Special Report: 10th Anniversary of HK’s Return to China

    HONG KONG, June 30 (Xinhua) — Liu Yongqing, wife of Chinese President Hu Jintao, visited the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) at the Two Hong Kong International Finance Center Saturday morning.

    Accompanied by Selina Tsang, wife of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Chief Executive Donald Tsang, Liu viewed the information center of the HKMA, including an exhibition hall and a library.

    Joseph Yam, chief executive of the HKMA, briefed Liu on the history of Hong Kong’s financial sector, especially the development of the sector in the past ten years and the Renminbi business of Hong Kong-based banks.

    He said that the central government’s support is indispensable for the development of Hong Kong’s financial industry, citing that the supplement to the Mainland and Hong Kong Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement (CEPA), which was signed days before, has further eased restriction on mainland market access for Hong Kong’s financial services. In addition, Renminbi bonds have been issued in Hong Kong recently, he added.

    Established on April 1, 1993, the HKMA is the governing authority in Hong Kong responsible for maintaining monetary and banking stability.

    President Hu and his wife arrived in Hong Kong Friday to attend the celebrations marking the tenth anniversary of Hong Kong’s return to China.

Chinese President Hu Jintao (R) meets with Tung Chee-hwa, vice chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) in Hong Kong, south China on June 30, 2007. Tung Chee-hwa is the former Chief Executive of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR). (Xinhua Photo)

    HONG KONG, June 30 (Xinhua) — Chinese President Hu Jintao met in Hong Kong Saturday morning with Tung Chee-hwa, vice chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC).

    During the meeting with Tung, former and the first chief executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR), Hu said that Tung had done a lot of pioneering work to successfully carry out the “one country, two systems” principle in Hong Kong. He linked the present good situation in Hong Kong to the foundation work done by Tung while he was the chief executive.

    Since Tung took up the post of CPPCC vice chairman, he has shown great zeal and given play to his advantages in doing useful jobs for the country, Hu said.

    Hu expressed his hope that Tung will continue to show concern for Hong Kong affairs and contribute his wisdom and strength to the development and progress of the country.

    Tung said the hard-earned good situation in Hong Kong is closely related to the support of the central government and people of the whole country. “We are proud of Hong Kong’s achievements over the past decade since Hong Kong returned to China, and we are proud of the development and progress of China.”

    Hu arrived in Hong Kong Friday to attend the celebrations marking the 10th anniversary of Hong Kong’s return to China and the swearing-in ceremony of the third-term government of the HKSAR.

    LHASA, June 30 (Xinhua) — People of all ethnic groups in Tibet led by Communist Party of China (CPC) have created outstanding achievements since the peaceful liberation of Tibet more than 50 years ago, a senior local official said.

    Zhang Qingli, secretary of the CPC Tibet regional committee, told a meeting of celebration on Friday to mark the 86th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China (CPC), which falls on July 1.

    The Qinghai-Tibet Railway which was opened on July 1 last year has been applauded as one of the most prominent achievements. The 1,956-km-long railway, running from Xining, capital of northwestern Qinghai Province, and Lhasa, links Tibet with the rest of China by train for the first time.

    Zhang pledged that more efforts will be made in the future to improve the livelihood of the 2.81 million people in Tibet, especially in medical care, education, employment and social security.

    The 17th CPC National Congress will be held in Beijing in the second half of the year and 26 deputies elected from Tibet will attend the congress. There are more than 157,000 CPC members in Tibet.

    The annual GDP growth of Tibet reached 13.4 percent last year, bringing the region’s total gross domestic product (GDP) to a record 29 billion yuan (3.74 billion U.S. dollars) with the per-capita GDP above 1,000 U.S. dollars.

    In addition, the annual per-capita net income of Tibetan farmers and herdsmen stood at 2,435 yuan (314 U.S. dollars) in 2006, an annual increase of 17.2 percent.

    The Chinese central government will invest more than 100 billion yuan (12.9 billion U.S. dollars) in 180 projects in Tibet between 2006 and 2010, covering infrastructure construction, education, social security and environmental conservation, according to official figures.

