East and West Book

The last governor of Hong Kong addresses three issues in East and West. First, he defends his policies of widening the base of democracy in Hong Kong; second, he explains his philosophy of good governance with reference to the experiences of Asian and Western countries; and third, he suggests that China is treated with excessive deference to the detriment of those who deal with it and ultimately to the detriment of the Chinese themselves. The book contains few new revelations and it bears little relation to the book by his confidant Jonathan Dimbleby, The Last Governor--which is not even mentioned. The nearest Patten comes to controversial matters is in the dismissal of the arguments of his critics--the unnamed Old China Hands and OFOCs (Old Friends of China). Readers of the Dimbleby book will have no difficulty in naming them. Patten is rightly critical of the so-called Asian values, but he is not vindictive. He even exonerates Singapore's elder statesman, Lee Kuan Yew, who had done much to make life difficult for Patten as governor. The bulk of the book, however, may be seen as an eloquent plea for the virtues of small government, the market, liberty and democracy. It is the manifesto of the "best Conservative politician of his generation" rather than the reflections of the last governor that many had hoped. --Michael YahudaRead More