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The French Government warmly congratulated the Hong Kong SAR Government on the occasion of the 10th anniversary of the establishment of the HKSAR, at a grand reception in Paris yesterday (June 28, Paris time).
The 400 guests who attended the event at the city's prestigious Musee d'Orsay, on the banks of the river Seine, included French government officials, business leaders with connections to Hong Kong, members of the France-Hong Kong Society, representatives of the French arts community, and the media.
Entertainment was provided by the talented young artists of the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts, who presented a programme of Cantonese Opera and Chinese music.
Representing the French Government at the celebration, Director of Asia and Oceania of the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mr Michel Filhol, conveyed France's sincere congratulations to the HKSAR Government on the occasion of the 10th anniversary of reunification.
"In the last 10 years, Hong Kong and the PRC have shown the world that the 'One Country, Two Systems' principle is most appropriate and well-suited to Hong Kong," he said.
"This principle is a dynamic and on-going process, and we are confident that the next steps will further consolidate the democratic institutions and values which have been key for the success of Hong Kong within China."
Mr Filhol added that the visit to France of the Chief Executive, Mr Donald Tsang, last November had been the opportunity for France to show the importance it attached to its relationship with Hong Kong - a relationship that went back 160 years. More than 600 French companies are located in Hong Kong, and the French community there, with around 8,000 members, is the largest in Asia.
The President of the Musee d'Orsay, Mr Serge Lemoine, said he was particularly delighted that the celebration of the 10th anniversary was being held at the museum, which was one of the main institutions involved in the France/PRC years of cultural exchanges in 2004 and 2005. As part of the "Year of France in China", the museum organised an exhibition of French impressionist paintings at the Hong Kong Museum of Art in 2005 that was visited by 280,000 people. Mr Lemoine also said an earlier exhibition he had organised at the Hong Kong Museum of Art, "Masterpieces - the Origins of Modern Art in France" in 1999, had also enjoyed unprecedented success.
"The HKSAR is one of the most dynamic relations in China and has many times proven its ability to engineer cultural events, playing a key role in cultural exchanges with foreign countries. Hong Kong professionals know how to organise prestigious international co-productions and how to leverage particularly effective local financial support, by raising the awareness of patrons of their fundamental role in making these projects possible," Mr Lemoine said.
The Paris reception was the third major event organised in Europe by the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office, Brussels, to celebrate the 10th anniversary. The Brussels ETO hosted similar events in Berlin on June 18, attended by more than 200 guests, and in Brussels on June 25.
The celebration in Brussels was held at the Monnaie Theatre, the Brussels opera house in the heart of the city, and attracted more than 500 guests, including many foreign ambassadors and other members of the diplomatic corps, European Commission and Belgian officials, Members of the European Parliament and businessmen.
China's Ambassador to Belgium, Ms Zhang Qiyue, joined Special Representative for Hong Kong Economic and Trade Affairs to the European Communities, Mr Duncan Pescod, on stage for a toast to the future of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.
Ends/Friday, June 29, 2007
Issued at HKT 17:37
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