12 Constitution and Administration
of China appointed Mr Tsang as the Chief Executive on June 21. The Chief Executive's term of office started on June 21, 2005 and will expire on June 30, 2007.
Electoral System for the District Councils
Eighteen District Councils were established in the HKSAR to advise the Government on district affairs and to promote recreational and cultural activities, and environmental improvements within the districts. A District Council is composed of elected members, appointed members, and, in the case of District Councils in rural areas, the chairmen of Rural Committees as ex officio members. The simple majority voting system is adopted for elections. For the first-term councils, the HKSAR was divided into 390 constituencies, each represented by one elected member. Ten elected seats were added for the second term of the councils because of a significant increase in population in some districts. The councils' second four-year term began on January 1, 2004.
Electoral Affairs Commission
The Electoral Affairs Commission, an independent statutory body, is responsible for ensuring that elections in the HKSAR are conducted openly, honestly and fairly. It comprises three politically neutral persons appointed by the Chief Executive and is headed by a High Court judge. The commission is responsible for making recommendations to the Chief Executive on the delineation of geographical constituencies and District Council constituencies, making regulations on practical arrangements for the Chief Executive election, the Legislative Council election, the District Council election and rural elections, and handling complaints relating to these elections. The Registration and Electoral Office, a government department headed by the Chief Electoral Officer, works under the commission's direction and carries out its decisions.
HKSAR's External Affairs
The HKSAR continues to play an active role in the international arena and maintains close contact with its international partners.
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Since July 1, 1997, the HKSAR Government (HKSARG) has on its own concluded more than 10 agreements with foreign states and regions on matters such as customs cooperation, cooperation in information technology and avoidance of double. taxation in accordance with Article 151 of the Basic Law. It has also with the authorisation of the Central People's Government concluded 86 bilateral agreements with foreign states in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Basic Law, comprising 38 on air services, 15 on visa abolition, three on readmission of persons, 28 on reciprocal juridical assistance, two on investment promotion and protection. More than 200 multilateral conventions are applicable to the HKSAR, about 75 of which do not apply to the Mainland.
In 2005, representatives of the HKSAR Government as members of PRC delegations participated more than 100 times in international conferences limited to states, including those organised by the International Telecommunication Union, the World Intellectual Property Organisation, the International Monetary Fund, the