The Chief Executive, Mr Tung Chee Hwa, today met with a delegation of the National Democratic Institute of International Affairs led by Mr Dick Thornburgh.

At the meeting, the Chief Executive briefed the delegation on the smooth implementation of the "one country, two systems" principle.

"Under this principle Hong Kong maintains its own political, economic and social systems. Our legal and judicial systems are independent from those in the Mainland of China. Hong Kong people enjoy civil rights and liberties that are allowed by our own laws," Mr Tung said.

"Our democratic evolution is defined in the Basic Law. It governs both the election of the Chief Executive and the legislature for the HKSAR.," Mr Tung told the delegation.

He pointed out to the delegation that election of the Chief Executive was novel in Hong Kong's electoral history.

"In the development towards universal suffrage, we must ensure that our election systems are heading towards the right direction.

"We are committed to do what is in the best long term interest of Hong Kong. We believe that the democratic evolution timetable enshrined in the Basic Law is about right for Hong Kong and we are determined to press ahead with the implementation as scheduled," he said.

"Apart from electoral arrangements, the essence of a successful democracy should also encompass freedom of speech, rights of political parties and the rule of law," Mr Tung said. "We are very conscious of the need to preserve all these in our democratic evolution."

"Each country is in a different developmental stage and we must do what is right in the democratic process, taking into account the special circumstances around us," he said.

The Chief Executive told the delegation that the HKSAR Government was all prepared for the coming Legislative Council election in May.

"We attach great importance to the coming election, the first after the establishment of the HKSAR," he said.

"We are fully committed to ensure that the electoral arrangements are open and fair," he said. "The entire electoral process will be supervised by the independent Electoral Affairs Commission."

"We welcome people from across the political spectrum to participate in the election, both as a candidate and as a voter," he said.

On completion of the recent voter registration campaign, there are now 2.8 million registered voters on the General Electoral Roll. This represents a registration rate of over 70 per cent, the highest in Hong Kong's electoral history.

"We have a proven record of open and fair elections. Hong Kong voters understand their rights and obligations. We have every confidence that the coming election will be conducted smoothly and professionally," he said. "We do not see the need for any overseas authorities to supervise or monitor the electoral process."

Mr Tung thanked the delegation for their concern for Hong Kong and was delighted to have an opportunity to explain to them the current situation in Hong Kong.