Beijing vows to uphold 'one country, two systems' principle

Beijing will continue to implement the “one country, two systems” principle in Hong Kong and Macau while supporting the two SARs in growing their economies, Premier Li Qiang said on Wednesday.

This came as Li delivered the Chinese government’s work report at the opening of the annual session of the National People’s Congress, the country’s top legislature.

Li said: “We will fully, accurately and resolutely implement the ‘one country, two systems,’ under which the people of Hong Kong administer Hong Kong and the people of Macau administer Macau, both with a high degree of autonomy.”

The premier vowed to safeguard the constitutional order in the SARs, affirmed by the Chinese Constitution and the Basic Law, and ensure that Hong Kong and Macau are administered by patriots.

He affirmed Beijing’s support for the two SARs to develop their economies, improve people’s livelihoods, as well as deepen international exchanges, integrate into the overall national development and maintain long-term prosperity and stability.

Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu, who attended the meeting in Beijing, pledged to unite different sectors in society to embrace changes and better leverage Hong Kong’s unique advantages of “one country, two systems.”

Lee said in a Facebook post that Hong Kong will proactively integrate into the national development, boost economy, improve livelihoods, while enhancing its international competitiveness, so as to make greater contributions to the country.

“We will push forward the development of the Northern Metropolis and the Shenzhen-Hong Kong Innovation and Technology Cooperation Zone, accelerating the construction of an international innovation and technology hub,” Lee wrote.

“Furthermore, we aim to consolidate and enhance Hong Kong's position as an international financial, shipping and trade center, while establishing it as a hub for high-end international talent.”

Noting that 2025 marks the final year in Beijing’s 14th five-year development plan and the preparation year for the next half-decade blueprint, the chief executive said this year will be of great significance to the implementation of “one country, two systems.”

Huang Liuquan, a Beijing official formerly handling Hong Kong affairs, said Hong Kong has better developments following the enactment of Basic Law Article 23.

Huang said he saw a “major change” in Hong Kong compared to when he served as a deputy director of the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office from 2016 to 2022, which showed the SAR has “turned chaos into order.”

(Jamie Liu)