Urban Council, Hong Kong
Encyclopedia
Municipality
A municipality is essentially an urban administrative division having corporate status and usually powers of self-government. It can also be used to mean the governing body of a municipality. A municipality is a general-purpose administrative subdivision, as opposed to a special-purpose district...
in Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
responsible for municipal services
Municipal services
Municipal services or city services refer to basic services that residents of a city expect the city government to provide in exchange for the taxes which citizens pay. Basic city services may include sanitation , water, streets, schools, food inspection fire department, police, ambulance, and...
on Hong Kong Island
Hong Kong Island
Hong Kong Island is an island in the southern part of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. It has a population of 1,289,500 and its population density is 16,390/km², as of 2008...
and in Kowloon
Kowloon
Kowloon is an urban area in Hong Kong comprising the Kowloon Peninsula and New Kowloon. It is bordered by the Lei Yue Mun strait in the east, Mei Foo Sun Chuen and Stonecutter's Island in the west, Tate's Cairn and Lion Rock in the north, and Victoria Harbour in the south. It had a population of...
(including New Kowloon
New Kowloon
New Kowloon is an area in Kowloon, Hong Kong, bounded in the south by Boundary Street, and in the north by the ranges of the Lion Rock, Beacon Hill, Tate's Cairn and Kowloon Peak...
). These services were provided by the Urban Services Department
Urban Services Department
Urban Services Department was a government department in Hong Kong. It carried out the policies and managed the facilities of the former Urban Council.After being abolished with the Urban Council in 1999, its functions were inherited by the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department and the Leisure...
. The equivalent body for the New Territories
New Territories
New Territories is one of the three main regions of Hong Kong, alongside Hong Kong Island and the Kowloon Peninsula. It makes up 86.2% of Hong Kong's territory. Historically, it is the region described in The Convention for the Extension of Hong Kong Territory...
was the Regional Council
Regional Council (Hong Kong)
The Regional Council was a municipal council in Hong Kong responsible for municipal services in the New Territories . Its services were provided by the Regional Services Department...
.
History
The Urban Council was first established as the Sanitary Board in 1883. In 1887, a system of partial elections was established, allowing selected individuals to vote for members on the board. On 1 March 1935, the Sanitary Board was reconstituted to carry out the work which remained much the same until World War Two broke out. The council gained its name in 1936.After the Second World War, the Urban Council received its pre-war form but without any elected members. The work of the Sanitary Department of the government began to separate out from the medical and health service. The first Urban Council meeting to take place after the Japanese occupation was held on 28 May 1946, with the council being empowered to carry out all its old duties - cleaning, burying the dead, running bath houses and public lavatories, hawker control - as well as some new ones, such as the use of bathing beaches throughout Hong Kong.
Only in May 1952 were elections returned to the Urban Council when two members were elected. And later in 1952, the number of elected members was doubled, their terms of office extended to two years and the electoral roll enlarged.
Finally by April 1956 half of the members of the Urban Council was elected by a small minority of the population eligible to vote. The qualifications for eligibility were very complex: For example, a voter had to be at least 21 years of age, have lived in Hong Kong for at least 3 years and must be qualified in at least one of 23 categories, which included educational qualifications (School Certificate Examination or equivalent), be a juror, salaried taxpayer, or a member of certain professional organizations. More details can be found in First Schedule of the Urban Council Ordinance (Cap. 101). It was estimated that in 1970 there were 250,000 eligible voters and in 1981 the number had increased to 400,000 – 500,000 .
In 1960s, the responsibilities of the Urban Council continued to multiply. The City Hall in Central was opened in 1962, followed by the first multi-storey markets in Jardine's Bazaar in March 1963.
In 1973 the council was reorganized under non-government control with financial autonomy, which meant that the budget could be planned without the approval of the Legislative Council
Legislative Council
A Legislative Council is the name given to the legislatures, or one of the chambers of the legislature of many nations and colonies.A Member of the Legislative Council is commonly referred to as an MLC.- Unicameral legislatures :...
