Motion Debate on The 4 June Incident

Madam President, it has been 14 years since the 4 June incident. As usual, Mr SZETO Wah has moved a motion on the incident as an annual ritual. The Liberal Party will, as usual, abstain in the vote. However, again as usual, I will give a brief response out of our respect to Mr SZETO Wah for his steadfast position in his conviction.

Regarding the circumstances surrounding the 4 June incident and why it ended in bloodshed, the Liberal Party, like last year, is of the view that history will pass a verdict.

Whether the 4 June incident should be vindicated is, we believe, a matter for the Central Authorities to consider. Nevertheless, it is certain that the past 10 years or so have seen remark achievement in the reform and opening of China. The progresses on the political front and legal system development made the State have continued to advance. Swiftly, China economy has grown and its society developed. The quality of life of its people has also been greatly improved. This shows that our country is on the way to a better future.

In recent years, the Central Government has made enormous improvement in terms of the style of administration, the transparency of government and the accountability of officials. The most recent example is the swift removal by new State President HU Jintao and new Premier WEN Jiaboa of officials filing false report on the SARS outbreak. They have won high praises. Regarding the lifting of the travel advisory against Hong Kong by the World Health Organization last Friday, Vice-Premier WU Yi has certainly exerted her influence. Furthermore, former Premier ZHU Rongji has spared no effort in combating corruption and achieved remarkable success.

Madam President, at the 16th National Congress of the Communist Party of China held in November, the thought of the "Three Represents" of former General Secretary JIANG Zemin was recognized, and the admission of capitalist to the Party was endorsed. At the latest meeting of the National People's Congress and Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference held in March this year, more representatives from private enterprises were included to allow voices from more sectors of society to be reflected to the Government more directly. It all goes to show that the Central Government has made progress in development of the political system.

Regarding the development of external relations, China has recently succeeded in entering the World Trade Organization and in bidding to host the Olympic Games in 2008, while Shanghai has successfully secured the right to host the 2010 World Exhibition. These are events that serve to confirm that China's achievements on various fronts in recent years have gained recognition by the international community.

The Liberal Party thus maintains that whatever reform to be launched by the Mainland should be built on the foundation of a stable political and economic environment. Thus, at this stage, at the top of the priority list of the Central Government is economic development to create a more prosperous and vigorous community, only then can happiness be brought to the people.

Madam President, I so submit.