Conversation with Dr Etheldreda ‘Ethie’ Kong, Chair of Brent Chinese Association, Gails Cafe, Willesden, 22 February 2025 with Rachel Lum
A Chinese childhood in Malaysia
Etheldreda Kee Ching Kong was born in 1957 in Malaya to a traditional Chinese Malay family. Her father was a businessman who traded in commodities including rubber and pepper.
The Malaysia she spent her childhood in was a former British colony and she was raised with Chinese traditions mixed with British customs.
She grew up with four siblings. Her eldest brother went to Sydney and her older sister went to Wellington, New Zealand to study at Victoria University.
She and her two other siblings were sent to study in the UK. It was relatively common for children to be sent to other Commonwealth countries to study.
Education in the UK
At the age of 13 Ethie’s family sent her to boarding school in the UK and later she attended university in London to study medicine.
Ethie was the only Chinese medical student in her year at UCL in 1978. Out of 120 students in the year, there was only one other Asian student, a Japanese student called Tetsujiro Ihara. Later, Tetsujiro Ihara set up the London Iryo Centre, a Japanese medical Centre. He now mainly works in Hong Kong and Japan.
“People think I am from mainland China, but I haven’t even been to China. I prefer to be called of Chinese heritage or in the Chinese diaspora community. ”
Community work in Willesden
Ethie is a long-term Brent resident and is responsible for setting up Brent Chinese Association. She is a true ‘Willesden Girl’ having grown up in Willesden. She is now seen as the local face of the Chinese community in Brent.
“Chinese heritage means your DNA has some Chinese but it’s not just the nationality that is important: your religion , dialect etc mean something too.”
Ethie has worked as a GP for 38 years, most of these years were in Brent. She’s been clinical chair of many Primary Care organizations in Brent.
Since retirement she has focused on empowering the Chinese community to understand health and to benefit more from the UKs health and social care system.
Brent Chinese Association
The Brent Chinese Association was founded in 2019, just before Covid.
The former mayor of Brent, Ernest Ezeajughi and other local councillors saw the need to set up a Chinese group to help integrate the influx of Hong Kong Chinese coming to the UK after Hong Kong was handed back to China.
“We are not a uniform community. We are very diverse, with different dialects, cutlures, religions. There are Buddhists, people of no religion, Christian, Taoist etc. Then there are people with mixed heritage.”
Many Hong Kong people came over here under the banner of the British National Overseas (BNO) and headed to Collindale.
Colindale was once known as London's "second Chinatown" due to the Oriental City complex, a large hub for Chinese culture, shopping, and community resources located on the Edgware Road. However, Oriental City was demolished in 2014 and replaced by residential buildings, though its spirit continues with the newer Bang Bang Oriental Food Hall at the same location.
The new group is focused on building community between new and established Chinese of different ages, ranging from school children to a member who is 80yrs. She sees her group as being Londoners and takes them to visit galleries, museums, watch football. The group recently went to see the Lionesses play. She wants people to see what London has to offer. Her group differs from other Chinese groups as she’s not trying to link to businesses or make money. She seeks out donations or grants to allow her events to be free of charge.
The group has strong links with Hendon Football Club and the Silver Jubilee Stadium. They run awareness days for mental health and cervical screening.
Other Chinese groups have wanted to absorb her group because it is doing so well, but she’s not interested. She wants to avoid being business driven, she is a healthcare professional and she’s interested in the health and well being of our community, preventing social isolation, creating more cohesion, then making money.
ethie kong (photo taken from ashford place website)
Brent Chinese Association Aims (from the website)
1) To advance the education of the public in Chinese history, art, culture and traditions
2) To relieve poverty, sickness and distress particularly amongst members of the Chinese community in Brent
3) To provide or assist in the provisions of facilities for recreation and other leisure time occupation for the inhabitants of Brent in the interests of social welfare and with the object of improving their conditions of life
Side note: British Empire & Malaysia
The colony known as Malaya achieved independence from the British on August 31, 1957. Then, on September 16, 1963, the new country merged with other former British territories – Singapore, North Borneo (Sabah), and Sarawak – to form the larger country of Malaysia (Singapore later separated from Malaysia on August 9, 1965, becoming its own independent country).