

163,352 47,085

275,801

901

487,139

1995

205,956 48,998

309,475

1,521

565,950

377

Year Flowers* Fruits Vegetables

Rice
Rice
(Paddy) (Straw)

(Mush- Field
room) Crops

Total

$000
1996

186,802 52,428

235,074

931

475,235

1997

175,924 41,927

206,704

2,240

426,795

1998

283,783 32,814

170,000

2,489

489,083

1999

278,626 40,027

123,000

1,190

442,843

2000

302,370 16,367

119,000

657

438,394

2001

255,147 11,868

95,420

600

363,035

Source: Agriculture and Fishery Department

Remarks
* Including pot plants and peach blossom

378

Appendix 9
Summary of Agricultural Production
Estimated Quantities (Crops Only)
Items

Flowers*
dozens

Fruits
tonnes

Vegetables
tonnes

Rice (Paddy)
tonnes

Rice (Straw)
tonnes

Field Crops
tonnes

1969

2,628,000 44,000

3,047,000

315,500

315,500

288,900

1970

2,814,000 54,000

3,002,000

268,500

268,500

390,100

1971

2,599,000 56,000

2,925,000

176,100

176,100

255,200

1972

3,815,000 55,000

2,879,000

129,300

129,300

247,400

1973

3,826,000 41,000

2,809,000

115,800

115,800

181,800

1974

4,277,000 56,400

2,959,000

50,900

77,400

132,800

1975

3,615,000

2,120

170,550

3,550

4,010

6,960

1976

4,599,000

2,880

197,230

3,450

4,840

6,840

1977

4,032,000

2,800

186,880

1,390

1,600

2,870

1978

3,395,000

2,840

179,080

350

360

2,690

1979

3,535,000

550

183,620

100

110

2,760

1980

3,090

195,000

70

60

2,350

1981

4,980

176,000

30

30

2,500

1982

5,490

155,000

20

30

2,100

1983

4,920

153,000

10

15

1,800

1984

2,491

159,000

20

30

1,710

1985

1,150

151,000

15

20

1,480

1986

2,040

158,000

1,510

1987

2,350

141,000

1,540

1988

2,020

132,000

1,590

1989

3,050

131,000

1,440

1990

4,310

112,000

1,540

1991

3,950

105,000

1,260

1992

2,730

95,000

540

1993

4,150

91,000

670

1994

5,340

89,000

710

1995

4,820

88,000

880

1996

5,230

76,000

660

379

Items

Flowers*
dozens

Fruits
tonnes

Vegetables
tonnes

Rice (Paddy)
tonnes

Rice (Straw)
tonnes

Field Crops
tonnes

1997

4,611

6,400

799

1998

3,873

59,500

1,120

1999

3,770

48,000

540

2000

2,022

42,500

508

2001

1,506

35,900

510

Source: AFCD Annual Report

Remarks
* Including pot plants and peach blossom

380

Appendix 10
The Rise of Rural Elites
After the British leased the NT from the Chinese government, the colonial
government formed a structural monitoring system as a means of village
representation and indirect colonial rule. The administrative absorption of
politics is a process through which the British governing elites co-opt or
assimilate

the

local

non-British

socio-economic

elites

into

the

political-administrative decision-making bodies, thus, attaining an elite

integration on the one hand, and a legitimation of political authority on the other
in spite of the lack of democracy in Hong Kong (King 4). This made it easier for
the colonisers to collaborate with the rural leaders, and in turn, to coerce them.
The inclusion of the item in the constitution allowed the HYK to have more
control over their traditions, and that resulted in a stronger bargaining power.
This new addition further protected the HYKs rights because it legitimised the
HYKs members to request the colonial government for benefits, e.g. tso and
tong land.

After the establishment of the HYK Ordinance in 1959, it became a

statutory advisory body to the government on the NT, able to exchange views
and to ensure that it would, as far as possible, be truly representative of opinions
in the NT, but also, capable of choosing to side with the coloniser against the
rights and welfare of certain members in its constituency. In the politics of the
relation between the government, the rural leaders and the villagers, the
government played a more advantageous position, because they controlled the

381

benefits favourable to rural elites, such as money or land compensation, which

the leaders and villagers expected to receive in exchange for land surrender or
resumption. The rural leaders and the villagers could manipulate the goods to
create a favourable political situation for the colonial government. It results in
the rise of rural elite power and indirectly allows them to benefit from the
development.

