Why go
The move from Kai Tak to the airport north of Lantau gives this period a geographical anchor. The early special administrative region years also included the Asian financial crisis, avian influenza and SARS. Reading these events together explains why the handover era involved economic and social disruption as well as ceremonial change.
The full story
On 1 July 1997, sovereignty over Hong Kong passed from the United Kingdom to the People’s Republic of China. Hong Kong became China’s first special administrative region, and Tung Chee-hwa took office as its first chief executive. The transfer followed the framework agreed in the 1984 Sino-British Joint Declaration. The Asian financial crisis and an outbreak of avian influenza followed in the same year. Falling property values brought hardship to homeowners, while the government intervened in financial markets. In 1998, the international airport moved from Kai Tak to reclaimed land north of Lantau, physically changing the territory’s international gateway. The SARS outbreak in 2003 interrupted schools, business and everyday routines. That July, a large demonstration opposed proposed national security legislation amid wider dissatisfaction. The events of these early SAR years show how political transition, public health and economic pressures overlapped, rather than forming a simple break between two settled periods.