E r i c H o t u n g . c o m

About the Man

H.E. Ambassador Eric Hotung is an international businessman of Anglo-Chinese lineage. His grandfather, Sir Robert Hotung (1862 - 1956), was a philanthropist and an influential figure in China and Hong Kong, and he was a leader of Hong Kong's Chinese Community for several decades. His friends included three historic Chinese leaders - Dr. Sun Yat-sen, father of modern China; K'ang Yu-wai, the respected philosopher and reformer and Generalisimo Chiang Kai Shek. Sir Robert was also the prime mover behind three Round Table Conferences to bring peace among China's feuding warlords. He also financed Dr. Sun's attempts to overthrow the Manchus. A true patriot, Sir Robert solved the Seamen's Strike of 1925 and allowed his ships 'Clara' and 'Fook Po' to be scuttled in an attempt to thwart the Japanese entry into Hong Kong harbor.

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The present Chinese leaders respect the memory of Sir Robert Hotung in their cordial and friendly treatment of his grandson.

Flashback

H.E. Ambassador Eric Hotung's father, Edward Hotung (1902 - 1957), was a prominent banker, philanthropist and founder of the Chinese Gold and Silver Exchange in Hong Kong. He was Treasurer of the Chinese War Chest in Shanghai during the Japanese occupation. He was injured in a Japanese bombing attack on Hong Kong and as a result, lost both his legs.

As a young man during the war, H.E. Ambassador Eric Hotung worked as a volunteer orderly in the emergency ward of Hong Kong's Tung Wah Hospital. Later in the war, H.E. Ambassador Eric Hotung and his family were placed under house arrest, after their forced repatriation to Shanghai by the Japanese. They lived in severe privation and H.E. Ambassador Eric Hotung had a number of close encounters with the then enemy, the Japanese.

Following his education at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C., H.E. Ambassador Eric Hotung entered the business field and administered his family's estates. His achievements in charitable, commercial and diplomatic undertakings have been extensive and he has won the respect of leaders in China and the United States where he has worked for the benefit of these countries and Hong Kong.

The Rise Of H.E. Ambassador Hotung

As a young man, he pioneered in Hong Kong the conception of low-cost housing for the overwhelming number of people pouring into the territory at that time (1964). From that beginning, H.E. Ambassador Eric Hotung established his own empire.

His philanthropic activities continued and grew. He established the Eric Hotung Trust Fund to assist the needy and deserving. For decades this Trust Fund sponsored countless worthy young people in Hong Kong to further their education abroad and return to Hong Kong as qualified professional people to assist Hong Kong grow into the metropolis it is today.

He established the Hotung Institute for International Studies (now known as the Hotung Institute for International Relations) to enhance understanding between China and the United States, sponsoring several events to bring together the Chinese people and the American people and he has constantly striven to improve Sino-U.S. relations.

Social & Political Contributions

In his capacity as Financial Advisor on Chinese Affairs at the Center for Strategic Studies in Washington, and as Counselor of Dr. Henry Kissinger's International Counselors, H.E. Ambassador Eric Hotung arranged in 1982 a visit to Washington by a Chinese Delegation led by Ambassador Wong Bing Nan, Ambassador to Poland, and a signatory to the Treaty of Geneva. This Delegation met with the then Vice-President, George Bush and Secretary of State, George Schultz, in an attempt to diffuse the tense atmosphere prevailing at that time and to counteract the accusations by the Chinese of U.S. hegemony.

This visit led to a cross-exchange with a Chinese Delegation from the Beijing Institute of Strategic Studies and the Chinese Friendship Association paying a return visit to Williamsburg, Virginia in 1984. It was led by Huan Xiang, First Chargé d'affairs to Great Britain in the Fifties prior to diplomatic recognition between the two countries. Huan Xiang was regarded as the counterpart of Dr. Kissinger and Dr. Brezezinski in the U.S. Government.

In 1983, the Hotung Institute organized a meeting with Chairman Deng Xiao Ping and his officials with U.S. Government representatives, Messrs Melvin Laird and Brzezinski, on the historic occasion of Chairman Deng's first pronouncement of "One Country, Two Systems."