In other words, the speed of NT development would be in another trajectory

if HYK does not help the government to indirectly manage NT and appropriate
land from farmers who rely on land to earn their living. Otherwise, the speed of
NT development would have been slower, or would have more diversity, since
more opposition would allow the government administrator to plan for a better
policy to their citizens. However, since rural elites are pro-government and their
rise of power implies that they are climbing up the political ladder, they gain in
power also affects the power dynamics.

Arable land had a large development potential -- that is, along roads and
railways, and in the governments development plan -- as it became a commodity
with a high speculation value. The reduction of arable land in the NT was not
only because of a developmental mentality of the colonial government, but also
because the rural elites played a role in maximising benefits, and the interests of
the NT as a whole was not a factor in countering the colonial government. The
rural elites concentrated on negotiating and collaborating with the government
about their own interests and benefits, and agreed with governments planned
developments even if the plan was not for the benefit of the NT as a whole. This
situation indirectly leads to a reduction of flower cultivation farmland.
382

Future research and studies could focus on Akers-Jones 15, Bray 100-101,
Chan Ching Selina 41, Chau, and Lau 5, Cheung Yat Fung 147, Chiu, and Hung
b 22, Chiu, and Hung b 23, Chun b 141, Freedman cited in Chiu, and Hung b 19,
Hase 15, 190, Hayes a 83, 236, Hayes b 100, 106, HKRS 536-2-19, HKRS
536-2-31, HKRS 634-1-3, HKRS 935-1-12, Hong Kong Colonial Government a
J3, J4, Hong Kong Government Gazette Notification No. 15 of 1900 cited in
Wesley-Smith 125, Ip 52, 54, Kuan, and Lau 21, 25, Kwong 110, Lam Cheong
Yee Eric 3, Lee Ming Kwan 173, 611, Liu 55, 190, Sit, and Kwong 139, Tsang
Yui Sang a, Tsang Yui Sang b 88-89

383

Appendix 11
The Number of Prosecutions Instituted by the
FEHD Against Illegal Occupation of Pedestrian
Walkways or Obstruction of Public Places
by DC District
DC District
Central and Western

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

326

345

495

904

1041

Wan Chai

1163

1335

1059

1521

2352

Eastern

1675

1892

2261

2886

3475

175

222

476

559

543

17

34

37

53

25

Yau Tsim Mong

2141

3398

3626

3043

3100

Sham Shui Po

1090

579

552

811

1400

Kowloon City

1091

1002

1121

1477

1440

Wong Tai Sin

316

303

517

671

578

Kwun Tong

411

539

298

563

532

Kwai Tsing

45

123

86

64

105

Tsuen Wan

49

198

167

260

340

Tuen Mun

410

716

794

702

670

Yuen Long

302

295

258

345

516

North

195

118

101

126

182

Tai Po

776

1547

1872

1563

1489

Shatin

794

1082

1082

1059

988

41

64

94

55

65

11017

13792

14896

16662

18841

Southern
Islands

Sai Kung
Total
Source: LegCo Paper 126

126

LegCo Meeting held on 15/6/2011

http://www.legco.gov.hk/yr10-11/english/counmtg/hansard/cm0615-translate-e.pdf
384

Appendix 12
The Strength of Health Inspectors, Cleansing
Foremen and Hawker Control Teams of the FEHD
by DC Districts
DC District

Number of
Health
Inspectors

Number of
Cleansing
Foremen

Number of Staff
in Hawker
Control Team

Central and Western

19

41

154

Wan Chai

21

29

110

Eastern

24

32

134

Southern

26

53

Islands

43

62

Yau Tsim Mong

36

50

251

Sham Shui Po

18

25

122

Kowloon City

20

29

92

Wong Tai Sin

10

15

84

Kwun Tong

16

23

86

Kwai Tsing

13

28

73

Tsuen Wan

15

29

63

Tuen Mun

16

32

71

Yuen Long

17

42

83

North

10

46

69

Tai Po

11

35

67

Shatin

18

35

83

Sai Kung

10

37

73

Total

290

597

1730

Source: LegCo Paper 127

127

LegCo Meeting held on 15/6/2011

http://www.legco.gov.hk/yr10-11/english/counmtg/hansard/cm0615-translate-e.pdf
385

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Reference in Books or Website
Fresh Flower Blossoms Forever . Drinking Water from the Same
River . ATV. Asia Television Limited, Hong Kong, 7 January 2009.
Television.
Funeral Wreath. Asiaclassified. Asiaclassified, 18 March 2011. Web. 26
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418