Section 11
Coming to Hong Kong
Relaxing at one of the many beaches-a good way of cooling off during the summer months.
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Geography
Hong Kong occupies a central position in Asia. Tokyo, Beijing, Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, Singapore, Manila and Seoul are all within a four-hour flight. It is on the doorstep of China, being only 130 kilometres south- east of Guangzhou.
It has a total land area of 1,060 square kilometres. The main urban areas are on Hong Kong Island and Kowloon Peninsula, between which lies Victoria Harbour. This ranks with San Francisco and Rio de Janeiro as one of the three most perfect natural harbours in the world. The New Territories consists of the land north of Kowloon up to the border with China, and a number of islands, many of which are small and uninhabited.
The People
The total population is over five million, of which 98 per cent is Chinese. The rest are largely British, American, Japanese and Portuguese, although there are many other small national groups.
The population is young and dynamic. About two-thirds are below 35, and two-fifths are within the 15 to 34 age group. It is becoming increasingly more skilful and sophisticated, thanks to the increasing provision of education-up to and including tertiary level-and to an improving standard of living.
Although both English and Chinese are official languages of the Government and are given equal use, English is the one widely used in commerce.
How Hong Kong is Governed
Hong Kong is a dependent territory of the United Kingdom. The Government, headed by the Governor, is served by two main advisory bodies-the Executive Council and the Legislative Council.
The Executive Council, presided over by the Gover- nor, consists of five ex-officio members, one nomin- ated official member and nine unofficial members, and is consulted on all important matters of policy. The Governor in Council-the Governor acting after receiv- ing the advice of the Council-makes subsidiary legislation by way of rules, regulations and orders, and considers appeals and petitions made under local legislation.
The Legislative Council, also presided over by the Governor, consists of four ex-officio members, 16 nominated official members and 24 nominated un- official members. The laws of Hong Kong are enacted by the Governor with the advice and consent of the Legislative Council. The Council also authorises Government expenditure through its Finance Com- mittee, on which three officials and all the unofficials sit. Procedure in the Legislative Council is based generally on that of the House of Commons in the United Kingdom.
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