01579pab a2200169 454500008004000000100001900040245008000059260000900139300001300148520099800161650004001159650002801199773005101227909001001278999001701288952010401305180718b2001   xxu||||| |||| 00| 0 eng d  aVickers, Simon  aMore colonial again? - the post-1997 culture of Hong Kong's governing elite  c2001  ap.951-75  aThe remarkable smoothness of Hong Kong's handover from liberal democratic Britain to communist China was not forecast because commentators underestimated the role of Administrative Officers (AOs) as the governing elite under both sovereigns.  This article is based on a survey of post-1997 AO culture by an ex-insider and finds subtle changes under the stable surface: a reinforced paternalism, more "Confucian" but also "more colonial again;" less accountability downwards ("just as dedicated to our jobs, but forgetting what they are for"); more caution and conformity upwards.  Unexpectedly, the new sovereign seems to interfere less than the old, but benefits from lower expectations and favourably double standards, whereas Hong Kong's government feels hypercriticised.  Against the embarrassing realaity of post-colonial governance elsewhere, the success of Hong Kong's continuing colonial system should not be ignored just because it does not fit Western democratic models. - Reproduced  aHong Kong - Politics and government  aPolitics and government  aInternational Journal of Public Administration  a49733  c49733d49733  00104070aIIPAbIIPAd2018-07-19hVolume no: 24, Issue no: 9pAR50161r2018-07-19w2018-07-19yAR