Henry Fok
Encyclopedia
Henry Fok Ying Tung was a Hong Kong
businessman. He has ancestral roots in Nansha
, Panyu
, now part of Guangzhou
, Guangdong
). Fok was the vice-chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference of PRC since March 1993, and was possibly the most powerful Hongkonger in the politics of the People's Republic of China
. Henry Fok is of Tanka descent.
, but was not able to finish junior high due to the Japanese invasion
in 1937. He worked as a labourer during that time while helping to run the family's small boat business.
during the Korean War
in the early 1950s, circumventing a United Nations
arms embargo
. Fok vigorously denied weapons trafficking, but admits having violated sanctions by smuggling steel and rubber as well as other items.
He was the President of the Chinese General Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong, the President of the Hong Kong Football Association
, and the President of the Real Estate Developers Association of Hong Kong. He was also the Chairman of Henry Fok Estates Ltd and the Yau Wing Co of Hong Kong.
, the vice-chairman of the Preliminary Working Committee of Preparatory Committee of the Hong Kong SAR, and the vice-chairman of the Preparatory Committee of Hong Kong SAR. He was also Standing Committee member of 7th National People's Congress
.
The press frequently reports that Henry Fok had introduced Tung Chee Hwa
to Jiang Zemin
as a possible candidate of the first Hong Kong Chief Executive.
Henry Fok helped Tung Chee Hwa out of a near-bankruptcy of his family's Orient Overseas Container Line
in the 1980s. Because of this relationship, it was often said while Tung was the Chief Executive of Hong Kong that Fok 'intervened/advised' if times, or rather Beijing, called for it.
in 2005 to support the initiative.
Fok had family roots in Nansha District
, Guangzhou
, Guangdong
.
in Beijing
, where he was being treated for cancer. He was diagnosed with lymphoma
in 1984 and the cancer reappeared in 2004. His body was flown back to Hong Kong for a traditional funeral in accordance with his wishes. Fok was the third Hong Kong person to have his casket draped in the Chinese national flag
since the handover (the others being Ann Tse-kai and Wong Ker-lee).
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
businessman. He has ancestral roots in Nansha
Nansha District
Nansha District is a district in Guangzhou, Guangdong, China.-External links:*...
, Panyu
Panyu
Panyu District or Pun Yue District is a district in Guangzhou, Guangdong, China. It used to be a county-level city before it was incorporated in the administration of Guangzhou. The name of Panyu dates back to the completion of the conquest of Guangdong by Qin Shi Huang. It was the old name of...
, now part of Guangzhou
Guangzhou
Guangzhou , known historically as Canton or Kwangchow, is the capital and largest city of the Guangdong province in the People's Republic of China. Located in southern China on the Pearl River, about north-northwest of Hong Kong, Guangzhou is a key national transportation hub and trading port...
, Guangdong
Guangdong
Guangdong is a province on the South China Sea coast of the People's Republic of China. The province was previously often written with the alternative English name Kwangtung Province...
). Fok was the vice-chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference of PRC since March 1993, and was possibly the most powerful Hongkonger in the politics of the People's Republic of China
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
. Henry Fok is of Tanka descent.
Biography
Born on 21 November 1922 in Hong Kong, Fok's father died in a boating accident when he was just seven. He studied at Queen's CollegeQueen's College, Hong Kong
Queen's College , initially named The Government Central School in 1862, later renamed as Victoria College in 1889, is a sixth form college for boys with a secondary school attached. It was the first public secondary school founded in Hong Kong by the British colonial government...
, but was not able to finish junior high due to the Japanese invasion
Second Sino-Japanese War
The Second Sino-Japanese War was a military conflict fought primarily between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan. From 1937 to 1941, China fought Japan with some economic help from Germany , the Soviet Union and the United States...
in 1937. He worked as a labourer during that time while helping to run the family's small boat business.
Business
After the war, he became a successful businessman. His business interests included restaurants. real estate, casinos and petroleum. Fok reportedly made his first fortune gun-running into the mainlandMainland China
Mainland China, the Chinese mainland or simply the mainland, is a geopolitical term that refers to the area under the jurisdiction of the People's Republic of China . According to the Taipei-based Mainland Affairs Council, the term excludes the PRC Special Administrative Regions of Hong Kong and...
during the Korean War
Korean War
The Korean War was a conventional war between South Korea, supported by the United Nations, and North Korea, supported by the People's Republic of China , with military material aid from the Soviet Union...
in the early 1950s, circumventing a United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
arms embargo
Arms embargo
An arms embargo is an embargo that applies to weaponry. It may also include "dual use" items. An arms embargo may serve one or more purposes:# to signal disapproval of behavior by a certain actor,# to maintain neutral standing in an ongoing conflict, or...
. Fok vigorously denied weapons trafficking, but admits having violated sanctions by smuggling steel and rubber as well as other items.
He was the President of the Chinese General Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong, the President of the Hong Kong Football Association
Hong Kong Football Association
The Hong Kong Football Association , often abbreviated to the HKFA, is the governing body of association football in Hong Kong. Its current chairman is Brian Leung Hung-Tak and its general secretary is Vincent Yuen Mun-Chuen.- History :...
, and the President of the Real Estate Developers Association of Hong Kong. He was also the Chairman of Henry Fok Estates Ltd and the Yau Wing Co of Hong Kong.
