The Touch Base Policy ( zh, t=抵壘政策; also known as the Reached Base Policy) was an immigration policy in British Hong Kong from 1974 to 1980 towards the Refugee wave from the People's Republic of China to British Hong Kong. Under the policy, illegal immigrants from China could stay in Hong Kong if they reached urban areas and found a home with their relatives or other forms of accommodation.

Background

The British colony of Hong Kong was a migration hub due to regional instability from the

Second Sino-Japanese War The Second Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945) or War of Resistance (Chinese term) was a military conflict that was primarily waged between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan. The war made up the Chinese theater of the wider Pacific Th ...

and

Chinese Civil War The Chinese Civil War was fought between the Kuomintang-led government of the Republic of China and forces of the Chinese Communist Party, continuing intermittently since 1 August 1927 until 7 December 1949 with a Communist victory on m ...

. More than 6.3 million emigrants from China had travelled to other destinations through Hong Kong by 1939. Prior to the Sino-Japanese War, movement across the border between China and Hong Kong was largely unregulated, and Chinese immigrants were not required to carry travel documents. While many Chinese migrants travelled through Hong Kong, anti-Chinese sentiments in

Southeast Asia Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical south-eastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of mainlan ...

and failed expeditions led others to settle in Hong Kong. After the city's population was reduced to 600,000 by the end of the

Japanese occupation of Hong Kong The Imperial Japanese occupation of Hong Kong began when the Governor of Hong Kong, Sir Mark Young, surrendered the British Crown colony of Hong Kong to the Empire of Japan on 25 December 1941. The surrender occurred after 18 days of fierce ...

in 1945, it rebounded a year later to 1.6 million and to 2.36 million in 1950, due to the onset of the Cold War and the Communist Revolution in China. In early 1949, the Hong Kong government only allowed Chinese immigrants with entry permits to enter the city, except for those from Guangdong Province. All people also had to apply for identity cards. Communist reforms and mass movements in China, such as the Great Leap Forward, also contributed to the Refugee wave from the People's Republic of China to British Hong Kong, despite the strengthening of border controls previously.{{rp, 2 In an attempt to halt this influx of immigrants, a

Frontier Closed Area The Frontier Closed Area (), established by the Frontier Closed Area Order, 1951, and 1984 is a regulated border zone in Hong Kong that extended inwards from the border with Mainland China. Established to prevent illegal migrants and other i ...

was established by the Hong Kong Government along the border with China in June 1951, and expanded to its largest limit in 1962. Nonetheless the influx of immigrants continued, especially during the

Cultural Revolution The Cultural Revolution, formally known as the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, was a sociopolitical movement in the People's Republic of China (PRC) launched by Mao Zedong in 1966, and lasting until his death in 1976. Its stated goa ...

. In response the Hong Kong Government adopted the ''Touch Base Policy'' in November 1974, which allowed immigrants from Mainland China who reached the urban areas (reaching south of

Boundary Street Boundary Street is a three-lane one-way street in Kowloon, Hong Kong. It runs in an easterly direction from its start at the intersection with Tung Chau Street in the west, and ends at its intersection with Prince Edward Road West in t ...

) and met their relatives to register for a Hong Kong Identity Card. Those who were intercepted in the Closed Area would be

repatriated Repatriation is the process of returning a thing or a person to its country of origin or citizenship. The term may refer to non-human entities, such as converting a foreign currency into the currency of one's own country, as well as to the pro ...

back to the Mainland immediately.

End of the Policy

The Touch Base Policy did not halt the influx of immigrants and was abolished by the Hong Kong Government on 24 October 1980. Immigrants coming directly from the Mainland on or before 23 October 1980 were required to register for a Hong Kong Identity Card in a 3-day grace-period (24-26 of October 1980). Illegal immigrants arriving on or after 24 October 1980 were repatriated immediately, and it became compulsory for Hong Kong residents to carry their identity cards in public areas. Police will randomly check citizens' Hong Kong Identity Card for spotting out

Mainland Chinese Mainland Chinese or Mainlanders are Chinese people who live in or have recently emigrated from mainland China, defined as the territory governed by the People's Republic of China (PRC) except for Hong Kong ( SAR of the PRC), Macau (SAR of the PRC), ...

illegal immigrants, other than searching for other criminal suspects. That made the eligible immigrants who 'touched base' before the deadline rush to the Chinese Extension Section of the

Immigration Department The Immigration Department of the Government of Hong Kong is responsible for immigration control of Hong Kong. After the People's Republic of China assumed sovereignty of the territory in July 1997, Hong Kong's immigration system remained l ...

for identity registration.

References

History of Hong Kong Residence permit Immigration law

Background

End of the Policy

See also

References