Polite Politics

by Ho, Kwok-Leung; Kwok-Leung, Denny Ho

• ISBN13: 9781840143331
• ISBN10: 1840143339
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2000-12-01
• Publisher: Ashgate Pub Ltd

Summary

This book contributes to social movement theory and to an understanding of Hong Kong politics through analysis of an urban housing protest movement. The theoretical approach adopted is a multi-level one, and seeks to show the influence of the political context, the resources available to the groups concerned, the actors' interpretations of their situation and their strategy preferences. This approach fills a gap in social movement theory because most theoretical frameworks focus on a single level of analysis. The book also aims to help researchers in the field to re-examine the current development of social movement theories and to learn the specific trajectory of urban social movements in Hong Kong.

Table of Contents

List of Figures and Tables	viii
Acknowledgements	xi
Introduction	1	(19)
Urban Movements: Their Importance in Urban Politics	3	(7)
The Significance of the Study of Urban Protests in Hong Kong	10	(3)
Method and Data	13	(4)
Structure of this Book	17	(3)
Theories of Social Movements: A Review of the Literature	20	(39)
Introduction	20	(1)
The Classical Perspective on Collective Action	21	(5)
The Resource Mobilization Perspective	26	(19)
The Social Construction of Protest	45	(6)
Toward an Integrated Approach to Collective Action	51	(8)
The Changing Political Context in Hong Kong	59	(25)
Introduction	59	(1)
The Pre-democracy Stage: 1970-1980	60	(9)
The Stage of Transition to Democracy: 1981-1992	69	(6)
The Grassroots' Response to the Changing Political Structure in the 1980s	75	(4)
Recapitulation	79	(5)
Public Housing Policy and Urban Minorities	84	(22)
Introduction	84	(1)
The Housing Provision Structure in Hong Kong	84	(4)
Production and Allocation of Public Housing	88	(6)
Public Housing Policy and Urban Minorities	94	(6)
The Nature and Management of the Temporary Housing Areas	100	(3)
Summary	103	(3)
A Brief Account of the Trajectory of the ATHA Protest	106	(28)
Introduction	106	(1)
The Aged Temporary Housing Areas Issue	107	(2)
The Rise of the ATHA Protest	109	(9)
The Actors Involved in the ATHA Protest	118	(4)
The ATHA Residents	122	(6)
Summary	128	(6)
No Through Road: Limited Political Opportunities for ATHA Residents	134	(37)
Introduction	134	(1)
Two Changing Processes in the Political Structure	135	(10)
Who Cares about the Housing Movement?	145	(14)
The ATHA Issue and the Actors in the Political Structure	159	(5)
Conclusion	164	(7)
Every Person Counts: The Political Participation of ATHA Residents	171	(49)
Introduction	171	(2)
Forms of Political Participation in the Two ATHAs	173	(2)
The Social Characteristics of Residents in the Two ATHAs	175	(6)
To Participate or Not to Participate: A Case Study in the Kowloon Bay THA	181	(12)
Participation in the Ping Shek THA	193	(14)
Mobilization Potential and Actual Participation	207	(7)
Conclusion	214	(6)
The Mobilization Process: External Organizers, Local Leaders and the Choice of Strategies	220	(49)
Introduction	220	(1)
The Mobilization Agents	221	(12)
The Creation and Maintenance of the Foundation of ATHA Protest: The Local Concern Groups	233	(13)
Strategy Formation	246	(12)
Success or Failure of the Local Mobilization and Protest	258	(5)
Conclusion	263	(6)
Conclusion	269	(31)
Summary of the Argument	269	(20)
The Theoretical and Methodological Implications of this Study	289	(8)
Future Development of the ATHA Protest	297	(3)
Appendix 1 Methods	300	(14)
Appendix 2 A Personal Reflection on Methodology	314	(8)
Appendix 3 Survey on the Tenants' Preferences in the Temporary Housing Areas in the Kwun Tong District	322	(6)
Appendix 4 Survey on Kowloon Bay THA Residents' Attitudes to ``Same District Rehousing'' Policy	328	(7)
Appendix 5 Survey of the Living Conditions of the Ping Shek THA	335	(13)
Bibliography	348