Political
Before the handover of Hong Kong in 1997, Henry Fok was a member of the Drafting Committee for the Basic Law of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR)Hong Kong Basic Law
The Basic Law of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China, or simply Hong Kong Basic Law, serves as the constitutional document of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China...
, the vice-chairman of the Preliminary Working Committee of Preparatory Committee of the Hong Kong SAR, and the vice-chairman of the Preparatory Committee of Hong Kong SAR. He was also Standing Committee member of 7th National People's Congress
National People's Congress
The National People's Congress , abbreviated NPC , is the highest state body and the only legislative house in the People's Republic of China. The National People's Congress is held in the Great Hall of the People, Beijing, capital of the People's Republic of China; with 2,987 members, it is the...
.
The press frequently reports that Henry Fok had introduced Tung Chee Hwa
Tung Chee Hwa
Tung Chee Hwa, GBM was the first Chief Executive and President of the Executive Council of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China....
to Jiang Zemin
Jiang Zemin
Jiang Zemin is a former Chinese politician, who served as General Secretary of the Communist Party of China from 1989 to 2002, as President of the People's Republic of China from 1993 to 2003, and as Chairman of the Central Military Commission from 1989 to 2005...
as a possible candidate of the first Hong Kong Chief Executive.
Henry Fok helped Tung Chee Hwa out of a near-bankruptcy of his family's Orient Overseas Container Line
Orient Overseas Container Line
Orient Overseas Container Line is a Hong Kong-based container shipping and logistics service company.OOCL is one of the world's largest shipping and logistics companies with more than 280 offices in 55 countries around the world, providing 78 services covering international trading markets with a...
in the 1980s. Because of this relationship, it was often said while Tung was the Chief Executive of Hong Kong that Fok 'intervened/advised' if times, or rather Beijing, called for it.
Philanthropy
Henry Fok founded the Fok Ying Tung Foundation in 1984, and it is now one of the largest philanthropic organizations in Hong Kong. Fok founded a high-technology business park in Nansha. He is said to have visited the site more than 500 times, and through the Foundation, pledged HK$800 million (US$100 million) to the Hong Kong University of Science and TechnologyHong Kong University of Science and Technology
The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology is a public university located in Hong Kong. Established in 1991 under Hong Kong Law Chapter 1141 , it is one of the nine universities in Hong Kong.Professor Tony F. Chan is the president of HKUST...
in 2005 to support the initiative.
Personal
Among Fok's children, the best-known are:- Timothy Fok Tsun-tingTimothy FokTimothy Fok Tsun-ting , GBS, JP, the eldest son of Henry Fok, is a Member of the Legislative Council of Hong Kong, representing the Sports, Performing Arts, Culture and Publication functional constituency...
- Hong Kong Football AssociationHong Kong Football AssociationThe Hong Kong Football Association , often abbreviated to the HKFA, is the governing body of association football in Hong Kong. Its current chairman is Brian Leung Hung-Tak and its general secretary is Vincent Yuen Mun-Chuen.- History :...
chairman and Legislative Council member. - Ian Fok Chun-wan - Managing Director, Yau Wing Co. Ltd.; Director, Fok Ying Tung Foundation Ltd, a former chairman of the Chinese General Chamber of Commerce, whose son was convicted for drug possession in 2005.
- Thomas Fok - son of Fok's second wife Ana Fung, born 1950, worked at the family firm; served six months in a US detention centre in 1991 for conspiracy to smuggle 15,000 AK47 assault rifles into the United States and on to the CroatianCroatiaCroatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
Government to fight SerbiaSerbiaSerbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
. Divorced from Emma Hung Kwok-wah in 1997. - Benjamin C.Y. Fok
Fok had family roots in Nansha District
Nansha District
Nansha District is a district in Guangzhou, Guangdong, China.-External links:*...
, Guangzhou
Guangzhou
Guangzhou , known historically as Canton or Kwangchow, is the capital and largest city of the Guangdong province in the People's Republic of China. Located in southern China on the Pearl River, about north-northwest of Hong Kong, Guangzhou is a key national transportation hub and trading port...
, Guangdong
Guangdong
Guangdong is a province on the South China Sea coast of the People's Republic of China. The province was previously often written with the alternative English name Kwangtung Province...
.
Death
On 28 October 2006, Fok died at the age of 83 at the Peking Union Medical CollegePeking Union Medical College
Peking Union Medical College is among the most selective medical colleges in the People's Republic of China and is renowned both in its own right and for being connected to one of China's most prestigious institutions of higher learning.-History:...
in Beijing
Beijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
, where he was being treated for cancer. He was diagnosed with lymphoma
Lymphoma
Lymphoma is a cancer in the lymphatic cells of the immune system. Typically, lymphomas present as a solid tumor of lymphoid cells. Treatment might involve chemotherapy and in some cases radiotherapy and/or bone marrow transplantation, and can be curable depending on the histology, type, and stage...
in 1984 and the cancer reappeared in 2004. His body was flown back to Hong Kong for a traditional funeral in accordance with his wishes. Fok was the third Hong Kong person to have his casket draped in the Chinese national flag
Flag of the People's Republic of China
The flag of the People's Republic of China is a red field charged in the canton with five golden stars. The design features one large star, with four smaller stars in a semicircle set off towards the fly...
since the handover (the others being Ann Tse-kai and Wong Ker-lee).