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THE CHEK LAP KOK AIRPORT SITE (10.12) THAT THE AIRPORT PROJECT WAS VERY IMPORTANT TO HK'S STABILITY AND PROSPERITY, HE HOPED THAT IT WOULD BE CARRIED OUT IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING.
9. SPEAKING TO REPORTERS, CHEN ZIYING (11.12) SAID DIFFERENT COUNTRIES HAD DIFFERENT HUMAN RIGHTS STANDARDS AND THAT PEOPLE WHO USED THE ISSUE AS AN EXCUSE TO ACT AGAINST THE CENTRAL GOVERNMENT OF CHINA WERE MAKING A MISTAKE. ON HK RESIDENTS DETAINED IN CHINA, HE SAID THAT THE CASES WOULD BE CAREFULLY DEALT WITH BASED ON THE FACTS AND THE RULE OF LAW. SPEAKING AFTER A VISIT TO THE UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY, CHEN ZIYING REITERATED LEGCO WAS ONLY AN ADVISORY BODY. HE SAID (14.12) THAT POLICE OFFICERS SHOULD HAVE NO FEAR ABOUT DISCRIMINATION OR REPRISALS AFTER 1997. ON HK'S POLITICAL SYSTEM, HE SAID IT HAD ALWAYS BEEN EXECUTIVE-LED. HK HAD NEVER HAD A TRADITION FOR DEMOCRACY AND SO ANY DEVELOPMENT ON THIS FRONT WOULD BE GRADUAL. ADDRESSING THE HK EXPORTERS ASSOCIATION (14.12) MR CHEN SAID HK WOULD CONTINUE TO ENJOY A WIDE RANGE OF ECONOMIC FREEDOM AND MAINTAIN ITS STATUS AS ONE OF THE WORLD'S MOST IMPORTANT TRADING CENTRES. AT A MEETING WITH LOCAL NPC AND CPPCC DELEGATES, HE ASKED THEM (17.12) TO BE ACTIVE AND EXPRESS MORE VIEWS IN THE SECOND HALF OF THE TRANSITION. HE SAID THE QUESTIONS OF THE CFA AND LEGCO'S COMMITTEE SYSTEM SHOULD BE RESOLVED THROUGH DISCUSSIONS WITHIN HK.
REMARKS BY CHINESE OFFICIALS
10. THE DIRECTOR OF THE HK AND MACAU AFFAIRS OFFICE, LU PING, TOLD A VISITING AMCHAM DELEGATION THAT HE HOPED THAT HK POLICE OFFICERS AND CIVIL SERVANTS WOULD CONTINUE TO PERFORM THEIR DUTIES WITHOUT FEAR THAT THEY WOULD BE DISCRIMINATED AGAINST OR PURGED AFTER 1997 (4-5.12). THE PRO-PEKING PAPERS REPORTED THAT MR LU SAID THAT HK'S IMPORTS FROM THE MAINLAND AFTER 1997 WOULD BE BASED ON THE PARIS TREATY SO THAT HK WOULD CONTINUE TO BE ABLE TO IMPORT HIGH-TECH ITEMS. HK WOULD CONTINUE TO BE AN OPEN CITY AND A FREE PORT AND ITS ROLE AS A BRIDGE TO CHINA WOULD BECOME MORE IMPORTANT.
11. CHINESE STATE COUNCIL VICE-PREMIER ZHOU JIAHUA WAS QUOTED AS SAYING (5.12) TO THE SAME GROUP THAT THE CHINESE GOVERNMENT WOULD NOT
CHANGE ITS HK POLICY AFTER 1997.
12. THE BAUHINIA MONTHLY QUOTED CHINESE PREMIER LI PENG AS URGING SHENZHEN TO CONTRIBUTE TO HK'S STABILITY AND PROSPERITY, SING TAO DAILY (7.12) REPORTED.
13. THE VICE-DIRECTOR
OF THE NCNA HK BRANCH, ZHANG JUNSHENG,
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