In response to International Women's Day (8th March), this talk is on the history of Women's Prison in Hong Kong and those who lived and worked inside Victoria Gaol and successor in Lai Chi Kok.

While women were filling the magistrates courts and prisons of the British Isles during the 19th century, a female criminal in Hong Kong was a rarity. Yet, often because of grinding poverty, some did find themselves on the wrong side of the law.

Petty crimes - small-time thieving, illegal hawking or the possession of small amounts of illegal opium, etc - account for most of the appearances in court, but more heinous ones, often with a Hong Kong flavour, also feature. Making use of what was to hand, arguments were conducted with the aid of meat choppers, and why stop at one or two chops, when 70 seems like such a nice round number?

The trade in children, especially young girls, often involving kidnapping, was an easy and lucrative one for women to pursue, and punished by the courts accordingly. Not that all the women in front of the magistrates were Chinese, by any means: certain Western women were quite capable of attracting notoriety and worse.

The talk will reveal day-to-day life in the small Women's Prison, and the stories of the Matrons - the women who had charge of the prisoners. 

It will recount, too, how the British justice system tried to cope with the challenges the situation presented, and life in the small Women’s Prison, where a minority of the defendants would ‘do time’.

The Speaker

Patricia O’Sullivan started researching Hong Kong's vibrant history in 2010, initially uncovering long-forgotten family stories for Policing Hong Kong - an Irish History (Blacksmith Books, Hong Kong 2017).  Based in the UK, she tries to spend a few months of each year in Hong Kong, and is currently researching her next book, on the city's connections with World War One. 

She has written many articles on forgotten aspects of the city's life, some of which are to be found on her website, www.socialhistoryhk.com.  Women, Crime and the Courts: Hong Kong 1841-1941, which contains the fuller story of the Women’s Prison here, was published by Blacksmith Books in 2020. 

Programme Details

Time: 7:00 - 8:00 pm, Hong Kong Time. Reception starts at 6:30 pm

Admission:$175 for members, $220 for guests /non-members
Light refreshments are included in the admission fee

Registration: Please email <membership@royalasiaticsociety.org.hk> and provide your membership number, if applicable, at the time of registration.

Please kindly complete your registration by advance payment via Stripe's payment links below (using your Credit Card):

Members ($175):
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Non-members / Guests ($220):
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Details about the other payment option will be sent on registration. Upon receipt of payment, your registration will be confirmed by email.

Registration will be closed at 12:00 noon on 5 March 2024.