Elsie Tu
Encyclopedia
Elsie Hume Elliot Tu or Elsie Tu (Chinese:
Chinese language
The Chinese language is a language or language family consisting of varieties which are mutually intelligible to varying degrees. Originally the indigenous languages spoken by the Han Chinese in China, it forms one of the branches of Sino-Tibetan family of languages...

 杜葉錫恩; born June 2, 1913), GBM
GBM
-Medicine:* Glioblastoma multiforme, a type of brain tumor* Glomerular basement membrane, a part of the glomerulus which helps separate urine from blood-Other:* Game Boy Micro, a portable video game system from Nintendo...

, CBE
CBE
CBE and C.B.E. are abbreviations for "Commander of the Order of the British Empire", a grade in the Order of the British Empire.Other uses include:* Chemical and Biochemical Engineering...

, (previously known as Elsie Elliott, née Hume) is a prominent social activist, former elected member of the Urban Council of Hong Kong
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...

, and former member of the Legislative Council of Hong Kong
Legislative Council of Hong Kong
The Legislative Council is the unicameral legislature of Hong Kong.-History:The Legislative Council of Hong Kong was set up in 1843 as a colonial legislature under British rule...

. Born in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, northern England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

, she moved to Hong Kong in 1951 following a period as a missionary
Missionary
A missionary is a member of a religious group sent into an area to do evangelism or ministries of service, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care and economic development. The word "mission" originates from 1598 when the Jesuits sent members abroad, derived from the Latin...

 in China. She became known for her strong antipathy toward colonialism
Colonialism
Colonialism is the establishment, maintenance, acquisition and expansion of colonies in one territory by people from another territory. It is a process whereby the metropole claims sovereignty over the colony and the social structure, government, and economics of the colony are changed by...

 and corruption
Political corruption
Political corruption is the use of legislated powers by government officials for illegitimate private gain. Misuse of government power for other purposes, such as repression of political opponents and general police brutality, is not considered political corruption. Neither are illegal acts by...

, as well as for her relentless work for the underprivileged.

Early life

She was born as Elsie Hume to John Hume and Florence Lydia Hume on 2 June 1913 in Newcastle upon Tyne. She was educated in Benwell Secondary Girl’s School, Heaton Secondary School. She continued her study at the Armstrong College
Armstrong College
Armstrong College may refer to:* Armstrong Atlantic State University, formerly known as Armstrong College* Armstrong College, a former college of Durham University* Armstrong College, a former college in Berkeley, California...

, University of Durham and graduated in 1937 with a Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...

. From 1937 to 1947 she taught in schools. She was a Civil Defence volunteer during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

.

Elsie converted to Christianity in 1932. In 1946 she married William ("Bill") Elliott, and went with him to China as a missionary in 1947. After the Communist took power in 1949, foreign missionaries were expelled from the Mainland and the couple moved to Hong Kong in 1951. Shocked by the poverty there, Elliott became disenchanted with her husband's extreme Protestant faith and the refusal of their church, the Plymouth Brethren
Plymouth Brethren
The Plymouth Brethren is a conservative, Evangelical Christian movement, whose history can be traced to Dublin, Ireland, in the late 1820s. Although the group is notable for not taking any official "church name" to itself, and not having an official clergy or liturgy, the title "The Brethren," is...

, to become involved in social issues. The couple eventually separated during an abortive trip back to England, and later divorced. Tu left the Plymouth Brethren and returned to Hong Kong alone.

In 1954 Tu set up a school for the children of squatters in Kwun Tong
Kwun Tong
Kwun Tong is an area in Kwun Tong District, situated at the eastern part of the Kowloon Peninsula, and its boundary stretches from Lion Rock in the north to Lei Yue Mun in the south, and from the winding paths of Kowloon Peak in the east to the north coast of the former Kai Tak Airport runway in...

, remaining a school principal until 2000.

Political career

Becoming politically active, Elliot was elected for the first time to the Urban Council (then the only public body with a partially publicly elected membership) in 1 April 1963 as a member of the Reform Club. Later she left the Reform Club and ran as an independent candidate.

In 1965, the Star Ferry
Star Ferry
The Star Ferry, or The "Star" Ferry Company, is a passenger ferry service operator in Hong Kong. Its principal routes carry passengers across Victoria Harbour, between Hong Kong Island and Kowloon...

 applied for an increase of First Class fare by 5 Hong Kong cents (from 20 cents to 25 cents). This was widely opposed in Hong Kong. Elliott collected over 20,000 signatories opposing the plan, and flew to London in an attempt to arrest the plan. The increase in fare was given its go-ahead in March 1966 by the Transport Advisory Committee, where the only vote opposing was Elliott's. Public outcry to the fare increase sparked the Kowloon riots
Hong Kong 1966 riots
The Hong Kong 1966 Riots was a series of disturbances that took place over three nights on the streets of Kowloon, Hong Kong in the spring of 1966...

 in April 1966. Elliott was persecuted by the government as a result, accused of instigating the riots. Though never convicted of any charge, she remained under suspicion in the eyes of many.

During the 1960s and 1970s, Elliott was a fierce opponent of the corruption then endemic in many areas of Hong Kong life and the influence of the Triads. She also campaigned for better working and housing conditions for the poor. Though many in ruling circles disliked Elliott "rocking the boat", her campaigning is credited with leading to the establishment of the Independent Commission Against Corruption
Independent Commission Against Corruption (Hong Kong)
The Independent Commission Against Corruption of Hong Kong was established by Governor Murray MacLehose on 15 February 1974, when Hong Kong was under British rule. Its main aim was to clean up endemic corruption in the many departments of the Hong Kong Government through law enforcement,...

 in 1974.

