Empowerment, transformation and the construction of ‘urban heritage’ in post-colonial Hong Kong

Lu, Tracey L-D

doi:10.1080/13527258.2016.1144635

Cited by 14 publications

(5 citation statements)

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“…Under this backdrop, existing scholarship frames Hong Kong’s heritage protests as symptomatic of popular anxieties and frustrations toward exclusionary practices in governance (specifically heritage governance), sociopolitical integration with the PRC, and capitalist inequalities. These studies interpret civil society heritage mobilizations as the product of Hong Kong’s heritage management practices, which fail to account for citizen concerns (Barber 2014; Chan and Lee 2017; Chung 2011; Lu 2009; Lung 2012) toward cultural politics pertaining to postcolonial identity and memory constructs (Chen and Szeto 2015), or the economic injustices arising from land‐use policies that favor corporate interests (Ku 2010; Lu 2016). Building on this work, this essay focuses on the politics surrounding the production of urban space and life (Purcell 2002) in an Asian urban context that increasingly embraces redevelopment policies celebrating the cultural and historical dimensions of their cities—whilst acknowledging that these initiatives are used to reinforce ideals of “neoliberal urbanism” (Mayer 2015) at the expense of the social and experiential dimensions of the urban condition, which has led to conflict.…”

Section: Heritage Contestations In Hong Kongmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…During an interview, Alexei, who works for an NGO specializing in heritage issues, claims that despite the establishment of new government heritage bodies after 1997, the inability of the Ordinance to counter urban redevelopment remains unchanged since 1976. Penny, an informant from an environmental NGO, complains about the inconsistent and “opaque assessment logic” used by government bodies to assess which historical sites warrant protection; whilst the AMO stated that structures over twenty years old have no contemporary use and could be demolished (Lu 2009, 260), the URA has argued that post‐WWII structures are not old enough to be considered heritage and could be demolished (Lu 2016, 332). Penny further says that heritage governance still relies on experts to assess heritage sites but neglects the public voice, presenting representational imbalances in heritage discussions, which civil society heritage actors strive to rectify.…”

Section: The Hong Kong Heritage Landscape: From the Colonial To The C...mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Heritage Landscape Since the 2000s: Toward "Heritage Conservation"A lthough the Hong Kong public were described as "uncaring" toward heritage throughout the twentieth century (Chan and V.Lee 2017, 278), popular sentiments changed in the 2000s(Ku 2010;Lu 2009;Lung 2012). This is reflected by the increasing number of civil society groups involved with heritage issues; with the Community Museum Project founded in 2002, the SEE Network in 2004, the Central and Western Concern Group in 2005; and a plethora…”

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confidence: 99%

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Contested Meanings of Urban Heritage in Hong Kong

Lam‐Knott

2022

City & Society

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Confrontations between the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR) government and civil society regarding the demolition of historical sites across the city have been occurring since the mid‐2000s. These clashes have been interpreted as the consequence of exclusionary heritage governance practices; postcolonial identity anxieties; and popular dissatisfaction toward economic injustices in the city. This essay argues that heritage mobilizations also arise from the competing meanings and expectations the SAR government and civil society have attached to notions of “urban heritage,” especially in relation to urban liveability discourses. Using documentary and ethnographic data, this essay provides an overview of Hong Kong’s heritage landscape before examining approaches by both government and civil society toward heritage conservation—reflecting their respective understandings as to what urban heritage entails for urban life. This essay finds the SAR government position heritage as being secondary to urban redevelopment, a means of establishing urban liveability in economic terms. In contrast, civil society actors frame heritage as integral to redevelopment, producing a liveable city through enriching social conviviality. By delineating the disparate ways urban heritage is valued in Hong Kong, this essay offers broader insights on the conflict regarding how present and future urban life is envisioned in Asian cities.