. Furthermore the changes also removed housing as one of its main tasks. Since then, there were no government officials on the council and both the chairman and vice-chairman were elected among the 24 members. At that time, the council was the only one which solely consisted of members of the public.
| |
style="font-weight: bold;">Ex-officio memb>rs | style="font-weight: bold;">Appointed unoff>cials | style="font-weight: bold;">Elected unoffic>als | style="font-weight: bold;">Total |
| 1946 |
5 |
6 |
- |
11 |
| 1952 |
5 |
6 |
2 |
13 |
| 1953 |
5 |
6 | 4 |
15 |
| 1956 |
6 |
8 |
8 |
22 |
| 1956 |
6 |
10 |
10 |
26 |
| 1973 |
- |
12 |
12 |
24 |
| 1983 |
- |
15 |
15 |
30 |
Source: Norman Miners, 1986, The Government and Politics of Hong Kong p. 167.
Prominent elected Urban Councilors were Elsie Elliot (now called Elsie Tu) and Brook Bernacchi
Brook Bernacchi
Brook Antony Bernacchi, OBE, QC, JP , was a lawyer and politician in Hong Kong. He was also the founder of the Reform Club, the oldest political group in Hong Kong...
of the Reform Club.
An equivalent body, the Regional Council
Regional Council (Hong Kong)
The Regional Council was a municipal council in Hong Kong responsible for municipal services in the New Territories . Its services were provided by the Regional Services Department...
was set up in 1986 to serve the New Territories
New Territories
New Territories is one of the three main regions of Hong Kong, alongside Hong Kong Island and the Kowloon Peninsula. It makes up 86.2% of Hong Kong's territory. Historically, it is the region described in The Convention for the Extension of Hong Kong Territory...
(excluding New Kowloon
New Kowloon
New Kowloon is an area in Kowloon, Hong Kong, bounded in the south by Boundary Street, and in the north by the ranges of the Lion Rock, Beacon Hill, Tate's Cairn and Kowloon Peak...
).
In 1994 the Council became fully elected based on universal and equal adult suffrage ..
After the transfer of sovereignty
Transfer of the sovereignty of Hong Kong
The transfer of sovereignty over Hong Kong from the United Kingdom to the People's Republic of China, referred to as ‘the Return’ or ‘the Reunification’ by the Chinese and ‘the Handover’ by others, took place on 1 July 1997...
in 1997, the name was changed to Provisional Urban Council, consisting of members of the pre-handover UrbCo, and new members appointed by the Chief Executive
Chief Executive of Hong Kong
The Chief Executive of Hong Kong is the President of the Executive Council of Hong Kong and head of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. The position was created to replace the Governor of Hong Kong, who was the head of the Hong Kong government during British rule...
.
Duties and services
The Urban Council had provided a spectrum of services to Hong Kong people over the years. The Urban Services DepartmentUrban Services Department
Urban Services Department was a government department in Hong Kong. It carried out the policies and managed the facilities of the former Urban Council.After being abolished with the Urban Council in 1999, its functions were inherited by the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department and the Leisure...
was the executive branch of the council to implement policies and services. In 1997, it had about 16,000 employees, according to its published leaflet of 'service promises'.
The council's services included: recreational venues and activities, libraries, museums, cultural and entertainment venues, ticketing, wet markets, hawkers registration and control, cremation
Cremation
Cremation is the process of reducing bodies to basic chemical compounds such as gasses and bone fragments. This is accomplished through high-temperature burning, vaporization and oxidation....
, cleaning, issuing licenses, [hygiene] and butcheries.
Arts and culture
The Urban Council had played a significant role in the arts and cultural development in Hong Kong.It also managed the Hong Kong Public Library
Hong Kong Public Library
The Hong Kong Public Library system in Hong Kong consists of 66 static and 10 mobile libraries offering a total collection of 12.5 million items...
locations in Hong Kong Island
Hong Kong Island
Hong Kong Island is an island in the southern part of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. It has a population of 1,289,500 and its population density is 16,390/km², as of 2008...
and Kowloon
Kowloon
Kowloon is an urban area in Hong Kong comprising the Kowloon Peninsula and New Kowloon. It is bordered by the Lei Yue Mun strait in the east, Mei Foo Sun Chuen and Stonecutter's Island in the west, Tate's Cairn and Lion Rock in the north, and Victoria Harbour in the south. It had a population of...
