Theorizing Hong Kong: From Colonial Collaboration to Inter-Imperial Zone

Somewhat strangely, Hong Kong studies have paid little attention to the problem of colonialism and coloniality. For those notable exceptions, colonial rule in Hong Kong was distinguished by the collaboration between the colonizer and colonized, which laid down the foundation of indirect rule while granting local autonomy to the business elites. This configuration persists to the present, when confrontation between the British and Qing empires is being replaced by the rivalry between China and the United States. To theorize these experiences, the notion of inter-imperiality is adopted and complemented with world system theory and ocean studies. I argue that Maritime Asia constituted an inter-imperial zone characterized by network centrality and precarious autonomy. Located in this broader region, the distinctive trajectory of colonial and post-colonial Hong Kong could be understood with reference to inter-imperial power dynamics. This theoretical perspective could also contribute to anti-colonial global scholarship by specifying its locations.