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Following is the transcript (English portion) of a media session given by the Chief Secretary for Administration, Mr Donald Tsang, this (February 20) afternoon after meeting with Mr Liao Hui, Director of the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office in Beijing:

Reporter: Mr Tsang, you had a long meeting with Mr Liao, what did you discuss?

Mr Tsang: We discussed quite a long range of issues. First of all, I tried to put to him what Hong Kong's situation is against the economic setting that we have. Through my own eyes, the present state of play in Hong Kong, particularly, socially, what it is all about, how people feel about Hong Kong; politically, what the situation is. And in that context, I told him the present progress in the implementation of the accountability system. We also discussed the Civil Service reform that we are undertaking; how that will complement the accountability system which the Chief Executive is implementing.

(Please also refer to the Chinese portion of the transcript)

End/Wednesday, February 20, 2002

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