Daily Information Bulletin
Issued by Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government Information Services
Garden Road, 5th-8th Floors, Murray Building, Hong Kong. Tel: 2842 8777



Friday, February 13, 1998



CONTENTS
========
1.  Transcript of Q&A session
2.  Government announces 1998-99 spending plans
3.  Announcement of senior appointments
4.  Proposed increase in school education expenditure welcomed
5.  Substantial increase in expenditure on basic education
6.  New employment and labour initiatives
7.  Retired leaders to visit Hong Kong
8.  Selection panel established for appointment of SFC Chairman
9.  Setting up of the HKSAR Passports Appeal Board
10. Adaptation of Laws (Interpretative Provisions) Bill gazetted
11. Update on avian flu
12. External trade statistics for December 1997
13. Broadcasting Authority and TELA view future with commitments
14. End-1997 population estimate released
15. Land resumption in Sheung Shui for flood control works
16. Electronic data format for building plans submission
17. Weather of January 1998
18. Air Quality Report for January released
19. Lunar New Year philatelic products
20. Import and export licensing pamphlet published



1.  Transcript of Q&A session
    *************************

     Following is the transcript of the questions and
answers delivered in English at the press conference given
by the Secretary for Treasury, Mr K C Kwong, today
(Friday):

Question: Page three, lower graph, public expenditure
reaching a record high of 19.2% - public expenditure in
terms of GDP.  Aren't we overreaching ourselves in fact,
because we are facing an economic crisis and we are in
these hard economic times?  And also, in the past when you
were doing the handover Budget, there were talks,
especially from China, that the graph should not get that
high.  Now, has there been a change of heart?

S for Tsy: Whether or not we would be overreaching
ourselves is a question which can only be answered next
Wednesday when you have the complete picture of both the
expenditure and the revenue, as well as our medium range
forecast.  So, I would advise that you be patient on that
one.

     Your second question - I don't know where you got
that particular piece of information.  It is completely
wrong.

Question: Could you just give me some details on social
welfare, education and health?  And with social welfare,
there has been concern that we were heading towards a
welfare state.  Do you think that this big increase will
worry those people who were concerned previously?

S for Tsy: You ask me to give you details on three fairly
big policy areas.  My answer is, could you read this book,
the English version of it?

Question: Yes, but this is for radio, so I would like a
soundbite to give me some explanation.  That is the main
thing.

S for Tsy: Well, I'm sorry, I cannot read the book for
you.  But your second question about the growth in welfare
expenditure, obviously that is an area which we have
looked into very carefully and in deciding how much
resources we should allocate to the welfare programme
area, or indeed to any programme area, we must have regard
to the longer term financial implications.  And if you
look at the individual programme area, you might see an
above or below trend growth.  But the important thing to
us, from a financial control point of view, is the total
expenditure.  And in that respect, I think, looking at the
graph on page three of this introduction, you will see
that we are maintaining very good control over our
expenditure.

Question (Louisa Leung - TVB): In terms of total
expenditure, housing is almost doubling this year, while
social welfare spending, the increase is still quite small
- it is only 10%.  Given the economic downturn and the
fact that people are struggling to get by - they are
losing their jobs - is this really responding to public
needs or are the public needs just being neglected for the
sake of reaching a political target?

S for Tsy: I think that is a completely misplaced
question, if I may say so, because when we talk about
provision of public services there are two components.
Recurrent and non-recurrent expenditure.  And by its very
nature, non-recurrent expenditure can fluctuate very
sharply from year to year.  The substantial growth in
total public expenditure in the housing programme area is
a reflection of the substantial increase in construction
activities, capital projects which will be undertaken by
the Housing Authority.

     Insofar as welfare is concerned, the growth in real
terms on the recurrent side, 1998-99 compared to 1997-98,
is 13.6%.  That is way above the trend growth rate of 5%
which we have assumed.

Question: ... situation in Hong Kong, how can you be
confident that you can maintain the 5% growth rate?

S for Tsy: The 5% growth rate is not the growth rate which
we say will be the case in 1998.  You will have to wait
until Wednesday to know what is our present forecast of
the growth rate for 1998.  The 5% is the trend growth rate
over the medium range forecast period.  That is from now
until the year 2001-2002.  That is our present estimate.

Question: I want to see if you could answer, what do you
think this Budget really means to the average Hong Kong
resident, and how will the quality of life change for the
average person in Hong Kong?

S for Tsy: This is only part of the Budget, so I think
your question can only be answered on Wednesday.

Question: I have three questions, two of which are very
short.  First of all, what is the total global expenditure
on capital works?  In the English, I don't find a global
number.

     The second question, has provision been made for the
new government headquarters on the Tamar Basin.

     And the third question, would you consider this a
stimulative spending package or not?  Would you
characterise it in that way?

