Triad Society Essay

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The triad society has long been believed to be a secret organisation originally founded by a group of monks in the Shaolin Temple in mid-seventeenth century China aiming to overthrow the alien Qing government and restore the native Chinese Ming Dynasty (Chu, 2000). The triad’s influence eventually extended to Hong Kong and to other Chinese communities overseas. Its known that there has been a strong triad presence on Hong Kong Island a long time before the British took it as a colony in 1842 by the Treaty of Nanjing. Although triad societies had existed among the original inhabitants before the British arrived and had flourished afterwards, almost all triad members joined the societies in China before migrating to Hong Kong (Chu, 2000).

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The triads need to show their power to the owners of the premises to make sure they use their protection services. One way they use of showing how powerful they are is through violence. Gambetta (1993) explains how it is essential for the triads to use violence to provide protection and that the triads can establish their reputation as a dependable and powerful protector by showing efficient use of violence. The triad’s reputation is very important to them. The triads make sure they are seen as powerful as they know this will show to other potential businessmen in need of protection that they are dependable and they have the ability to …show more content…

This is because during the renovation for the premises the owner is approached by local triads who are there to offer the owner their services. They tell the owners how they are offering protection against potential extortion from other gangs operating in the area. The triad will want the owner to pay a monthly fee to him for his protection but the amount will vary on the location of the premises and how much the will make whilst operating there. Normally the triad societies will collect around 10% of the businesses profits as its protection fees. The business will pay this, as they will more than likely get a safe environment to operate in, free from

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