The Chinese Cooperative Council was a civilian council consisting of leading local Chinese and Eurasians leaders during the

Japanese occupation of Hong Kong The Japanese occupation of Hong Kong began when the governor of Hong Kong, Mark Aitchison Young, surrendered the British Crown colony of British Hong Kong, Hong Kong to the Empire of Japan on 25 December 1941. His surrender occurred after Batt ...

History

After the British surrender, the Japanese tried to consolidate their power by collaborating with the local Chinese leaders. In January 1942, few weeks after the British surrender, Lieutenant General

Takashi Sakai was a lieutenant general in the Imperial Japanese Army during World War II, known for his role as Governor of Hong Kong under Japanese occupation. Biography Sakai was born in Kamo District, Hiroshima, now part of Hiroshima city. He was ed ...

invited about 130 leading Chinese and Eurasian leaders in Hong Kong to a formal luncheon set at the Peninsula Hotel in

Kowloon Kowloon () is one of the areas of Hong Kong, three areas of Hong Kong, along with Hong Kong Island and the New Territories. It is an urban area comprising the Kowloon Peninsula and New Kowloon. It has a population of 2,019,533 and a populat ...

. In the meeting, Saikai elaborated the idea of the

Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere The , also known as the GEACPS, was a Pan-Asianism, pan-Asian union that the Empire of Japan tried to establish. Initially, it covered Japan (including Korea under Japanese rule, annexed Korea), Manchukuo, and Wang Jingwei regime, China, but as ...

where the Chinese and Japanese should cooperate with each other. After Sakai was replaced by Lieutenant General

Isogai Rensuke was a general in the Imperial Japanese Army and Governor of Hong Kong under Japanese occupation from February 20, 1942, to December 24, 1944. Biography Early career A native of Hyōgo Prefecture, Isogai graduated from the 16th class of the Imp ...

in late January 1942, two councils, the Chinese Representative Council and the Chinese Cooperative Council were established, replacing the Rehabilitation Advisory Committee on 30 March 1942. The Chinese Cooperative Council was chaired by

Chow Shouson Sir Shouson Chow (; 1861–1959), also known as Chow Cheong-Ling (), was a Hong Kong businessman and politician. He had been a Qing dynasty official and prominent in the Government of Hong Kong. Family Chow is said to have been born in Wong C ...

, member of the Executive Council and also

Legislative Council A legislative council is the legislature, or one of the legislative chambers, of a nation, colony, or subnational division such as a province or state. It was commonly used to label unicameral or upper house legislative bodies in the Brit ...

of the British Hong Kong government before the war. The 22 members of the council were selected by the three-member (later four) Chinese Representative Council which chaired by

Robert Kotewall Sir Robert Hormus Kotewall (; 1880–1949) was a British Hong Kong businessman, civil servant and legislator. Early life Kotewall was born in 1880. He was the son of Hormusjee Rustomjee Kotewall, an Indian Parsi, and Cheung A-cheung. He obta ...

. The Chinese Cooperative Council was directly responsible to the Japanese governor. Its duties were to report to the governor complaints from the population, to convey decisions and policies of the government and to advise the government on matters concerning the population. Although the council met twice a week to discuss issues, it had limited power. All the council could do was to make suggestions and try to persuade the government to accept it. It also headed the District Affairs Bureaux Councils and the wards which were staffed by Chinese.

Composition

, Chairman * Li Koon-chun, Vice-Chairman *

Chau Tsun-nin Sir Tsun-nin Chau, CBE (; 22 December 1893 – 27 January 1971) was a prominent Hong Kong businessman and politician. He graduated from St Stephens College at 17 and continued his education at Oxford University as a barrister. Public Ser ...

* Cheung Suk-shun * Fung Tse-ying * Ip Lan-chuen *

Kwok Chan Kwok Chan (, 1904 – 17 June 1967) was a Hong Kong businessman and member of the Executive Council of Hong Kong. Early life Kwok was the second son of the Hong Kong businessman Kwok Shiu-lau. He was born in Hong Kong and was educated at the ...

* Kwok Chuen * Lam Kin-yan * Li Chung-po * Ling Hong-fat *

Lo Man-kam Sir Man-kam Lo, CBE (; 21 July 1893 – 7 March 1959) was an Eurasian lawyer in Hong Kong and unofficial member of the Executive Council and the Legislative Council of Hong Kong. Early life and education Man-kam Lo was born into a prominent Eu ...

* Luk Ngoi-wan * Ng Wah *

Ngan Shing-kwan Ngan Shing-kwan, , Justice of the peace, JP (; December 18, 1900 – 14 April, 2001), Hong Kong Entrepreneurship, entrepreneur and politician, was the founder of the China Motor Bus, or CMB, which owned the Bus services in Hong Kong, bus Gover ...

* W. N. T. Tam * Sze Kai-tung * Tang Siu-kin * Tung Chung-wei * Wong Tak-kwong * Wong Tung-ming * Wong Ying-ching

References

{{reflist 1942 establishments in the Japanese colonial empire 1945 disestablishments in China Japanese occupation of Hong Kong Organisations based in Hong Kong Cooperatives in China