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Following is the transcript of a media session by the Secretary for Justice, Mr Wong Yan Lung, SC, after the farewell sitting for the Hon Chief Justice, Andrew Kwok-nang Li, at the Court of Final Appeal today (July 16):
Secretary for Justice: This is, as you know, the farewell sitting for the Chief Justice. You might have gathered from the speeches delivered that he is really very much respected and loved by the community, not just the legal community of Hong Kong. He has done really great works in what I described as the legal realisation of the innovative "One Country, Two Systems" in Hong Kong, setting out the constitutional jurisprudence in Hong Kong under the Basic Law, establishing the Court of Final Appeal as a human rights court, exercising absolute judicial independence and protecting the freedoms and rights under the Basic Law. He has really done an amazing job for us. Also he is very much a reformer, spearheading the Civil Justice Reform, introducing and promoting alternative dispute resolution measures, in particular mediation, increasing access to justice and taking a lot of steps to improve the administration of justice in Hong Kong. As a person, he is somebody who pursues excellence, but excellence with a soul. He is a man with deep-down passion for people. A lot of people have been inspired and helped by him in different ways. So we will all miss him. We also acknowledge the contribution and support given to him by Mrs Li over the years. Although it is sad to see him go, this is also a time that we should celebrate that we could have somebody so good and dedicated, having served the Judiciary and Hong Kong for so many years. Thank you.
(Please also refer to the Chinese portion of the transcript.)
Ends/Friday, July 16, 2010
Issued at HKT 13:15
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