Portal:Hong Kong/Selected article/2007/January

The Regional flag of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China features a stylised, white, five-petal Bauhinia blakeana in the centre of a red field. The red colour on this flag coincides with the flag of the People's Republic of China.

The flag of Hong Kong was adopted on 16 February 1990, and received formal approval from the Preparatory Committee on 10 August 1996. The flag was first officially hoisted on 1 July 1997, in a historical ceremony marking the transfer of sovereignty from the United Kingdom to the PRC. The precise use of the flag is regulated through laws passed by the 58th executive meeting of the State Council held in Beijing.

The former colonial flag was used from 27 July 1959, to 30 June 1997, when Hong Kong was under British rule. It was a blue Union Jack ensign with the Emblem of Hong Kong on a white disk centred on the outer half of the flag. The 1876 design featured a colonial badge, showing a "local scene" instead of the Hong Kong coat of arms.