In 1986, H.E. Ambassador Eric Hotung sponsored the first of several financial and trade symposiums in New York with Shang Ming of the Bank of China and the People's Bank of China, represented by Madam Chen Mu Hua, Chairman of the Bank and formerly Minister of Foreign Trade. He also arranged a reception in Washington with U.S. business leaders to participate in the Forum.

In October 1987, H.E. Ambassador Eric Hotung and the Hotung Institute at the invitation of the U.S. Senate, sponsored a meeting in the Senate, entitled "The China Trade Caucus - U.S.-China Relations in the Decade Ahead and its influence on Hong Kong and Shanghai." The Conference was attended by high officials of both governments, and significantly H.E. Ambassador Eric Hotung received clearance from the U.S. Department of Commerce to defray the expenses.

In 1988, H.E. Ambassador Eric Hotung sponsored an important Symposium in Washington to discuss U.S. trade policies towards Hong Kong and China. This conference was attended by U.S. Senators and Chinese officials, and contributed later to a softening of the U.S. Senate's stance and brought about the easing of protectionism. This benefited Hong Kong. In a letter to the then Prime Minister, Mrs. Margaret Thatcher, on behalf of other Senators, Senator Chic Hecht of Nevada, praised H.E. Ambassador Eric Hotung for organizing the Symposium, which he said significantly influenced the Senate's decision. This act was acknowledged by the Governor of Hong Kong.

Later that year (1988) he sponsored a further meeting in Washington, D.C., marking the visit of a Study Group, led by Mr. Xu Jian Tun, Chief of Xin Hua News, Hong Kong (Xu ultimately defected to the U.S.). This was followed by an important visit in 1988 by the Foreign Minister, the Hon. Qian Qi Chen, co-sponsored by the National Committee on U.S. - China Relations and H.E. Ambassador Eric Hotung, marking the 10th Anniversary of Normalization of U.S. - China Relations. H.E. Ambassador Eric Hotung is the sole non-American Director of the National Committee on U.S. - China Relations.

In June 1990, the Hotung Institute co-sponsored a Conference at the U.S. State Department with the U.S. Business Council "Reassessing U.S. - China Ties: Economic Policy and the Role of Business". The topics discussed included "Hong Kong: In the Middle at Risk" and was aimed to ensure the continuation of Most Favoured Nation (MFN) Status for China. This continuation of MFN status has great bearing upon Hong Kong's financial well being. The Conference was attended by business representatives of the U.S. and members of the U.S. Congress and government officials, Hong Kong businessmen, academia and the press.

In July 1990, H.E. Ambassador Eric Hotung sponsored a meeting for a Delegation of six Chinese mayors, led by Zhu Rongji, then Mayor of Shanghai and now Premier of China, at the U.S. Senate, attended by high U.S. officials including Senator Mansfield, former U.S. Ambassador to Japan, and others.

In 1991, H.E. Ambassador Eric Hotung paid a visit to Beijing to the then Party Secretary, Jiang Zemin (now the President of the People Republic of China) and Yang Shangeun and Liu Hwa Chiu, high government officials, which was televised and covered in the national press.

H.E. Ambassador Eric Hotung - The Advisor

In recent years, H.E. Ambassador Eric Hotung has quietly advised the Chinese government, commencing with Vice Chairman Liao Cheng Zhi, of the high priority the west places on human rights. As an example, before Vice Chairman Liao died, H.E. Ambassador Eric Hotung was asked to take a message to him from the U.S. Commanding General Alexander Haig's office, which had a direct bearing on the Vietnam War. He has raised the issue of human rights with world leaders, delivered speeches and written articles in influential publications, some of which were subsequently reprinted in the U.S. Congressional Record - "The Challenge Facing Deng ", and "Religion in China ", among others.

Conclusion

H.E. Ambassador Eric Hotung's philanthropic endeavors to help Hong Kong and China to find their place in the world in the 21st century continue.