ABSTRACT
Since re-unification with the People s Republic of China, political developments in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR) have been quite different from those in the Macao SAR. There have been numerous conflicts in Hong Kong, whereas in Macao the government is generally seen as having been successful, the residents support it. and the overall situation is harmonious. In studies of conflict various writers have argued that conflict may have simultaneously constructive and destructive functions: and harmony does not simply mean peace, but tolerance of differences, even of clashes. Conflicts and harmonies on the political scene cannot be explained in simplistic terms.
