ABSTRACT
A superimposed government was the mark of the colonial status. But there must have been a society on which it was superimposed.2
D. Faure (1997)
This chapter explores the defining features of colonial policing in Hong Kong: addressing the question of what made colonial policing in Hong Kong unique. The supposition is that policing of whatever persuasions-colonial, communist or democratic-took on local colour when applied3 and was customised to be effective.4 That is to say, in doing and understanding colonial policing, local context mattered.5 People might differ on the relative contribution of specific contextual factors-social, political, economics, culturalin shaping policing, but few can deny that they were all important in their own way.6
