Xinhua mourns Tung Chee-hwa as ‘close friend of CPC’

State news agency Xinhua has paid tribute to Hong Kong's first Chief Executive Tung Chee-hwa as a "close friend of the Communist Party of China" and an "outstanding contributor" to the One Country, Two Systems principle, following his passing on Tuesday night at the age of 89. 

In an official statement published shortly before 11am on Wednesday (Sep 9), state media lauded the former leader as a "renowned patriot" and an "outstanding social activist".

Tung served as the first- and second-term Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, and was also a former vice chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC).

𝗗𝗼𝘄𝗻𝗹𝗼𝗮𝗱 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝗔𝗽𝗽 ↓