Blog

Some Thoughts on Learning the Spirit of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China – Hong Kong’s Efforts to Contribute to Chinese-style Modernisation

A wide array of activities are held across the country today as we celebrate the Constitution Day. Studying in depth the spirit and implementation of the Constitution and getting to know more about the relationship between the Constitution and the Basic Law are conducive to the full, accurate and faithful implementation of the “One Country, Two Systems” principle, thereby enabling us to contribute to the Chinese-style modernisation of our country. With China embarking on a new journey in a new era and Hong Kong progressing from good governance to prosperity, the Constitution has a fundamental role to play in the great cause of “One Country, Two Systems”. This is one of the key focuses of the Constitution Day Seminar jointly organised by the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Government and the Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government today.

The Constitution is the fundamental law of the state. With the highest legal status and legal effect in the whole country, including the HKSAR, it is an important symbol and sign of the nation. The existing Constitution was adopted at the Fifth Session of the Fifth National People’s Congress exactly 40 years ago, i.e. on 4 December 1982. It was also then that the Constitution provided in express terms the legal basis for establishing special administrative regions. Article 31 of the Constitution stipulates that the “state may establish special administrative regions when necessary. The systems instituted in special administrative regions shall, in light of specific circumstances, be prescribed by laws enacted by the National People’s Congress.” Article 62 of the Constitution also stipulates that the National People’s Congress has the power to decide on the establishment of special administrative regions and the systems to be instituted there.

The Basic Law of Hong Kong, enacted by the National People’s Congress in accordance with the Constitution in April 1990, prescribes the systems of the HKSAR and has a constitutional status under the legal system in the HKSAR. The report of the 20th National Congress makes it clear again that we should safeguard the constitutional order of the HKSAR established by the Constitution and the Basic Law, as well as uphold and improve the governance system under “One Country, Two Systems”. These requirements fully demonstrate that the Constitution and the Basic Law together form the constitutional basis of the HKSAR.

In learning that the Constitution is the fundamental law of Hong Kong, we must appreciate that the Constitution has established the ruling status of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and hence the fact that the state’s political system, legal basis and practice of governance are inseparable from the leadership of the CPC. Likewise, the fundamental requirements for Chinese-style modernisation are to “uphold the CPC’s leadership, adhere to socialism with Chinese characteristics, achieve high‑quality development and create a new form of human civilisation.” These are my realisations and insights pertaining to participating in the seminar on promotion of the spirit of the 20th National Congress yesterday and the events relating to the Constitution Day to be held today.

As stipulated in Article 5 of the Basic Law, the “socialist system and policies shall not be practised in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, and the previous capitalist system and way of life shall remain unchanged for 50 years.” With the enactment of the Basic Law in accordance with the Constitution, our country, which practises socialism, allows and provides a legal safeguard for Hong Kong to implement a capitalist system and maintain its way of life. Hong Kong, by leveraging the advantages under “One Country, Two Systems”, has achieved stable and prosperous development in the past 25 years.

In an important speech delivered on 1 July this year, President Xi Jinping made it clear that the fundamental purpose of “One Country, Two Systems” was to safeguard national sovereignty, security and development interests, and to maintain the long-term prosperity and stability of Hong Kong and Macao. Tested repeatedly in practice, “One Country, Two Systems” serves the fundamental interests of not only Hong Kong and Macao, but also those of our country and nation. It is also widely accepted by the international community. “There is no reason for us to change such a good policy, and we must adhere to it in the long run”.

Looking back at the development of the Constitution and the Basic Law and their relationship enhances our understanding of the implementation of “One Country, Two Systems”. Studying in depth the spirit and essence of the report of the 20th National Congress gives us a better understanding of the CPC’s steer in concluding the development of our country in the past 10 years as well as its great vision, direction for development and action plan for the future.

I attended a seminar to promote the spirit of the 20th National Congress of the CPC held by the HKSAR Government yesterday.

The HKSAR Government held seminars to promote the spirit of the 20th National Congress of the CPC yesterday. We are very grateful to the two keynote speakers of the publicity delegation, including the Chairman of the Legislative Affairs Commission of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress, Mr Shen Chunyao, and the Vice-Chairman of the Committee on Economic Affairs of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, Mr Xie Fuzhan. Their comprehensive and in-depth explanation of the theme and essence of the report of the 20th National Congress has enabled us to learn and understand more deeply and thoroughly the goals, directions and requirements set out in the report. Moreover, the sending of the publicity delegation to Hong Kong by the Central Government to provide an in-depth explanation of the report is a testament to the great importance it attaches to the cause of “One Country, Two Systems” as well as its care for Hong Kong. What we learned yesterday will help us embrace more fully the spirit of the report of the 20th National Congress in our daily work and make it an important guiding principle for our actions and practices. Regarding the seminar I attended yesterday, I have particularly deep feelings about two points.

I. Development of socialist modernisation with Chinese characteristics

Having secured great achievements in alleviating poverty and building a moderately prosperous society in all aspects, our country is advancing towards its second centenary goal. The overall strategy is the adoption of a two-step approach, under which our country will basically achieve socialist modernisation between 2020 and 2035, and subsequently build itself into “a great modern socialist country that is prosperous, strong, democratic, culturally advanced, harmonious and beautiful” between 2035 and the middle of this century. The next five years will be crucial as our country embarks on its journey towards Chinese-style modernisation, and the Central Government is firmly committed to achieving this goal with clear directions and steps. As Hong Kong integrates into the overall development of our country, we must bear in mind our unshirkable historic responsibility. We should also capitalise on our unique characteristics and work tirelessly with the Mainland towards the realisation of our long-term goals.

II. Making contribution to national development by giving fuller play to our strengths in innovation-driven development

Promotion of high-quality economic development plays a key role in the modernisation of our country. Hong Kong is capable of making contributions proactively in this area with its unique advantages. These include expanding and strengthening its financial services to provide stronger support for real economic development of Hong Kong and our country; giving full play to the institutional strengths under “One Country, Two Systems”, the advantages arising from economies of scale offered by the vast Mainland market and the regional advantages of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area to foster more effectively the development of finance and other industries through innovation and technology; and pooling the efforts of the government, industry, academic and research sectors to commercialise research and development results and promote industrial development through innovative application.

As pointed out by Mr. Shen and Mr. Xie yesterday, Chinese-style modernisation is the modernisation of harmony between humanity and nature, and it is a development process that facilitates the building of a community with a shared future for mankind. The great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation is now on an irreversible course. The country’s second centenary goal is also our common goal which we will work together to achieve. Hong Kong’s bright future lies in the prosperous development of our country.

December 4, 2022