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Decolonization scholars Pieterse and Bhikhu Parekh describe another kind of "decolonization" as "internal decolonization", with class and gender as the main battlefields. It is manifested in the resistance of the lower classes of society to elite rule and class oppression, and women challenging traditional male-dominated power. This is the main discourse of traditional left-wing scholars.
This "decolonization" movement, which has taken place in many newly independent countries, usually aims to expel the so-called "successors of the colonial government" and strive for institutional liberation and social progress in a broader sense. Based on this definition, it is self-evident who the real target of "decolonization" in Hong Kong is. However, this kind of "decolonization" is often highly criticized by nationalists, because the core of society has always been accustomed to drawing boundaries between "us - others" and accustomed to binary struggles. If we do not try to put on this cloak, it will be difficult to unite people's hearts after all.
In the view of these two scholars, true cross-border "decolonization" has emerged with the trend of globalization, that is, the "postcolonialism" (or "beyond colonialism") movement.
They believe that in the process of globalization, frequent population movements and intensive cultural collisions have enabled different cultures to understand each other, and the boundaries between "I - Other" have become blurred. It is unnecessary to talk about decolonization. Since even the discussion is redundant, this is "decolonization" in the fundamental sense.
However, this view is also highly controversial. Many Eastern scholars believe that "globalization" is a "re-colonization" in the social and economic fields dominated by the United States and other Western countries, that is, "neo-colonialism." The relevant countries no longer control the non-Western world through political proxy control, but rather through monopoly of capital, technology and mechanisms (such as the WTO) and "cultural homogenization" (such as McDonaldization).
In response to this question, the author proposed at the end of the book that the key to getting rid of "neo-colonialism" lies in the practice of "cultural pluralism", that is, breaking down the binary barriers of "West - non-West" and no longer regarding oneself as "powerful" or "victims", so that one can move forward with ease.
Well, what do the above-mentioned seemingly “out-of-touch” concepts have to do with Hong Kong today?
In modern times, Hong Kong has been experiencing the above-mentioned different stages of “colonization – decolonization”. The understanding of Hong Kong’s colonial history and “decolonization” also reflects the different dualistic mentalities in Hong Kong society today. In fact, the institutional design and culture introduced by the British colonists are deeply intertwined with the development of Hong Kong society and have long been inseparable. The so-called "decolonization" does not require and is impossible to discard all cultural and institutional designs of the British Hong Kong era. Moreover, many of the beneficial characteristics have been internalized into Hong Kong culture. Ironically, China's appreciation of Hong Kong was partly due to the value of this aspect of its culture.
Furthermore, unlike other colonial experiences, Hong Kong ended colonial rule through the so-called "return". As a result, what Hong Kong faced in the process of decolonization was not self-liberation, but another collision with foreign politics, economy and culture, as well as a corresponding re-understanding of itself. For Beijing, this is an open and aboveboard re-establishment of governance, but for many Hong Kong localists, Beijing itself is practicing state nationalism with post-colonial factors, trying to bring all aspects of Hong Kong under its rule, and wiping out and starting over the social culture jointly constructed by the former local elites and the British Hong Kong regime. "Re-colonization" seems self-evident.
*Adapted from Shen Xuhui's article in Hong Kong Economic Times
