Global Change
SECTION I: INTRODUCTION OF THE STUDY
Background
The concept of civil society was reinvented in the late 1980s in response to the rapid market development and the end of the Cold War. The collapse of the Soviet Union marked the rapid development of global market due to higher international security. Market development gradually leads to the development of civil society for two reasons: Firstly, the middle class helps to fight more freedom from the government as they want to gain more and more control of themselves. This situation, allows spaces for civil society to develop. Some donors search for NGOs to implement their civic or economic related interests and visions.1 Secondly, the retreat of the “welfare” states in western countries further triggers the emergence of civil society as people want to address the problem themselves instead of solely depending on the invisible hand of the free market.
Hong Kong, which is recognized as a newly industrialized economy (NIE) has adopted the minimal-interventionist principle in economic development for a long
Low tax rate and free market policies are the priorities of the Hong Kong government.
_____________________________________________________________________1 Howell, J. and Pearce, 2001, Civil Society and Development: A Critical, Exploration, Colorado: Lynne Rienner.time.
In order to keep the government expenditure at low level, NGOs began to flourish after the Second World War in the form of providing social services. Caritas is a prominent example. Organizations in civil society have served as agents for policy implementation for a long time. However, for policy formulation, the government is quite conservative in sharing power with civil society. Civil society is said to be very important in the implementation of democracy as civil society is a representation of diverse interests of the people.
In the planning system of Hong Kong, though the government was willing to involve more public
Background
The concept of civil society was reinvented in the late 1980s in response to the rapid market development and the end of the Cold War. The collapse of the Soviet Union marked the rapid development of global market due to higher international security. Market development gradually leads to the development of civil society for two reasons: Firstly, the middle class helps to fight more freedom from the government as they want to gain more and more control of themselves. This situation, allows spaces for civil society to develop. Some donors search for NGOs to implement their civic or economic related interests and visions.1 Secondly, the retreat of the “welfare” states in western countries further triggers the emergence of civil society as people want to address the problem themselves instead of solely depending on the invisible hand of the free market.
Hong Kong, which is recognized as a newly industrialized economy (NIE) has adopted the minimal-interventionist principle in economic development for a long
Low tax rate and free market policies are the priorities of the Hong Kong government.
_____________________________________________________________________1 Howell, J. and Pearce, 2001, Civil Society and Development: A Critical, Exploration, Colorado: Lynne Rienner.time.
In order to keep the government expenditure at low level, NGOs began to flourish after the Second World War in the form of providing social services. Caritas is a prominent example. Organizations in civil society have served as agents for policy implementation for a long time. However, for policy formulation, the government is quite conservative in sharing power with civil society. Civil society is said to be very important in the implementation of democracy as civil society is a representation of diverse interests of the people.
In the planning system of Hong Kong, though the government was willing to involve more public
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