Conference to spotlight city’s successes under ‘one country, two systems’ principle

The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region has been recognized as a pivotal contributor in the nation’s drive for peaceful reunification, with its successful implementation of the “one country, two systems” principle and its influential role in facilitating cross-Strait exchanges, the organizers of a high-level conference said on Monday.

At a news conference, the Hong Kong Association for Promotion of Peaceful Reunification of China unveiled the agenda for the 2024 Overseas Chinese World Conference for Promoting Peaceful Reunification of China.

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A 2024 Hong Kong Declaration is expected at the event, which will take place at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre on Tuesday under the theme “Unswervingly promoting China’s peaceful reunification and striving to achieve the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation”.

Hong Kong will become the first Chinese city to host the conference twice, following its initial hosting in 2010.

The conference will attract around 1,200 representatives from about 50 countries and regions, representing nearly 180 overseas Chinese organizations, including participants from various sectors of the Chinese mainland, Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan.

Senior officials, including Shi Taifeng, head of the United Front Work Department of the Communist Party of China Central Committee; Zheng Yanxiong, director of the Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in the HKSAR; and Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu will address delegates during the event.

Yiu Chi-shing, president of the organizing group, said that the conference showcases Hong Kong’s pivotal role in promoting national unity and the successful practice of “one country, two systems”.

“The event will further underscore the resounding calls for peace, development, exchange, and cooperation among the Chinese nationals,” he said.

Yiu said that Hong Kong is where the 1992 Consensus was reached, and serves as a crucial bridge for people-to-people exchanges between the mainland and Taiwan.

In 1992, following a meeting in Hong Kong and a series of subsequent exchanges, the mainland-based Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits and the Taiwan-based Straits Exchange Foundation concluded that “the two sides of the Taiwan Straits both stick to the one-China principle”.

Moreover, Yiu pointed to the development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area as an encouraging reference for integrated cross-Strait development.

Henry Tan, executive chairman of the organizing group, said that Hong Kong being chosen as the host city for a second time demonstrated the nation’s high regard for Hong Kong as an exemplar of the “one country, two systems” principle, as well as its crucial role in anti-secession and pro-reunification efforts and in cross-Strait exchanges.

As this year marks the 75th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China, the conference is poised to demonstrate that China’s peaceful reunification is an unstoppable historical movement, laying a solid foundation for the integrated development across the Strait, he said.

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Tan said he hopes this conference can broaden the channels for cross-Strait exchanges and facilitate Taiwan compatriots to share in the opportunities of China’s modernization. He said he believes that Taiwan compatriots and enterprises will benefit from improved conditions for seeking developments in the mainland, as the central government has pledged to enhance cross-Strait exchanges and growth, as stated in the resolution of the third plenary session of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China.

Since 2000, the Overseas Chinese World Conference for Promoting Peaceful Reunification of China has convened in 21 cities worldwide, uniting communities from Hong Kong, Macao, Taiwan, and overseas in the pursuit of the nation’s peaceful reunification.

Shi, who is also a member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and vice-chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, is leading a delegation to Hong Kong to inspect the city’s latest developments.

During a meeting between Shi and SAR government officials on Monday afternoon, Lee promised to firmly implement the guiding principles of the third plenary session and continue to contribute to China’s modernization with Hong Kong’s strengths.

amberwu@chinadailyhk.com