Overview
Since 1996, the Better Hong Kong Foundation has been working with the US-based East-West Centre in organising the annual Hong Kong Journalism Fellowships program which is targeted at senior journalists from major U.S. media organisations. This year’s program included a 2-day seminar in Honolulu and a 12-day study tour to Beijing, Inner Mongolia and Hong Kong from 1 – 12 August 2009. Led by Ms. Karen Tang, Executive Director of the Foundation, the delegation comprised 6 journalists from the United States and was accompanied by Ms. Sara Liu of the Information Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ms. Jimmie Chow, Communications Manager of the Foundation and Ms. Marilyn Li, Seminar Specialist of the East-West Center.
Honolulu – Beijing
Before visiting China, a series of seminars on China and Hong Kong issues were arranged in Honolulu for the delegates. With the support of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Foundation organized the study tour to China and Hong Kong with the first stop in Beijing. On 1 August 2009, the delegation started their journey in China. To kick-off, sightseeing tour was organized the following day. The delegation was given an opportunity to get a feel for the capital of ancient and modern China. They were amazed and fascinated by the historic and the state-of-the-art buildings as well as the capital’s rapid development.
The delegation first visited the headquarters of Xinhua News Agency and the office of Xinhuanet to learn more about the operation of the media industry in China. We were honored to be received by Mr. Zhou Xisheng, Vice President of the Xinhua News Agency. Moreover, the delegation also met with Mr. Cai Mingzhao, Deputy Director of the State Council Information Office where the journalists were briefed on the overall development in China over the last 30 years. On the financial front, the delegation had a fruitful discussion with experts from the Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation under the Ministry of Commerce, led by Prof. Chen Wenjing, Vice President of the academy. The sustainable development of China depends much on the nurturing of young talent. In this regard, the delegation also visited the Guanghua School of Management of Peking University where Prof. Zhang Weiying, Dean of the school introduced the education system and shared his views on the competitiveness of Chinese students. Environmental protection was another hot topic for the journalists. The delegation was pleased to meet with Mr. Jia Feng, Deputy Director General of the Department of Communication and Education of the Ministry of Environmental Protection. The exchange of views and discussions on the environmental protection policies in China were conducted enthusiastically.
During their stay in Beijing, the delegation also met with Mr. Ma Zhaoxu, Spokesman and Director General of the Information Department, and Mr. Zheng Zeguang, Director General of the Department of North American and Oceanian Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Moreover, the Office of the Government of the HKSAR in Beijing hosted a luncheon for the group and explained the role of the Hong Kong Government’s Offices in Beijing and in other parts of the Mainland.
Inner Mongolia
The second part of the study tour included a 5-day program in Huhhot and Hailear, Inner Mongolia. Ms. Liu Juru, Vice Mayor of the People’s Municipal Government of Huhhot gave her warmest welcome to the delegation by hosting a dinner where she also briefed the delegation about the overall development of Huhhot. Besides, a joint meeting was held with senior officials from various government departments in Inner Mongolia, including the Development and Reform Commission, Foreign Affairs Office, Ethnic Affairs Commission, Culture Department, Department of Commerce, Environmental Protection Department and the Tourism Bureau. The group also visited the Huitengxile wind power field. The journalists were especially interested in the success of making the wind power field a tourist attraction. The delegation was also excited to visit the production plants of the Yili Group. During the tour, Mr. Hu Liping, Executive Director of the Yili Group shared with the delegation information regarding production flows, safety measures, testing procedures and marketing strategies.
The beauty of the nature in Inner Mongolia has earned international acclaim, which was echoed by the delegation. The delegation visited the Old Cow Crescent, a former strategic military place in ancient times. It is also the place where the Great Wall reached the Yellow River. The group did not miss the chance to visit the famous grasslands as well as the first national forest park in Hailera. On its last night in Inner Mongolia, the group enjoyed a fantastic outdoor performance of the life of Genghis Khan on the grasslands.
