1967 Hong Kong riots facts for kids
Quick facts for kids 1967 Hong Kong riots |
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Clash between striking tram workers and police officers on 30 August 1967
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| Date | May – December 1967 | ||
| Location | |||
| Methods | Demonstrations, strikes, assassinations, planting of bombs | ||
| Resulted in | Riots quelled
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| Parties to the civil conflict | |||
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| Casualties | |||
| Death(s) | 51 | ||
| Injuries | 832 | ||
| Arrested | 4,979 | ||
| 1967 Hong Kong riots | |||||||||||||||||
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| Traditional Chinese | 六七暴動 | ||||||||||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 六七暴动 | ||||||||||||||||
| Literal meaning | '67 riots | ||||||||||||||||
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The 1967 Hong Kong riots were a series of large protests and violent events. They happened in Hong Kong when it was under British rule. What started as a small disagreement between workers and their bosses grew into big protests against the government. These events were partly inspired by similar protests in Portuguese Macau that happened a few months earlier.
During the riots, some protesters used homemade bombs. They threw these bombs and also planted them by roadsides. In response, the Hong Kong Police Force raided places where protesters gathered. They also arrested many of their leaders. Sadly, 51 people died during this time. Many of the bombs were made in schools that supported the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Because of this, the governor at the time, David Trench, closed those schools. He also banned publications that supported the CCP.
These protests happened while the Cultural Revolution was taking place in Mainland China. Many protesters in Hong Kong supported the CCP. After the riots, the British government in Hong Kong realized it needed to make changes. They worked to fix some of the social problems that had led to the unrest. However, more riots would happen again in 1981.
What Caused the 1967 Hong Kong Riots?
The first protests in May 1967 were about workers' rights. They involved people working in shipping, taxis, textiles, and cement companies. The groups supporting these workers were part of the Hong Kong Federation of Trade Unions. This union had strong connections to Beijing, the capital of China.
How Political Tensions Grew in Hong Kong
The political mood in Hong Kong was very tense in the spring of 1967. Just across the border, Mainland China was in chaos. The Cultural Revolution was happening, and groups called Red Guards were causing trouble. They were removing people they didn't like and fighting among themselves.
To the west of Hong Kong, in the Portuguese colony of Macau, similar events had just ended. For two months, there had been violent clashes between the police and protesters who supported the CCP. Even the Portuguese army couldn't fully restore order. A big strike in January 1967 forced the Portuguese government to agree to many of the protesters' demands. This meant that China gained a lot of control over Macau. In Hong Kong, up to 31 protests took place during this time.
See also
In Spanish: Disturbios en Hong Kong de 1967 para niños
