Leftist propaganda in the Hong Kong 1967 riots

Abstract

This thesis focuses on the leftist propaganda in the Hong Kong 1967 riots. It shows how the local leftists launched a propaganda campaign to persuade citizens to join the anti-government confrontation. After critically examining leftist propaganda materials, the thesis analyzes different arguments of the propagandists. The leftists’ propaganda failed to persuade the masses to follow them. To explain their failure, the thesis compares the aims of leftist propaganda before and during 1967. Given the different aims, the thesis argues that the inconsistency of the propaganda caused the leftists to lose support. When the leftists used violent actions to “struggle” against the colonial government, their radical actions were described by citizens as “terrorist attacks” and the leftists became “troublemakers”. Thus, the thesis also argues that the leftists’ threat to law and order drove Hong Kong citizens to stay out of the riots. After the anti-government movement became radical, the Hong Kong government took firm actions against the local communists. The police force raided leftist trade unions and arrested leftist leaders. These actions caused the breakdown of the leftist propaganda mechanism. The thesis analyzes the decision-making processes of the Hong Kong government, and argues that it was the leftists’ radical actions that caused the government’s firm actions, and thus the failure of the leftist propaganda, and the anti-government campaign were self-inflicted.