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Section: Heritage Contestations In Hong Kongmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: The Hong Kong Heritage Landscape: From the Colonial To The C...mentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Contested Meanings of Urban Heritage in Hong Kong

Lam‐Knott

2022

City & Society

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“…More recently, threats to demolish a street or an entire neighbourhood have empowered groups of local residents in Hong Kong to establish a 'community heritage discourse' [12]. This growing sense of belonging uses heritage to foster placemaking and a sense of community, essentially preserving the heritage and truly benefiting the neighbourhood.…”

Section: Heritage Conservation In Hong Kong: Early Beginningsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Right to Landscape: Social Sustainability and the Conservation of the State Theatre, Hong Kong

Lau¹,

Chow²

2019

Sustainability

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This study analyses research gaps and identifies potential new research topics concerning the adoption of social sustainability values when conserving historic buildings, with a focus on the State Theatre (the Theatre) in Hong Kong. Despite becoming a Grade 1 historic building in March 2017, the Theatre has since faced an uphill battle, sustained only through public participation and widespread pressure on heritage authorities. In the process, problems with local heritage policy and the bureaucratic procedures of technocratic administrative bodies have been brought to light. Based on in-depth interviews with members of the local community, stakeholders, non-governmental organisations and heritage consultants, and using government policies and media reports, this study unveils and analyses issues related to the conservation of the Theatre using a humanised anthropological approach. The results highlight the need for a more socially sustainable future for cultural capital by integrating the notion of the cultural landscape with heritage conservation in Hong Kong.

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“…There are limitations to this study and the study methods employed, but it does offer some insight into how future research into heritage conservation in Hong Kong may be conducted, balancing case studies with the generation of empirical data. The heritage conservation movement in Hong Kong has allowed the relatively less-economically advantaged community members fight for their economic, political and social well-being against bigbusiness and pro-government forces through "community heritage discourses", enabling heritage conservation to become a weapon with support from the general population (Lu, 2016). Thus public participation in heritage conservation in Hong Kong nowadays embodies so much more than may be appreciated by outsiders.…”

Section: Heritage Conservation In Hong Kongmentioning

confidence: 99%

Enriching the general public's participation with and cognition of cultural heritage conservation in Hong Kong

Mak

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Public participation in a range of efforts which have community impact has been used successfully and has been extensively investigated. This study sought to use the case of the heritage conservation of the State Theater in North Point, Hong Kong, a building of cultural interest and architectural merit, employing the Theory of Communicative Action, to investigate how public participation may influence cultural heritage conservation here in Hong Kong. Four informed members of the general public, four heritage activists and four heritage professionals were interviewed, and the progress of the State Theater project was monitored and reported. The study was conducted during a period of social unrest and anti-Government protests in Hong Kong, which were really only quelled by stringent anti-epidemic public health measures, such as the prohibition of public gatherings, introduced following the spread of Covid-19. The study found that public participation in heritage conservation in Hong Kong is not prominent and principally influences whether heritage structures are destroyed or conserved. Public participation was noted to have little influence on the adaptive reuse to which conserved heritage buildings are put, and it is this adaptive reuse which is of potential benefit to the community as a cultural asset. Further, the adaptive reuse often fails to facilitate learning about the past or to promote social development and community enhancement. The Theory of Communicative Action was found to be too ideal to impact current heritage conservation practices in Hong Kong. The State Theater Building is being conserved, after public and heritage activist input agitating for its preservation, but it will be subsumed into a mixed commercial and residential new development, and the use to which the preserved State Theater Building itself is to be put remains unclear.

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Empowerment, transformation and the construction of ‘urban heritage’ in post-colonial Hong Kong

Cited by 14 publications

References 3 publications

Contested Meanings of Urban Heritage in Hong Kong

Contested Meanings of Urban Heritage in Hong Kong

The Right to Landscape: Social Sustainability and the Conservation of the State Theatre, Hong Kong

Enriching the general public's participation with and cognition of cultural heritage conservation in Hong Kong

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