S for Tsy: Your first question, the simple answer is, you
take the total public expenditure and deduct from it the
total recurrent expenditure, you will get the number.  I
don't quite get your second question.

Question: The Tamar Basin reclamation, the new government
headquarters, have you made provision for that in the
capital costs?

S for Tsy: We have not made specific provision for that
particular project.  And your third question?

Question: Is this a stimulative expenditure package?

S for Tsy: If we control expenditure growth to the trend
growth rate of the economy, then the stimulative effect
will be similar to the stimulative effect of the package
last year.

Question: Is that especially stimulative in reaction to
the economic turmoil in the region?

S for Tsy: I think, in order to answer that question, you
have to wait until Wednesday for the whole package.

End


2.  Government announces 1998-99 spending plans
    *******************************************

     The draft estimates of expenditure for 1998-99
published today (Friday) provide for significant increases
in spending to improve government services.

     Announcing this today, the Secretary for the
Treasury, Mr K C Kwong said: "The detailed draft estimates
provide the funds needed to implement all the improvements
to services and investments in our infrastructure
announced by the Chief Executive in his Policy Address
last October."

     Government expenditure for the new financial year
will total at $233 billion.

     Mr Kwong explained that the $233 billion includes
$171.7 billion for the recurrent expenses of existing and
new services and $61.3 billion for capital projects
including major infrastructural works and various loan
assistance schemes.

     "Areas with major growth in recurrent spending in
1998-99 include Education, Health, Social Welfare and
Security.  Many of the improvements in Health and Social
Welfare will be focused on meeting the needs of the
elderly," he said.

     Additional services and support for the elderly
include -

     *  2621 residential places

     *  12 Social Centres

     *  3 Day Care Centres

     *  4 Multi-Service Centres

     *  20 Home Help Teams

     *  2 Carers' Support and Resource Centres

     *  35 Dedicated Teams for outreaching and to support
volunteers programmes

     *  A special programme to train pupil nurses to serve
elderly homes

     *  Enhanced staffing in Day Care Centres and elderly
homes

     *  A new Dementia Supplement for subvented
residential care homes

     *  12 integrated Elderly Health Centres and 12
visiting health teams

     *  40 geriatric day places

     *  A psychogeriatric team

     *  A community geriatric assessment team

     *  An increase of $380 in the monthly payments for
the elderly under the Comprehensive Social Security
Assistance Scheme (subsuming the annual Chinese New Year
and Social Recreation Activities grants)

     In addition to these improvements specifically for
the elderly we will see other improvements in our Health
and Welfare services.  These include -

     *  754 extra hospital beds

     *  A new Child Assessment Centre in Kowloon

     *  A Primary Health Care Centre in Kowloon Bay

     *  Establishment of a regulatory framework to
regulate the practice, use and trading of traditional
Chinese Medicine and the registration of practitioners

     *  For people with a disability, an additional 180
residential places and 250 day places

     *  For children, 3,278 day nursery and day creche
places and 30 residential places

     *  288 pre-school places for children with a
disability

     *  26 Family Caseworker units

     *  12 Medical Social Workers

     *  14 School Social Workers

     *  2 teams under the Community Support Service Scheme

     *  An outreaching Social Work team

     *  2 Children and Youth Centres

     "As a result of these wide-ranging improvements, our
recurrent expenditure on Health will grow by $3 billion to
$29 billion, or 5.4 per cent in real terms.  Our recurrent
expenditure on Social Welfare will grow by $4.3 billion to
$24.9 billion, or 13.6 per cent in real terms," Mr Kwong
said.

     "Our recurrent spending on Education will grow by
$5.7 billion to $43 billion, an increase of 6.3 per cent
in real terms.  This increase in spending will allow us to
make significant improvements to our basic education
programmes," he said.  These include -

     *  1380 extra graduate teacher posts  for primary
schools

     *  21 more primary schools operating on a whole day
basis

     *  Extra support for secondary schools using Chinese
as the medium of instruction

     *  Extra native-speaking English teachers in
secondary schools

     *  Enhanced use of information technology

     *  Language benchmarking for teachers

     *  More training places for teachers in schools and
kindergartens

     *  Support for the implementation of school based
management

     *  Travel subsidies for primary school pupils

     *  Extension of the Textbook Assistance Scheme to
Secondary 4 to 7 students

     *  Increased school places and support for newly
arrived children

     *  Additional support staff for primary and secondary
schools

     *  Implementation of the recommendations of the Board
of Education for special education

     "We will also be spending an extra $2.1 billion on
our Security programmes," Mr Kwong said.

     "To strengthen law and order, we will provide funds
for 339 additional police officers to meet various front-
line operational requirements, and 53 additional ICAC
officers for the on-going fight against corruption.  We
will also increase substantially customs and immigration
staff numbers by 447 to meet the demand at the new airport
at Chek Lap Kok and the River Trade Terminal in Tuen Mun.
And we will increase staffing by 114 in the Fire Services
Department to carry out fire safety building inspections
and to promote community awareness of fire safety," he
added.