Special Report: 10th Anniversary of HK’s Return to China     

Hu Jintao (front R), General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, Chinese President, Chairman of the Central Military Commission, reviews troops of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Garrison in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) on June 30, 2007. (Xinhua Photo)

    HONG KONG, June 30 (Xinhua) — Chinese President Hu Jintao on Saturday morning reviewed troops of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Garrison in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) at the Stonecutters Island (Ngong Shuen Chau) Naval Base.

    Hu, also general secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and chairman of the Central Military Commission, arrived here on Friday to attend the celebrations marking the 10th anniversary of Hong Kong’s return to China and the swearing-in ceremony of the third-term government of the HKSAR.

    About 1,900 troops were present on the occasion, in the formations of guard of honor, army, navy, air force, armored force and helicopters.

    President Hu reviewed the troops in the company of Wang Jitang, commander of the PLA Garrison in the HKSAR.

    BEIJING, June 29 (Xinhua) — China’s legislature on Friday authorized the Ministry of Finance (MOF) to issue 1.55 trillion yuan of special treasury bonds to fund the planned foreign exchange investment company.

    The legislature also approved the raising of the ceiling on treasury bond issues for 2007 to 5.34 trillion yuan.

    The motion was adopted at the ongoing 28th session of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress.

    The bonds will be used to purchase 200 billion U.S. dollars for the national foreign exchange investment company as operating capital.

    ”The issue of the special treasury bonds should be regarded as a neutral measure,” said an MOF official after the motion was adopted.

    ”The motion is to rein in excess liquidity,” said the official, adding the influx of foreign capital in recent years had resulted in excess liquidity, bringing inflationary pressures.

    The special treasury bonds will be issued in the form of negotiable book-entry T-bonds with a term of more than ten years. The coupon rate will be decided by the market, according to the motion.

    At the same time, a “central finance forex management fund” will be established to examine the revenue and expenditure of the special treasury bonds and forex assets, said the motion.

    Launching a forex investment company would decrease China’s forex reserves while increasing its operating profits, said the official.

    By the end of March, China’s forex reserves had reached 1.2 trillion U.S. dollars, up 135.7 billion US dollars from the end of2006.

    After adopting labor contract law and the amendment to the income tax law and approving a couple of motions and bills, the six-day session of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress concluded on Friday.

    It also approved the cabinet nomination of Chen Zhu, who has no party affiliation, as the country’s new health minister.

Chinese President Hu Jintao meets with Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Donald Tsang in Hong Kong Friday afternoon. (Xinhua Photo)

    HONG KONG, June 29 (Xinhua) — Chinese President Hu Jintao met with Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Donald Tsang here Friday afternoon.

    During the meeting, Hu said that Hong Kong has gained better development momentum with its economy keeping growing in recent years.

    Hu expressed the hope that Tsang and the HKSAR government will continue to focus on developing economy and improving people’s livelihood and governance, and pressing ahead with various undertakings in Hong Kong by relying on Hong Kong compatriots.

    The central government will stick to the principles of “one country, two systems,” “Hong Kong people running Hong Kong” and a high degree of autonomy, and will handle affairs strictly according to the Basic Law.

    ”The central government will, as always, give full support to the HKSAR chief executive and the government in their governance according to law, and will make efforts to promote the long-term prosperity and stability of Hong Kong,” Hu said.

    Tsang thanked President Hu for his care and concern for Hong Kong and Hong Kong people. He said Hong Kong has enjoyed selfless support of the central government and the motherland since Hong Kong returned to China 10 years ago.

    ”Hong Kong citizens have realized the advantages of ‘one country, two systems’ from their experiences, and the importance of strengthening exchange and cooperation with the mainland,” Tsang said.

    The HKSAR government and people from all walks of life will make concerted efforts to promote the prosperity, stability and harmony of Hong Kong, Tsang added.

    Hu arrived in Hong Kong earlier on Friday to attend the celebrations marking the 10th anniversary of Hong Kong’s return to China and the swearing-in ceremony of the third-term government of the HKSAR.