HONG KONG 2004 - Communications, the Media and Information Technology

The Chief Secretary for Administration, Mr Donald Tsang, made two visits to Europe in 2004 to promote business and investment opportunities in Hong Kong.

Mr Tsang was in Moscow from May 16 to 18, on Hong Kong's highest-level visit ever to Russia. He met the Deputy Prime Minister, the Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, and the Deputy Chairmen of the Federal Council (upper house of the Russian Parliament) and the State Duma (lower house of the Russian Parliament). He officiated at the launching of a new video, photo book and exhibition promoting Hong Kong as Asia's world city and addressed over 200 distinguished guests from the diplomatic, business and media circles.

Mr Tsang also visited Stockholm in May at the invitation of the Swedish Government. He updated politicians and businessmen on developments in Hong Kong since his previous visit five years earlier. He had an audience with King Carl XVI Gustaf and held discussions with the Minister for Foreign Affairs. The Chief Secretary took the opportunity to open the Hong Kong Film Panorama, a festival of the latest Hong Kong films, which toured 12 European cities during the year. He also witnessed the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding on design cooperation between Sweden and Hong Kong.

In late October, the Chief Secretary embarked on a four-country European tour, stopping in London, Berlin, Prague and Dublin.

In London, he met the British Foreign Secretary, Mr Jack Straw, and Lord Charles Falconer, Secretary of State for Constitutional Affairs and Lord Chancellor; briefed Members of Parliament during a meeting with the Foreign Affairs Select Committee and met the Hong Kong Committee of the All-Party China Parliamentary Group, updating them on Hong Kong's latest political, economic and social developments. The highlight of his visit was a keynote address to the Hong Kong-Guangdong Business Seminar, attended by more than 1 200 members of the business community.

In Berlin, he called on the German President Horst Köhler, and held discussions with the State Secretary for Foreign Affairs, the State Secretary for Economics and Labour, the Minister of Justice and the Minister of Interior. He also exchanged letters with the Federal Minister of Interior setting out the implementation details under the EC/HKSAR Readmission Agreement.

In Prague, Mr Tsang called on the President of the Czech Republic, Mr Vaclav Klaus, and met the Czech Deputy Foreign Minister, Mr Pavel Svoboda, and members of the Czech Parliament Foreign Affairs Committee. He addressed a joint Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office (HKETO) and Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) business luncheon at Palace Zofin and presented a nine-member ensemble of the Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra at the historical Prague Municipal House.

In early November the Chief Secretary visited Dublin at the invitation of the Irish Government. During the visit, he met the Prime Minister, Mr Bertie Ahern, and witnessed the initialling of the Working Holiday Agreement between Ireland and Hong Kong. The two leaders also noted the desirability of concluding agreements in a number of areas including taxation and justice.

The Financial Secretary, Mr Henry Tang, visited Frankfurt in April en route to the Basel World 2004 Watch and Jewellery Fair. Mr Tang called on the Deutsche Bundesbank, the European Central Bank and other major financial institutions to update them on the latest economic developments in Hong Kong.

Visits to Europe were also made by the Secretary for Security and the Secretary for Economic Development and Labour.

The Washington HKETO organised a number of high-profile events to promote Hong Kong, including the ninth annual 'Made in Hong Kong' film festival, co-sponsored by the Smithsonian Institution's Freer Gallery of Art, and a performance of The Last Emperor by the Hong Kong Ballet.

The Financial Secretary visited New York and met with senior management of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, credit rating agencies, business leaders and financial service organisations in January. In July, Mr Tang and the Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury, Mr Frederick Ma, were in New York to promote the international offering of Hong Kong SAR government bonds to US institutional investors.

During the year, the New York HKETO continued to publicise the Brand Hong Kong visual identity at dragon boat festivals in New York, Atlanta, Boston and Miami.

The New York HKETO also promoted Hong Kong and its culture through sponsorship of film festivals in Atlanta, Chicago and New York. It also sponsored an essay contest, inviting high school students in the US to submit essays analysing the reasons behind Hong Kong's economic success. The winner, a high school senior from Alabama, was chosen from 320 submissions from 23 states.

