Lau Chü-pak (5 June 1867 – 3 May 1922) was a Hong Kong merchant and politician. Lau Chu-pak was admitted to Queen's College in the same year as

Sun Yat-sen Sun Yat-sen (; also known by several other names; 12 November 1866 – 12 March 1925)Singtao daily. Saturday edition. 23 October 2010. section A18. Sun Yat-sen Xinhai revolution 100th anniversary edition . was a Chinese politician who serve ...

. He became a clerk at the

Hong Kong Observatory The Hong Kong Observatory is a weather forecast agency of the government of Hong Kong. The Observatory forecasts the weather and issues warnings on weather-related hazards. It also monitors and makes assessments on radiation levels in ...

and later went into business and became a

comprador A comprador or compradore () is a "person who acts as an agent for foreign organizations engaged in investment, trade, or economic or political exploitation". A comprador is a native manager for a European business house in East and South East As ...

of the West Point Godown Company in 1888 and of A. S. Watson from 1893. Together with

Ho Fook Ho Fook (; 30 November 1863 – 29 August 1926), alias Ho Chak-sang, JP, was a prominent Hong Kong Eurasian compradore and philanthropist. Early life Ho was born in Hong Kong in 1863 to Charles Henri Maurice Bosman and Sze Sze. Educati ...

, they founded the

Chinese General Chamber of Commerce The Chinese General Chamber of Commerce (CGCCHK; ) is a non-profit organization of local Chinese firms and businessmen based in Hong Kong. It was founded in 1900 by Ho Fook and Lau Chu-pak, two prominent leaders of the Chinese community during th ...

, where he later served as chairman. Along with Sir

Robert Hotung Sir Robert Ho Tung Bosman, (22 December 1862 – 26 April 1956), also known as Sir Robert Ho Tung, was a businessman and philanthropist in British Hong Kong. Known as "the grand old man of Hong Kong" (), he was knighted in 1915 (Knight Bachel ...

, Lau was an early developer of the West

Hung Hom Hung Hom () is an area in the southeast of Kowloon Peninsula, Hong Kong. Including the area of Whampoa, Tai Wan, Hok Yuen, Lo Lung Hang and No. 12 Hill are administratively part of the Kowloon City District, with a portion west of Hung Ho ...

(now East Tsim Sha Tsui) area of Kowloon in the 1890s. He held various public posts, including the chairmanship of

Po Leung Kuk The Po Leung Kuk, founded as the Society for the Protection of Women and Children, is a charitable organisation in Hong Kong that provides support for orphaned children, education and other services. History In the late 19th century, abd ...

and

Tung Wah Hospital Tung Wah Hospital is a Charitable hospital in Hong Kong under the Tung Wah Group of Hospitals. Located above Possession Point, at 12 Po Yan Street in Sheung Wan, it is the first hospital established in Colonial Hong Kong for the general publ ...

, and was a member of the District Watch Committee and the

Sanitary Board The Urban Council (UrbCo) was a municipal council in Hong Kong responsible for municipal services on Hong Kong Island and in Kowloon (including New Kowloon). These services were provided by the council's executive arm, the Urban Services ...

. He was appointed as Unofficial Member of the Legislative Council from 1913 until his death in 1922. He helped found the

University of Hong Kong The University of Hong Kong (HKU) (Chinese: 香港大學) is a public research university in Hong Kong. Founded in 1887 as the Hong Kong College of Medicine for Chinese, it is the oldest tertiary institution in Hong Kong. HKU was also the fi ...

by donating to the endowment fund in 1911. He later became a member of the University's Court between 1911 and 1914 and was made honorary life member of the Court in 1914. He was a member of the University Council from 1911 to 1922. In 1921, Lau and fellow Legislative Councillor

established the Society for the Protection of the Mui Tsai, an initiative aimed at curbing the demise of the

mui-tsai ''Mui tsai'' (), which means "little sister"Yung, ''Unbound Feet'', 37. in Cantonese, describes young Chinese women who worked as domestic servants in China, or in brothels or affluent Chinese households in traditional Chinese society. The young ...

system, a form of child slavery in which young girls were bought and sold in Hong Kong and other parts of China. The society had the backing of Chinese community leaders including

Ts'o Seen Wan Tso Seen-wan, (, 10 November 1868 – 20 January 1953), also Ts'o Seen Wan, S. W. Tso or S. W. Ts'o, was a distinguished Hong Kong lawyer, politician, businessman and educationalist. Formerly served in Legislative Council, Sanitary Board and Di ...

Chow Shou-son Sir Shouson Chow (; 1861–1959), KBE, LLD, JP, also known as Chow Cheong-Ling (), was a Hong Kong businessman. He had been a Qing dynasty official and prominent in the Government of Hong Kong. Family Chow is said to have been born in Wong ...

and

Ho Kom-tong Ho (or the transliterations He or Heo) may refer to: People Language and ethnicity * Ho people, an ethnic group of India ** Ho language, a tribal language in India * Hani people, or Ho people, an ethnic group in China, Laos and Vietnam * Hiri Mo ...

. Lau adopted a staunchly conservative and anti-communist stance amid the 1925 Seamen's Strike. He regarded "strong Bolshevist support" as the root cause and opposed any concession. His son Lau Tak-po founded the Hong Kong and Yaumatei Ferry Company, which is still under the control of the family.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lau, Chu-pak 1867 births 1922 deaths Hong Kong businesspeople Hong Kong philanthropists Members of the Legislative Council of Hong Kong Members of the Sanitary Board of Hong Kong Alumni of Queen's College, Hong Kong