Elsie Tu: Difference between revisions

Becoming politically active, Elliott was [[Hong Kong municipal election, 1963|elected for the first time]] to the [[Urban Council of Hong Kong|Urban Council]] in 1963, a body dealing with local district matters such as public health, recreation, culture, food hygiene, hawking and markets. Its membership was partially publicly-elected and partially appointed. [[Brook Bernacchi]]'s [[Reform Club (Hong Kong)|Reform Club]] was seeking a woman candidate and Elliott ran.{{sfnp|Tu|2003|p=19}} At that time, the Reform Club and the [[Hong Kong Civic Association|Civic Association]], the two quasi-opposition parties in the Urban Council formed a join ticket for the four seats in the council to push for constitutional reform in the colony. She later left the club and ran as an independent in the [[Hong Kong municipal election, 1967|re-election in 1967]]. One of the prerequisites for becoming an Urban Councillor at that time was a knowledge of English, the only official language. Elliott thought this unfair and lobbied, with Councillor [[Denny Huang]] and others, for years to have Chinese recognised as an official language.{{sfnp|Tu|2003|p=20}}

 

Elliott became vice-chairman of the Urban Council with [[Gerry Forsgate]] as chairman in 1986. Until [[Hong Kong municipal elections, 1995|her defeat in 1995]], she had always been re-elected to the Urban Council with the highest votes. She was also the spokeswoman for the [[United Nations Association of Hong Kong]], which advocated [[self-government]] in the colony in the 1960s. In 1966, Elliott went to London and met with politicians including [[Secretary of State for the Colonies]] [[Frederick Lee, Baron Lee of Newton|Frederick Lee]] and Members of Parliament, seeking a Royal Commission of Inquiry into Hong Kong on the colony's economic inequality, corruption in the colonial government and self-government for Hong Kong as seen in other British colonies.<ref>{{cite news|newspaper=Hong Kong Tiger Standard|title=Elsie hands in HK report|date=19 May 1966}}</ref> She also invited some Members of Parliament to visit Hong Kong and joined the delegations of elected Urban Councillors to London in 1979 to discuss the proposed constitutional changes for Hong Kong.<ref name="papers"/>

 

In 1954, the government issued a new policy which allowed the Squatter Control Branch to demolish new squatter huts where many newcoming refugees from the Mainland were living. Elliott thought that the policy carried out many unjust practices and corruption. She called for a review of the policy once she was elected to the Urban Council in 1963 and helped the homeless and filed complaints to the government officials. Eventually the government agreed that the squatters whose huts were demolished in [[Jordan Valley, Hong Kong|Jordan Valley]] could build huts on the nearby hilltop known as "Seventh Cemetery".{{sfnp|Tu|2003|p=52–6}}

 

In 1965, the [[Star Ferry]] applied to the Government for a First Class fare increase of 5 Hong Kong cents to 25 cents. This was widely opposed in Hong Kong. Elliott collected over 20,000 signatories opposing the plan, and flew to London in an attempt to arrest it. The increase in fare was approved in March 1966 by the Transport Advisory Committee, where the only vote opposing was Elliott's. Inspired by Elliot's actions, on 4 April 1966, a young man named So Sau-chung began a [[hunger strike]] protest at the [[Edinburgh Place Ferry Pier|Star Ferry Terminal]] in Central with his black jacket upon which he had hand-written the words "Hail Elsie", "Join hunger strike to block fare increase". So was soon arrested and more protests were sparked which eventually turned into the [[Hong Kong 1966 riots|Kowloon riots in April 1966]]. Elliott faced smear attacks from the pro-government media and was called to an official inquiry, portraying her as the instigator of the riots.<ref name="obituary"/>