     "Our recurrent expenditure in support of
infrastructural development will increase by $1.2 billion
to $11.4 billion.  To help meet our housing targets we
will be speeding up land supply and we will be planning
and implementing road and rail projects which will open up
land for housing development," he said.

     On capital expenditure, public capital spending on
housing will nearly double in 1998-99 as the Housing
Authority increases its expenditure on construction works
by 40 per cent in real terms and as payments are made from
the Loan Fund for the Home Starter Loan Scheme and to the
Housing Society for the purchase of sites for the Sandwich
Class Housing Scheme.

     "During the year we will also be making an equity
injection of $14.5 billion into the Kowloon Canton Railway
Corporation towards the cost of the West Rail project," he
added.

     "We have provided this impressive list of
improvements in services whilst maintaining our
established prudent financial management principle of
ensuring that government expenditure, over time, grows no
faster than the forecast trend growth rate of the
economy," Mr Kwong stressed.

End


3.  Announcement of senior appointments
    ***********************************

     The Government announced today (Friday) that the
Central People's Government has, on the nomination and
recommendation of the Chief Executive, made the following
appointments of Principal Officials:

     Mr Kwong Ki-chi, JP, currently Secretary for the
Treasury, will be appointed as Secretary for Information
Technology and Broadcasting.

     Miss Denise Yue, JP, currently Secretary for Trade
and Industry, will be appointed as Secretary for the
Treasury in place of Mr Kwong Ki-chi.

     Mr Chau Tak-hay, JP, currently Secretary for
Broadcasting, Culture and Sport, will be appointed as
Secretary for Trade and Industry in place of Miss Denise
Yue.

     The above appointments will take effect in April
1998.

     The Information Technology and Broadcasting Bureau
(ITBB) will replace the existing Broadcasting, Culture and
Sport Bureau (BCSB).  Apart from retaining the BCSB's
current responsibility for broadcasting matters, ITBB will
undertake policy responsibility for overall information
technology development in Hong Kong.  Home Affairs Bureau
will take over BCSB's current responsibility in the areas
of culture, recreation and sport.  The plan to put all
matters relating to information technology and the related
areas of broadcasting and telecommunications under the
charge of a single bureau was announced by the Chief
Executive in his Policy Address last October.

     Commenting on the new appointments, the Chief
Secretary for Administration, Mrs Anson Chan, expressed
full confidence in the three officers, saying that "they
are experienced public administrators with extensive
knowledge of the portfolios they are about to take up."

     "Both the Chief Executive and I are confident that
they are best suited for their new appointments," Mrs Chan
added.

     Biographical notes of the officers are as follows:

Mr Kwong Ki-chi
---------------

     Aged 46.  Mr Kwong joined the civil service in 1972
and became an Administrative Officer in 1978.  He rose to
his present rank of Director of Bureau (previously
Secretary, Government Secretariat) in June 1996.  Mr Kwong
has served in a variety of branches and departments,
including the former Trade, Industry and Customs
Department, the former Environment Branch, the former City
and New Territories Administration, Finance Branch and the
former Monetary Affairs Branch.  He was Deputy
Commissioner of the Hong Kong Government Office in London
from 1989 to 1992 and Deputy Secretary for the Treasury
from 1992 to 1995.  He took up his present appointment as
Secretary for the Treasury in April 1995.

Miss Denise Yue Chung-yee
-------------------------

     Aged 45.  Miss Yue joined the Administrative Service
in 1974 and rose to her present rank of Director of Bureau
(previously Secretary, Government Secretariat) in April
1997.  She has served in a variety of branches and
departments, including Home Affairs Department, Finance
Branch, the former New Territories Administration, the
Chief Secretary's Office, Urban Services Department and
Education and Manpower Branch.  She was Deputy Director of
the Hong Kong Economic Affairs Office in New York from
1985 to 1987.  In 1987-1988, she attended a one-year
training programme at Harvard University.  On return, she
served as Principal Assistant Financial Secretary in
Finance Branch from 1988 to 1991, Deputy Director of
Regional Services from 1991 to 1992, Deputy Secretary for
Trade and Industry from 1992 to 1993 and Director-General
of Industry from 1993 to 1995.  She took up her present
appointment as Secretary for Trade and Industry in
November 1995.