Hong Kong
On 9 August 2009, the delegation arrived in Hong Kong, the last stop of the study tour. As an international financial center, the recovery of Hong Kong’s economy after the global financial crisis was still a hot issue for the journalists. Meetings with Ms. Julia Leung, Undersecretary for Financial Services & the Treasury and Mr. Archie Tsim, Chief Financial Officer of the Hong Kong Stock Exchanges and Clearing Ltd provided with them with first-hand information about Hong Kong’s status as an international finance center. The group was grateful to have a meeting with Mr. Henry Tang, Chief Secretary for Administration. Mr. Tang shared his views with the delegation on the overall development of Hong Kong as well as recently discussed topics such as the integration and collaboration between Hong Kong and the Pearl River Delta region and the West Kowloon Cultural District.
Mr. Lu Xinhua, Commissioner of the Commissioner’s Office of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Hong Kong briefed the delegation on the relationship between Hong Kong and the Mainland and the responsibilities of his office in dealing with external affairs for Hong Kong. The group also visited the Office of the Former Chief Executive where Mr. Tung Chee-hwa, the first Chief Executive of the HKSAR and now the Vice Chairman of Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, shared his views on the developments of Hong Kong as well as those in the Mainland. In addition, meetings with Mr. Christopher Marut, Acting American Consul-General. and representatives from the American Chamber of Commerce provided a good platform for the journalists to learn more about the interests of Americans in Hong Kong.
The delegation enjoyed very much the luncheon hosted by Mr. C Y Leung, Convenor of the Executive Council of the HKSAR and the opportunity to discuss with its Council Members Mrs. Laura Cha, Mr. Ronald Arculli, Mr. Marvin Cheung, Ms. Marjorie Yang and Mr. V Nee Yeh various issues in Hong Kong. Another luncheon hosted by Mr. Barry Cheung, Chairman of the Urban Renewal Authority was also informative and enjoyable. The Pawn and the re-developed of old buildings nearby were good examples of efforts made towards building a sustainable Hong Kong.
To show the spectacular night scene of Hong Kong to the journalists, the Foundation organized a boat trip from Victoria Habour to Lamma Island where a delicious seafood dinner was arranged on 11 August 2009. The journalists not only met Foundation members but also guests from the local business sector, academia and media. Mr. Ronnie Chan, Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Foundation together with Council Members Dr. Roy Chung, Dato, S. J. Wong, Mr. Joseph Yu and Mr. Albert Ip hosted the dinner as well as an open discussion on their thoughts on the developments of China and Hong Kong.
Ms. Karen Tang, the Foundation’s Executive Director expressed her gratitude to the East-West Center and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for their support and was grateful to all the participants for their active participation and cooperation to make the trip a success.
List of U.S. Journalists
1) Mr. Charles Bennett, Reporter/Staff Writer, New York Post, New York, NY
2) Ms. Vicki Curry, Producer, KCET-TV (PBS for southern and central California), Los Angeles, CA
3) Mr. Rami Grunbaum, Deputy Business Editor, The Seattle Times, Seattle, WA
4) Mr. David Klepper, State Government Reporter, The Kansas City Star, Kansas City, MO
5) Mr. Daniel McGinn, Senior Articles Editor, Newsweek, Boston, MA
6) Ms. Stacy Perman, Staff Writer, Business Week, New York, NY
Detailed Itinerary
Honolulu
28 Jul (Tue)
– Welcome Dinner
29 Jul (Wed)
– Welcome, Introduction and East-West Center Briefing by Ms. Susan Kreifels, Media Programs Coordinator, East-West Seminars, EWC
– China-U.S. Security Issues and Taiwan Strait Updates by Dr. Denny Roy, Senior Fellow, Politics, Governance and Security, Research Program, EWC
– The Development of China’s Automobile and Telecommunications Industries by Dr. Eric Harwit, Professor, Asian Studies, University of Hawaii