In 1980 it was revealed by investigative journalist Duncan Campbell
Duncan Campbell (investigative journalist)
Duncan Campbell is a British freelance investigative journalist, author and television producer who, since 1975, has specialised in the subjects of intelligence and security services, defence, policing, civil liberties and, latterly, computer forensics. He was a staff writer at the New Statesman...

 that she was under surveillance by the Special Branch
Special Branch
Special Branch is a label customarily used to identify units responsible for matters of national security in British and Commonwealth police forces, as well as in the Royal Thai Police...

 of the then Royal Hong Kong Police
Hong Kong Police Force
The Hong Kong Police Force is the largest disciplined service under the Security Bureau of Hong Kong. It is the world's second, and Asia's first, police agency to operate with a modern policing system. It was formed on 1 May 1844, with a strength of 32 officers...

. This, however, did not worry Elliott as she stated: I know my telephone was tapped and probably is at this moment but I have done nothing wrong and have no political affiliations. Later, Elsie Tu wrote in her semi-autobiographical work, Colonial Hong Kong in the Eyes of Elsie Tu, that her phone line was already tapped in 1970.

In later years, Elliott married her longtime partner in her education work, Andrew Tu, on 13 June 1985; he died in 2001. In 1988 she was elected to the Legislative Council
Legislative Council
A Legislative Council is the name given to the legislatures, or one of the chambers of the legislature of many nations and colonies.A Member of the Legislative Council is commonly referred to as an MLC.- Unicameral legislatures :...

 as a representative of the Urban Council.

In the period leading up to Hong Kong's return to Chinese sovereignty, Tu disappointed many of her former allies and supporters by becoming an advocate of slower pace in democratisation (as preferred by the Chinese Communist Party, who markets
Marketing strategy
Marketing strategy is a process that can allow an organization to concentrate its limited resources on the greatest opportunities to increase sales and achieve a sustainable competitive advantage.-Developing a marketing strategy:...

 it as "gradual pace") as opposed to many other democrats who advocate faster pace (such as Emily Lau
Emily Lau
Emily Lau Wai-hing JP is one of two vice-chairmen of Democratic Party.She was the convenor of The Frontier...

 and Martin Lee
Martin Lee
Martin Lee , QC, SC, JP, was the founding chairman of the Democratic Party in Hong Kong. He was a directly-elected Member of the Legislative Council of Hong Kong for the Hong Kong Island geographical constituency...

). In the 1995 direct election she lost her Urban Council seat to Szeto Wah
Szeto Wah
Szeto Wah was a politician of the pan-democracy camp of Hong Kong. He was formerly the chairman of The Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements in China and a member of the Legislative Council from 1985 to 1997 and 1998 to 2004.Although the Hong Kong government prior to as...

, whose campaign targeted Tu's perceived pro-communist stance.

Tu left active politics and closed her office in 1999 after having failed in her bid to be elected to the Legislative Council. Since then, she has continued to comment on social issues.

Tu has written two volumes of autobiography (one co-written with Andrew Tu), as well as other works. She also completed for publication her husband Andrew's autobiography of his childhood in Inner Mongolia
Inner Mongolia
Inner Mongolia is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China, located in the northern region of the country. Inner Mongolia shares an international border with the countries of Mongolia and the Russian Federation...

, Camel Bells in the Windy Desert.

Honours

Tu has received numerous honours in recognition of her services to Hong Kong. In 1975, she was awarded the Ramon Magsaysay Award
Ramon Magsaysay Award
The Ramon Magsaysay Award is an annual award established to perpetuate former Philippine President Ramon Magsaysay's example of integrity in government, courageous service to the people, and pragmatic idealism within a democratic society. The Ramon Magsaysay Award is often considered Asia's Nobel...

 for Government Service, often called Asia's Nobel Prize. She was awarded the CBE
CBE
CBE and C.B.E. are abbreviations for "Commander of the Order of the British Empire", a grade in the Order of the British Empire.Other uses include:* Chemical and Biochemical Engineering...

 in 1977, and the Grand Bauhinia Medal
Grand Bauhinia Medal
The Grand Bauhinia Medal the highest award under the Hong Kong honours and awards system, is to recognise the selected person's lifelong and highly significant contribution to the well-being of Hong Kong. The awardee is entitled to the postnominal letters GBM and the style "The Honorable"...

 in 1997. A number of honorary degrees have also been conferred on her. Although she graduated from Durham University, the Armstrong College where she studied separated with Durham University in 1963 to became the University of Newcastle upon Tyne
University of Newcastle upon Tyne
Newcastle University is a major research-intensive university located in Newcastle upon Tyne in the north-east of England. It was established as a School of Medicine and Surgery in 1834 and became the University of Newcastle upon Tyne by an Act of Parliament in August 1963. Newcastle University is...

. She received honorary doctoral degrees in Civil Law from both universities in 1996.
  • Hong Kong Top Ten Loving Hearts Selection Campaign (Henry Hu, Chung Chi Ying/Susan Lam/Aunt Kwan/Li Chung Hin/Susan So/Hu Shiu Ying/Chan Ying Kit/Ko Wing Man/Tin Ka Ping/Elsie Tu)

External links

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