The statecraft of promoting community-wide civic education in Hong Kong

The state plays a vital role in shaping the values and beliefs of ordinary citizens in the realm of civic education. Since the early 1980s, the significant political changes associated with decolonization and retro-cession have transformed the landscape of civic education. Differences over a shared sense of citizenship, and how this should be represented in education, have been prominent in discussions of the Hong Kong community over the years. The task of community civic education in Hong Kong largely rests with the Home Affairs Bureau and its advisory body, CPCE—a committee established in 1986 for advices and implementing activities outside schools in conjunction with the Government and concerned community organizations. However, the Government has attempted to manipulate and steer the Committee’s work through its terms of reference, its organizational restructuring, its activities, its funding support, and the appointment of members. As a result, the Committee has been constrained by its composition, powers, and functions, and these have impaired its role as an advocate for civic education. This article ends with a discussion of the conditions, constraints, and strategies of the state in exercising hegemony.