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The following is issued on behalf of the Legislative Council Secretariat:
The Legislative Council (LegCo) Delegation on duty visit to Shanghai concluded the two-day visit today (April 13). Members attended two seminars this morning and a meeting on Hong Kong's political development in the afternoon.
In summing up the trip, President of LegCo and Leader of the Delegation, Mr Jasper Tsang, described the visit as successful. He said that Members enthusiastically participated in the visit programmes and the visit achieved its purposes. He considered Members' response to the meeting on constitutional reform positive. Despite the differences between the Central Government officials and some Members on the election method of the Chief Executive by universal suffrage in 2017, the frank expression of views by both sides helped narrow the communication gap.
"I think both sides agreed that we should strive for a successful election (of the Chief Executive) by universal suffrage in 2017. It was also agreed that in order to achieve this objective, the dialogue should continue. Perhaps by quoting Mr Wang Guangya, the communication should be pragmatic and rational," said Mr Tsang.
Mr Tsang also thanked Shanghai Municipality for sparing time to arrange the visit for the Delegation amid its planning of various external affairs activities.
This morning, the Delegation attended two seminars respectively on comprehensive deepening and enhancement of the nation's reform by Secretary-General of Academic Committee of the National Development and Reform Commission, Professor Zhang Yansheng, and on China (Shanghai) Pilot Free Trade Zone (Free Trade Zone) by Deputy Secretary General of Shanghai Municipality and Executive Deputy Director of Management Committee of the Free Trade Zone, Mr Dai Haibo.
In the afternoon, the Delegation met with Director of Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council, Mr Wang Guangya; Chairman of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Basic Law Committee under the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, Mr Li Fei; and Director of the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in HKSAR, Mr Zhang Xiaoming, to discuss Hong Kong's political development and other issues of mutual concern.
During the two-day visit, Delegation members also met with senior officials of Shanghai Municipality, visited the Shanghai Hongqiao Central Business District and Integrated Transportation Hub, the aircraft manufacturing site of the Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China, the Shanghai Urban Planning Exhibition Center, and attended a seminar on international developments and foreign policies.
Ends/Sunday, April 13, 2014
Issued at HKT 21:47
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