JustSheila
Crusader
That was all a very long time ago and things changed. You've neglected to mention how China prospered through Hong Kong afterward. Not to even mention that the Chinese people were under radical rule and Hong Kong introduced Democracy to China. The concept of individual human rights was possible in Hong Kong... not the rest of China.
By the first half of the 20th Century, Hong Kong wasn't very important to Britain anymore and considered returning it to China. In 1941, Japan seized Hong Kong. At the end of WWII, the British still controlled Hong Kong, but former Pres Franklin D Roosevelt was pressuring Winston Churchill to return it to China.
Hong Kong was a valuable military area in reference to Korea, so the US changed its position after the Korean War. By 1949, Mao Zedung and the People's Republic had taken over China and the West was concerned over losing Hong Kong. Mao Zedung never sued for the island, though.
Hong Kong became enormously lucrative to China after the Sino-British Joint Declaration in 1984:
On Dec. 19, 1984, British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and Chinese Premier Zhao Ziyang signed the Sino-British Joint Declaration, in which Britain agreed to return not only the New Territories but also Kowloon and British Hong Kong itself when the lease term expired. Under the declaration's terms, Hong Kong would become a special administrative region (SAR) under the People's Republic of China (PRC), and it was expected to enjoy a high degree of autonomy outside of foreign and defense affairs. For a period of 50 years after the end of the lease, Hong Kong would remain a free port with a separate customs territory and sustain markets for free exchange. Hong Kong citizens could continue to practice capitalism and political freedoms forbidden on the mainland.
After the agreement, Britain began to implement a broader level of democracy in Hong Kong. The first democratic government in Hong Kong was formed in the late 1980s, consisting of functional constituencies and direct elections. The stability of those changes became doubtful after the Tiananmen Square incident when an undetermined number of protesting students were massacred. Half a million people in Hong Kong went on marches to protest.
While the People's Republic of China rejected the democratization of Hong Kong, the region had become enormously lucrative. Hong Kong only became a major metropolis after the British possession, and during the 150 years of the occupation, the city had grown and thrived. Today it is considered one of the most significant financial centers and trade ports in the world.
Handover
On July 1, 1997, the lease ended and the government of Great Britain transferred control of British Hong Kong and the surrounding territories to the People's Republic of China.
The transition has been more or less smooth, although human rights issues and Beijing's desire for greater political control cause considerable friction from time to time. Events since 2004 have shown that universal suffrage continues to be a rallying point for Hong Kongers, while the PRC is clearly reluctant to allow Hong Kong to achieve full political freedom.
https://www.thoughtco.com/china-lease-hong-kong-to-britain-195153
The Chinese people love the freedom that was made available in Hong Kong through the British and were terrified of losing that when Hong Kong became part of China again and they have fought hard to keep their freedoms. The entire concept of human rights changed for the better in Hong Kong and even mainland China because of the British interference. God save the queen.
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