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Victoria lies at the foot of Victoria Peak (1,805 ft/550 m), the center of an extensively quarried granite range covering much of the island. Hong Kong has many natural harbors, that of Victoria (c.17 sq mi/44 sq km) being one of the finest in the world. The colony grew around this beautiful, sheltered, deepwater port, and today an estimated 75% of the population are concentrated there.
Although about 98% of the people are ethnic Chinese, Hong Kong has substantial British and American communities. Cantonese and English are widely spoken. About 90% of the population practice traditional Chinese religions, and some 10% are Christian. The Univ. of Hong Kong is a coeducational institution under government control, organized on the model of British universities. Chinese Univ. was established in 1963 with the merger of three existing colleges.
Hong Kong is governed under the Basic Law as approved in 1990 by the National People's Congress of China. The chief of state is the president of China. There is a chief executive, who is advised by an executive council, and a 60-member legislative council that is partly elected and partly appointed. The main parties are the prodemocracy Democratic party, the probusiness Liberal Party, and the Beijing-oriented Democratic Alliance for the Betterment of Hong Kong.
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