THE ADVOCATE 299
VOL. 80 PART 2 MARCH 2022
FROM OUR
BACK PAGES
By D. Michael Bain,Q.C.
In this issue of the Advocate, we delve into matters related to Hong Kong,
including in Entre Nous and Michael Blanchflower, S.C.’s article starting on
page 185. See below for the late Maurice Copithorne, Q.C.’s much earlier
analysis from (1985) 43 Advocate 790.
1997 … AND ALL THAT
By Maurice Copithorne, Q.C.*
You have obtained the Cession of Hong Kong,
a barren Island with hardly a House upon it; ...
Now it seems obvious that Hong Kong will not
be the Mart of Trade, anymore than Macao is so …
Lord Palmerston in his letter of dismissal
of Charles Elliot, R.N., April 21, 1841
Whitehall thought so little of Captain Elliot’s acquisition that
he was dismissed. And indeed it was a very long time
before Hong Kong took on the character that makes it
unique in the world today. It is to all intents and purposes
a city state, and one that has overcome the total absence of natural
resources and a precarious geographic hold on the continent. It is admired
most perhaps for its highly motivated workforce, for its remarkable spirit of
* The author was Canadian Commissioner in Hong Kong and a member of the Law Society of British Columbia since 1956.
The article was written in his personal capacity.