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Following is the transcript of the meet-the-media session by the Chief Executive, Mr Tung Chee Hwa, after attending the presentation ceremony of the 1998 Hong Kong Awards for Industry at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre this (Wednesday) evening:

Reporter: On today's motion debate, and the Financial Secretary's remark, we may be turning the financial crisis around. What is your observation? Or do we still have a long way to go?

Mr Tung: You asked two questions, not one. I think the Policy Address is a product of many hours of work by many, many in the Government. It also absorbed the opinions of many different groups of people in Hong Kong. And having listened and carefully thought through, we prepared this Policy Address. It is a Policy Address of a team effort, and I believe that the Policy Address contains different approaches to ensure the economic recovery in a short term and also lay the foundation for the long-term future of Hong Kong. There are obviously different views that have been expressed after the Policy Speech has been made. And we listen very carefully to those views, and where changes are needed, we'll make them. We'll listen to those views carefully because some of them are really quite good. Others will want to try to politicise this Policy Speech and from our point of view what happened at the Legislature was an internal matter for the Legislature. As far as we are concerned, we move ahead very diligently to implement the various issues that have been suggested in the Policy Speech to ensure in the short term the recovery of our economy and in the long term lay a good foundation for our future. As to your second question, I think there are signs that the economy is settling down a bit. And I said this when I returned from my holiday, and I think it is settling down a bit. We need to watch still carefully the developments externally over the next few weeks and months. Hopefully that if the external environment continues to be stable, then we will be slowly, slowly have a chance to come out of the bottom.

Reporter: Mr Tung, why are you trying to pull strings in Beijing and Taiwan for your very powerful and rich friend Lim Por-yen but you won't do anything to help the Hong Kong man who is facing trial in Guangzhou?

Mr Tung: I like the way you asked the question. It's a bit provocative. Let me tell you this. Firstly, Mr Lim is 86 years old. His health is not very good. I was somewhat concerned in the beginning because he was detained for a long, long time without the due process of law. I am glad now that the due process of law is going ahead. Obviously the due process of law must take its place in Taiwan, but these are Hong Kong citizens, and we try to appeal to the authorities through various channels. And it is a right thing to do, considering his age. In so far as what's happening in Guangzhou is concerned, my Secretary for Justice and Secretary for Security have made very lengthy statements. And you know jolly well what is all about. I am not going to comment any further on it. Thank you very much.

End/Wednesday, November 4, 1998

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Transcript of Chief Executive's meet-the-media session (Chinese part)