As part of a Canade-wide promotion campaign, the Toronto HKETO organised business seminars with Hong Kong-Canada business associations, Canadian economic development agencies and trade organisations, in Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal, Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, Winnipeg, Saskatoon and Halifax.

Exhibitions on CEPA and the Pearl River Delta were staged and a number of cultural activities of ballet and film were featured at key cities across the country during the year.

To work closely with the Hong Kong students studying in Canada, the Toronto HKETO organised a career video conference, inviting Hong Kong business leaders to brief the students on career opportunities back home. The conference was well received by the participants from universities in Ontario and British Columbia. A special scholarship for Hong Kong-related studies was set up for MBA students of the international business program at the University of Alberta.

The first half of 2004 saw two important developments in the bilateral relationship between Japan and Hong Kong. During the Chief Secretary's visit in February, the Japanese government announced the granting of visa exemption to all Hong Kong SAR passport holders visiting Japan. Cooperation in information technology and telecommunications was also given a boost with the signing of the Arrangement on Cooperation in Information and Communications Technology between Hong Kong and Japan in March.

Four Principal Officials — the Secretary for Home Affairs, the Secretary for the Environment, Transport and Works, the Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury, and the Secretary for Commerce, Industry and Technology — also visited Japan during the year. These visits help to widen and deepen Hong Kong's network in the government, legislature, business, media, think-tanks, academia and the cultural sector of the community.

The Hong Kong Japan Partnership Roundtable (HKJPR), set up with the help of the Tokyo HKETO, provides a forum to foster public-private sector collaboration in promoting Hong Kong. An HKJPR mission organised by the Tokyo HKETO, in collaboration with the Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce and the Hong Kong Trade Development Council, was launched in 2004.

As part of the HKJPR's promotional efforts, the first Hong Kong Sedan Chair Race in Japan was staged in Yokohama with the support of a number of Hong Kong and Japanese organisations and community groups.

Under the auspices of the HKJPR, two other cultural projects — cultural mission to HK and an Ikebana Exhibition in Hong Kong — were also organised.

Three Principal Officials — the Secretary for Health, Welfare and Food, the Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury, and the Secretary for Commerce, Industry and Technology — attended meetings in Thailand, Indonesia, Singapore and Malaysia to discuss a wide range of issues including the prevention and control of avian influenza, and Hong Kong's strengths as an international financial centre and capital formation centre for Mainland enterprises.

To promote Hong Kong as Asia's world city, the Singapore HKETO unveiled three Brand Hong Kong single-decker buses in Singapore in March. Another four buses with similar decorations appeared in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in April. A Kuala Lumpur Monorail Train also sported the Brand Hong Kong livery for the month of August.

In March and June, the Singapore HKETO organised a Hong Kong Film Show in Singapore, Bangkok and Kuala Lumpur. The award-winning movie Running on Karma was screened to showcase Hong Kong's film talents and industry.

The Hong Kong Children's Choir visited Singapore in August to stage a performance sponsored by the Singapore HKETO for almost 800 guests including diplomats, leaders of the business community and chambers of commerce, senior government officials and representatives of the local arts community.

The year saw visits by a number of senior officials from Hong Kong, including the Secretary for Commerce, Industry and Technology, the Secretary for Education and Manpower, and the Secretary for Economic Development and Labour. They all took the opportunity to enhance ties with political, business and academic leaders.

As part of efforts to refocus attention on Hong Kong post-SARS, the Sydney HKETO commissioned a series of reports on Hong Kong, which were published in the March issue of the Company Director, the magazine of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

During the year, the Sydney HKETO joined hands with organisers of the Sydney Film Festival and the Melbourne International Film Festival to showcase a selection of quality Hong Kong films at the two internationally acclaimed festivals. The office also supported the screening of Hong Kong films at CineAsia 2004 in Adelaide and the Asia Film Festival Aotearoa in Auckland, New Zealand.

The Sydney HKETO also continued to support the annual Dragon Boat Races at Darling Harbour in Sydney in February. The Brand Hong Kong dragon was featured prominently throughout the two-day event.