The Co-operative Resources Centre (CRC; ) was a short-lived political group in the

Legislative Council of Hong Kong The Legislative Council of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (LegCo) is the unicameral legislature of Hong Kong. It sits under China's " one country, two systems" constitutional arrangement, and is the power centre of Hong Kon ...

(LegCo). Led by the

Senior Unofficial Member The Senior Unofficial Member, later Senior Member and, finally, Convenor of the Non-official Members, was the highest-ranking unofficial member of the Legislative Council (LegCo) and Executive Council (ExCo) of British Hong Kong, which was ...

of the

Executive Executive ( exe., exec., execu.) may refer to: Role or title * Executive, a senior management role in an organization ** Chief executive officer (CEO), one of the highest-ranking corporate officers (executives) or administrators ** Executive di ...

and Legislative Councils Allen Lee, it was established on 12 December 1991 by a group of 21 appointed and indirectly elected Legislative Council members from the functional constituencies. It became the largest conservative faction in the legislature countering the pro-democracy

United Democrats of Hong Kong The United Democrats of Hong Kong (; UDHK) was a short-lived political party in Hong Kong founded in 1990 as the united front of the liberal democracy forces in preparation of the 1991 first ever direct election for the Legislative Council of ...

(UDHK) won a landslide victory in the first direct Legislative Council election in 1991. In 1993, it was transformed into the

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. __TOC__ Active liberal parties This is a li ...

History

Foundation

After the first ever direct election for the

(LegCo) in September 1991, the

pro-democracy Democratization, or democratisation, is the transition to a more democratic political regime, including substantive political changes moving in a democratic direction. It may be a hybrid regime in transition from an authoritarian regime to a full ...

(UDHK) swept the polls and became the largest party in the legislature. The group of conservative elites in the legislature who were either appointed by the

governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

or indirectly elected through the functional constituencies shared a dislike for the United Democrats. Four of the Legislative Council members, Allen Lee, Selina Chow, Rita Fan and

Edward Ho Edward Ho Sing-tin, SBS, OBE, JP, FHKIA (born 1938) is a Hong Kong politician and architect. Section He has served as: * Hong Kong Institute of Architects, President (1983–84) * Board of Hong Kong Industrial Estates Corporation, Chairman ...

had also been appointed members of the Executive Council (ExCo). To curb the influence of liberals, 21 conservative legislators formed the CRC as a think tank, research unit and brain trust for a future political group on the 16th floor of the Hong Kong Club in

Central Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object. Central may also refer to: Directions and generalised locations * Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known a ...

. Led by the

Allen Lee and his fellow LegCo colleagues, Steven Poon, Selina Chow and Stephen Cheong, 12 legislators appointed by the British colonial government and 8 legislators indirectly elected by the functional constituencies aligned themselves. Being the convenor of the group, Allen Lee and stood down as the

of the Legislative Council to avoid a conflict of interest. Within a month, CRC had secured 17 of the 32 convenor and deputy convenor posts of the Legislative Council panels. By January 1992, the group issued a joint statement stating that "members agree at this point the CRC is not a political party but a political entity formed by a group of legislators in order to serve the people of Hongkong better."

Changes in membership

By July, two founders,

engineering Engineering is the use of scientific principles to design and build machines, structures, and other items, including bridges, tunnels, roads, vehicles, and buildings. The discipline of engineering encompasses a broad range of more speciali ...

Samuel Wong Samuel Wong () is a Hong Kong-born Canadian conductor and ophthalmologistbr> Trained at Harvard Medical School and Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, Dr. Wong is an eye surgeon practicing in Manhattan and Brooklyn. In anoth ...

and appointed member

Vincent Cheng Vincent Cheng Hoi-Chuen GBS OBE JP (, 16 July 1948 – 28 August 2022) was a Hong Kong banker who was HSBC Holdings plc. He was also chairman of The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited, the Asia-Pacific branch of HSBC and fou ...

left the group. In October, Professor Felice Lieh Mak quit the group and she was appointed to the Executive Council. On 7 October 1992, all four CRC members in the Executive Council, Rita Fan and Allen Lee, Selina Chow and Edward Ho were dumped from the Council by

Chris Patten Christopher Francis Patten, Baron Patten of Barnes, (; born 12 May 1944) is a British politician who was the 28th and last Governor of Hong Kong from 1992 to 1997 and Chairman of the Conservative Party from 1990 to 1992. He was made a life ...

as the governor wanted devoid of party politics. Rita Fan quit Executive and Legislative Councils as well as the CRC on the same day.

