China firmly opposes irresponsible comments by any foreign
country which interfere in Hong Kong affairs, said Foreign Ministry
spokeswoman Zhang Qiyue in Beijing on Friday.
Zhang said this when asked to comment on the remarks of deputy
spokesman of the US State Department Adam Ereli that the steps and
scope of Hong Kong's democratization should be decided by the Hong
Kong people and government, Xinhua news agency reported.
Zhang said that Hong Kong affairs are China's internal affairs.
Since Hong Kong's return to China, the principles of "One Country,
Two Systems", "Hong Kong people governing Hong Kong" and "a high
degree of autonomy" have been comprehensively implemented and Hong
Kong people's rights and freedoms have been fully safeguarded, she
said.
The central government has always held that Hong Kong needs to
develop a democratic system which conforms to its own conditions,
she said.
Only when the political institutions of Hong Kong SAR develop in
a gradual and orderly manner according to the Basic Law can they
meet the long-term interests of Hong Kong people and be conducive
to the long-term prosperity and stability of the territory, Zhang
said.
In a related development, an official of the Taiwan Affairs
Office of the State Council on Friday criticized Taiwan authorities
for "slandering 'One Country, Two Systems' using Thursday's mass
rally in the SAR as ammunition".
"Their attacks on the central government aim to help promote
separatist activities of Taiwan independence forces, and such
attempts will be doomed," the official said.
In Hong Kong, a government spokesman on Friday night reiterated
that the central authorities have both the power and the
responsibility to oversee Hong Kong's constitutional development
under the Constitution and the Basic Law.
In response to media inquiries on the remarks made by Taiwan
authorities in respect of the rally held in the SAR on Thursday,
the spokesman said, "As provided in the Basic Law, universal
suffrage is our ultimate aim. Since reunification, the SAR
government has been taking forward democratization in accordance
with the relevant provisions of the Basic Law."
The SAR government will continue to handle work related to
constitutional development according to this principle, said the
spokesman.
"In the light of the decision of the Standing Committee of the
National People's Congress (NPC), adopted in April, there is plenty
of room for us to contemplate changes to the election methods for
selecting the chief executive and for forming the Legislative
Council," he said.
The spokesman also made a response concerning a letter from the
chairman of the Congressional Committee on International Relations
of the US to the chief executive of Hong Kong.
Since Hong Kong was returned to China in 1997, "the central
authorities have been firmly committed to upholding the principle
of 'One Country, Two Systems'. There is no erosion whatsoever of
Hong Kong's high degree of autonomy," said the spokesman.
"Over the last seven years, with the strong support of the
central authorities, we have successfully turned 'One Country, Two
Systems' into an everyday reality," he said.
The freedoms -- of the press, expression, assembly, religion and
many others -- remain strong and are deeply rooted in the rule of
law. The mass media in Hong Kong remains vibrant and vocal. Freedom
of expression is very much alive in Hong Kong, he said.
On constitutional development, the spokesman reiterated that the
SAR government attaches great importance to work in this area.
The government would actively promote constitutional development
in Hong Kong on the basis of "One Country, Two Systems" and the
Basic Law.
(China Daily July 4, 2004)