Territorial Autonomy, Nationalisms, and Women’s Equality and Rights: The Case of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region

Abstract

The chapter advances understanding of how nationalist-infused formal, meso-level autonomy arrangements affect women’s rights and equality by analyzing the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. The case affirms comparative findings that meso-level devolution can both advance and hinder women’s progress, depending on structural, institutional, and ideational factors as well as timing. It also underlines the importance of the political economy of devolution. Specifically, in Hong Kong, feminist concerns did not impel devolution. However, feminists used a political legitimacy crisis and constitutional reforms during preparations for devolution, successfully promoting pro-women laws and policies. Nevertheless, once set up, the autonomy institutions entrenched the power of conservative elites and laissez-faire capitalist norms that blocked progress on women’s rights and equality, legitimated by nationalist politics and racialized and ethnicized othering.

Eliza Lee, Jill Vickers, and the volume editors and reviewers provided invaluable comments on a chapter draft. The author is also grateful for conversations with Staci Ford, Puja Kapai, Eliza Lee, and Lisa Moore and a visitorship at the Hong Kong Institute for the Social Sciences and Humanities, the University of Hong Kong, during the research. The chapter’s viewpoints and weaknesses are solely the author’s responsibility.