Transforming into Liberal Party

In mid 1992, the CRC set up a working group to look at forming a political party with other like-minded organisations. The CRC had courted groups such as the

Business and Professionals Federation of Hong Kong The Business and Professionals Federation of Hong Kong (, abbreviated 工商專聯; BPF) is a non-partisan think tank in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China. Mission The mission BPF is: * to help enhan ...

consisting of about 150 members, mostly highly successful businessmen or companies, the Liberal Democratic Federation of Hong Kong with about 150 members and the rural powerbrokers in the

Heung Yee Kuk The Heung Yee Kuk, officially the Heung Yee Kuk N.T., is a statutory advisory body representing establishment interests in the New Territories, Hong Kong. The council is a powerful organisation comprising heads of rural committees which repre ...

consisting of 155 members representing about 300,000 indigenous New Territories residents. The CRC ceased to function in March 1993 after an 18-month lifespan and some 14 CRC legislators joined the Liberal Party officially formed on 6 June 1993.

List of members

Convenor * Allen Lee Peng-fei Legislative Councillors: * Allen Lee * Stephen Cheong * Selina Chow * Rita Fan * Ngai Shiu-kit *

Lau Wong-fat Lau Wong-fat, GBM, GBS, OBE, JP (; 15 October 1936 – 23 July 2017) was a Hong Kong businessman and politician. He had been the long-time chairman of the Rural Council, the most powerful organ representing the interests of the New Territ ...

Ronald Joseph Arculli Ronald Joseph Arculli, GBM, GBS, CVO, OBE, JP (; born 2 January 1939 in Hong Kong) is former chairman of Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing, Non-official Members Convenor of the Executive Council of Hong Kong (Exco) and a senior partner at ...

Peggy Lam Peggy Lam Pei Yu-dja, GBS, OBE (; born 1928) is a Beijing loyalist politician in Hong Kong. She is the chief executive officer of the Family Planning Association of Hong Kong. Family She graduated from the University of Shanghai with a Bachelor ...

* Miriam Lau * Lau Wah-sum *

* Peter Wong * Moses Cheng * Lam Kui-chun * Gilbert Leung * Steven Poon * Felice Lieh Mak *

Henry Tang Henry Tang Ying-yen (; born 6 September 1952) is a Hong Kong politician who served as the Chief Secretary of Hong Kong between 2007 and 2011. He held the position of Financial Secretary from 2003 to 2007. In 2012, he lost the Hong Kong Chief ...

Howard Young Howard Young How Wah (, born 30 March 1948 in Hong Kong with family roots in Xinhui, Guangdong) was a member of the Legislative Council of Hong Kong ( Functional constituencies, Tourism) and the member of Southern District Council. He is a mem ...

Regional Councillors: * Gilbert Leung *

District Board members: *

(

Wan Chai Wan Chai is situated at the western part of the Wan Chai District on the northern shore of Hong Kong Island, in Hong Kong. Its other boundaries are Canal Road to the east, Arsenal Street to the west and Bowen Road to the south. The area n ...

) *

(

Tuen Mun Tuen Mun or Castle Peak is an area near the mouth of Tuen Mun River and Castle Peak Bay in the New Territories, Hong Kong. It was one of the earliest settlements in what is now Hong Kong and can be dated to the Neolithic period. In the more ...

) Heung Yee Kuk: *

References

{{Authority control 1991 establishments in Hong Kong 1993 disestablishments in Hong Kong Defunct political parties in Hong Kong Political parties disestablished in 1993 Political parties established in 1991