.
Cultural events
Since 1976, the council held its major cultural presentation - Festival of Asian Arts. The International Film Festival was another council-sponsored event, taking place annually mid-year and giving Hong Kong people a rare chance to see a range of international film-making, as well as Chinese films.Museums
The Hong Kong Museum of ArtHong Kong Museum of Art
The Hong Kong Museum of Art is the main art museum of Hong Kong. The museum was established as the City Hall Museum and Art Gallery in the City Hall in Central by the Urban Council in 1962. In 1991, it was moved to the present premises at 10 Salisbury Road, near the Hong Kong Cultural Centre and...
gives regular exhibition of both Chinese and Western art and sculpture and frequently arranges art exchanges with overseas countries. The ong Kong Museum of History]
Arts groups
The council had directly financed or even managed many local arts groups. In 1983, at "An Evening With the Council's Performing Companies" - one of the events in the Urabn Council Centenary Celebration - the then-council chairman Mr. Hilton Cheong-Leen said, "Together with the Government, the Urban Council is committed to the development of the arts in Hong Kong. We aim to do so at the professional level so that gifted Hong Kong citizens can develop their artistic potential. We also aim to make available to all members of the community a wide range of artistic performance for their enjoyment and appreciation. And is the not too distant future we hope to see Hong Kong recognized as a major international centre of the performing arts."Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra
Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra
The Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra is an orchestra of Chinese traditional instruments based in Hong Kong. It was established in 1977 and comprises 85 musicians. The Artistic Director and Principal Conductor is Yan Huichang.-External links:**...
was established in 1977 and had been under direct financial support and management by the Urban Council.
The Hong Kong Repertory Theatre was also founded in 1977 and had been directly financed and administered by the Urban Council, aiming to promote and raise the standards of Cantonese drama in the territory through professional administration, training and production.
The Hong Kong Dance Company was established in May 1981, was once directly administered by the Urban Council. It aims to combine classical and folk traditions of China with contemporary international awareness. These groups were later taken over by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department when the Urban Council was dissolved. In 2001, the groups were privatized and became limited companies, but still receive funding from the government.
Demise
The elected body, together with the Provisional Regional Council (its equivalent in the New TerritoriesNew Territories
New Territories is one of the three main regions of Hong Kong, alongside Hong Kong Island and the Kowloon Peninsula. It makes up 86.2% of Hong Kong's territory. Historically, it is the region described in The Convention for the Extension of Hong Kong Territory...
), was dissolved on 31 December 1999 under the then-Chief Executive
Chief Executive of Hong Kong
The Chief Executive of Hong Kong is the President of the Executive Council of Hong Kong and head of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. The position was created to replace the Governor of Hong Kong, who was the head of the Hong Kong government during British rule...
Tung Chee Hwa
Tung Chee Hwa
Tung Chee Hwa, GBM was the first Chief Executive and President of the Executive Council of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China....
's plan to streamline and centralize municipal services as part of his government's policy reforms.
Within days of the dissolution of the Urban Council, its distinctive symbol was systematically removed from public sight, such as by pasting over it with paper on all litter bins and information boards.
The functions of the two councils were replaced by two newly-established government departments, the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department
Food and Environmental Hygiene Department
Food and Environmental Hygiene Department , or FEHD for short, is a department of Hong Kong Government, reporting to the Health, Welfare and Food Bureau. It is The department is responsible for food hygiene and environmental hygiene...
and the Leisure and Cultural Services Department
Leisure and Cultural Services Department
The Leisure and Cultural Services Department , often abbreviated as LCSD, is a department in the Government of Hong Kong. It reports to the Home Affairs Bureau, headed by the Secretary for Home Affairs. It provides leisure and cultural activities for the people of Hong Kong, which was also one of...
.
External links
- Food and Environmental Hygiene Department
- Leisure and Cultural Services Department
- Urban Council of Hongkong (Hong Kong Standard, 26 Oct 1978)