– Energy and the Global Economic Crisis by Dr. Fereidun Fesharaki, Senior Fellow, Research Program, EWC
30 Jul (Thu)
– East Asia Security Overview by r. Ralph Cossa, President, Pacific Forum Center for Strategic and International Studies
– China’s Legal Environment by Dr. Alison W. Conner, Professor, William S. Richardson School of Law, University of Hawaii
– Introduction to EWC Media Services by Ms. Karen Knudsen, Director, Office of External Affairs, EWC
– Introduction to EWC Associates by Mr. Gordon Ring, Director, Associates Office, EWC
31 Jul (Fri)
Fellows leave for Beijing
Beijing
1 Aug (Sat)
– Fellows arrive in Beijing
2 Aug (Sun)
– City sightseeing tour: Great Wall, Tiananmen Square, Forbidden City
– Dinner hosted by the Better Hong Kong Foundation
3 Aug (Mon)
– Meeting with Mr. Zhou Xisheng, Vice President, Xinhua News Agency, and visit to Xinhuanet and Xinhua News Agency
– Luncheon hosted by Mr. Ma Zhaoxu, Director-General of Information Department, MFA
– Meeting with Mr. Jia Feng, Deputy Director General, Department of Communication and Education, Ministry of Environmental Protection
– Meeting with Prof. Chen Wenjing, Vice President and Senior Economist, Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation, Ministry of Commerce
4 Aug (Tue)
– Meeting with Prof. Zhang Weiying, Dean and Professor of Economics, Guanghua School of Management, Peking University
– Meeting and Luncheon hosted by Mr. Thomas Tso, Director, Beijing Office of the HKSAR Government
– Meeting with Mr. Cai Mingzhao, Deputy Director, State Council Information Office
– Meeting with Mr. Zheng Zeguang Director General, Department of North American and Oceanian Affairs, MFA
5 Aug (Wed)
– Leave for Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region
Inner Mongolia
Huhhot
5 Aug (Wed)
– Arrive Hohhot Prefecture, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region
– Visit to Old Cow Crescent
6 Aug (Thu)
– Visit Huitengxile Wind Power Field
7 Aug (Fri)
– Joint meetings with Inner Mongolia officials (Foreign Affairs Office, Development and Reform Commission, Ethnic Affairs Commission, Culture Department, Department of Commerce, Environmental Protection Department and Tourism Bureau)
– Visit to Yili Group
– Dinner hosted by Ms. Liu Juru, Vice Mayor of the People’s Municipal Government of Huhhot
8 Aug (Sat)
– Leave for Hailaer
Hailaer
8 Aug (Sat)
– Arrive Hailaer
– Visit National Forest Park and grassland
– Watch an outdoor performance on the life of Genghis Khan
9 Aug (Sun)
– Leave for Hong Kong
Hong Kong
10 Aug (Mon)
– Breakfast meeting with the American Chamber of Commerce
– Meeting with Ms. Julia Leung, Undersecretary for Financial Services & the Treasury
– Lunch hosted by Mr. Barry Cheung, Chairman of Urban Renewal Authority
– Meeting with Department of Justice
– Meeting with Mr. C H Tung, Vice Chairman of Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference and first former Chief Executive of HKSAR
11 Aug (Tue)
– Breakfast meeting with Mr. Archie Tsim, Chief Financial Officer and Ms. Lorraine Chan, Vice President, Corporate Communications Department of Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Ltd
– Meeting with Mr. Lu Xinhua, Commissioner of Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Hong Kong
– Lunch hosted by Mr. C Y Leung , Convenor of the Executive Council (Exco) of the HKSAR with Exco members – Mrs. Laura Cha, Mr. Ronald Arculli, Mr. Marvin Cheung, Ms. Marjorie Yang, Mr. V Nee Yeh
– Meeting with Mr. Henry Tang, Chief Secretary for Administration
– Meeting with Mr. Christopher Marut, Acting American Consul-General
– Boating and Dinner hosted by Mr. Ronnie Chan, the Foundation’s Executive Committee Chairman
12 Aug (Wed)
– Free time
Meeting with Mr. Zhou Xisheng, Vice President of Xinhua News Agency (5th right)
Meeting with Mr. Cai Mingzhao, Deputy Director, State Council Information Office
Dinner hosted by Ms. Liu Juru, Vice Mayor of the People’s Municipal Government of Huhhot (2nd left)
Meeting with Mr. C H Tung, Vice Chairman of Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference and first former Chief Executive of HKSAR (4th right)
Meeting with Mr. Henry Tang, Chief Secretary for Administration (middle)
