Tung Chee Hwa

Tung Chee Hwa (Traditional Chinese: 董建華; Simplified Chinese: 董建华; Cantonese {{IPA2|təʊŋ35 kɪn33 wɑ11}}; Jyutping: dung2 gin3 waa4; Mandarin Pinyin: Dǒng Jiànhuá) (born July 7, 1937, or the 29th day of the 5th month in the Chinese calendar in Shanghai, China) was the first elected Chief Executive (July 1,1997–March 12,2005) of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (PRC). He took office on July 1, 1997 after the handover of Hong Kong from the United Kingdom to the People's Republic of China and was elected again to a second five-year term in 2002.

Early life

Born in Shanghai (or Zhoushan), Tung's family moved to Hong Kong when he was 10 and his father, Tung Chao Yung, went on to become a successful entrepreneur in the shipping sector. After the death of his father, Tung, as the elder son, took over his father's business.

Related Topics:
Shanghai - Tung Chao Yung - Entrepreneur - Shipping

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However, with the decline of the shipping industry and Tung's failure to diversify, the business floundered. According to some accounts, the then PRC government, through Tung's friend Henry Fok, bailed Tung out by handing his company contracts for arms shipments. These were in addition to a hefty loan from HSBC. Some have further speculated that Tung, whose family was once pro-Kuomintang, became loyal to the PRC government in return for this assistance or, more cynically, that thereafter the communist authorities had Tung exactly where they wanted him, and where better than as Hong Kong's Chief Executive.

Related Topics:
Henry Fok - HSBC - Kuomintang

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