Mr Chau Tak-hay
---------------

     Aged 55.  Mr Chau joined the civil service in 1967
and transferred to the Administrative Service in 1982 as
an Administrative Officer Staff Grade B.  Through a series
of promotions, he rose to his present rank of Director of
Bureau (previously Secretary, Government Secretariat) in
March 1993.  The early years of his career were spent in
the former Trade, Industry and Customs Department, rising
to the rank of Deputy Commissioner in 1979.  He served as
Deputy Secretary for Health and Welfare from 1984 to 1985,
Deputy Regional Secretary (Hong Kong and Kowloon) in the
former City and New Territories Administration from 1985
to 1986 and Regional Secretary (Hong Kong and Kowloon)
from 1986 to 1988.  He was Secretary for Health and
Welfare from 1988 to 1990.  In 1990, he was appointed
Director-General of Trade, and in the following year, he
took up the post of Secretary for Trade and Industry.  He
assumed his present appointment as Secretary for
Broadcasting, Culture and Sport in November 1995.

End


4.  Proposed increase in school education expenditure welcomed
    **********************************************************

     The Director of Education, Mrs Helen C P Lai Yu,
today (Friday) welcomed the increase of $3.56 billion in
Government's proposed allocation to the Education
Department for recurrent and non-works capital spending in
the 1998/99 financial year.

     "This is almost 16 per cent over the 1997/98 Revised
Estimates.  It compares with the increase of just over
five per cent last year," Mrs Yu said.

     "With this proposed increase, the budget for school
education will be $26.22 billion.

     "We are firmly committed to achieving quality school
education.  We will improve existing services and
implement the initiatives envisaged in the Government's
strategic policy objective of providing excellence in
education.

     "For this, we look to our colleagues in the education
sector for support and co-operation."

End


5.  Substantial increase in expenditure on basic education
    ******************************************************

     The SAR Government will make substantial investments
in the coming financial year to realise the objectives set
out by the Chief Executive in his Policy Address of
inspiring commitment to excellence in education in Hong
Kong.

     At a total of about $53.2 billion, the estimated
expenditure on education in 1998/99 represents the largest
share (18.4 per cent) of the total public expenditure.

     The Secretary for Education and Manpower, Mr Joseph
W P Wong revealed the Government's commitments in
education this (Friday) afternoon at a press conference on
the 1998/99 draft estimates of expenditure on education.

     He noted that of the $53.2 billion total education
expenditure, $35.06 billion or 65.9 per cent was on basic
education.  This represents a nominal increase of 25.9 per
cent and 16.4 per cent in real terms over the current
year, not counting the $5 billion Quality Education Fund
(QEF) which has already been provided in 1997/98.

     Mr Wong pointed out that new initiatives would be
introduced in eight key areas to further improve the
quality of basic education.  The eight areas include QEF,
biliteracy and trilingualism, information technology in
education, improving the learning environment, improving
the quality of teachers, catering for special education
needs, administrative support to schools; and financial
assistance for needy students.

     For the QEF, $5 billion has been allocated to promote
quality in school education at all levels.  It provides a
flexible funding mechanism to encourage the school sector
to suggest innovative proposals to improve the quality of
education.  These proposals may include projects and
activities to promote quality education, awards schemes
for outstanding schools and teachers; and educational
researches.

     Mr Wong said that the Government had identified
various measures to promote biliteracy and trilingualism
at a recurrent cost of $715 million.  These will include:

     *  providing about 750 native-speaking English
teachers for secondary schools;

     *  providing about 640 additional primary school
teachers over four years to support an extension of the
Chinese and English Extensive Reading Schemes to all
primary levels and to strengthen library services in
primary schools; and

     *  providing about 720 additional English teachers
over four years for Chinese medium schools.

     As regards promotion of information technology in
education, the Government will spend a total of $2.58
billion non-recurrent expenditure in the next four years
to enhance hardware provision for schools (40 multi-media
computers for a primary school and 82 for a secondary
school on average); provide training for about 34,000
teachers; and initiate planning of an education-specific
Intranet.  The non-recurrent expenditure in 1998/99 is
$1.35 billion and the recurrent expenditure is $230
million.

     On improving learning environment, the major
initiatives will include:

     *  building more than 70 primary schools for
completion by 2002 to reach the 60 per cent target of
whole-day primary schooling by the school year 2002/03 at
a construction cost of $5,800 million;

     *  improving the environment in about 360 schools
under the School Improvement Programme at a cost of $9.58
billion in the period 1999-2002; and

     *  upgrading the existing teaching facilities and
equipment in 46 prevocational and secondary technical
schools at a cost of $163 million to implement a new
technical curriculum from the school year 2000/01.

     Mr Wong stressed that efforts would also be made to
improve the quality of teachers through five proposals:

     *  providing an additional 660 training places for
kindergarten teachers and principals in the next four
years at a recurrent cost of $39 million;

     *  improving the Kindergarten Subsidy Scheme to
provide incentive to kindergartens joining the Scheme to
employ more trained teachers at a recurrent cost of $35
million;

     *  providing a total of 5,520 graduate teaching posts
in primary schools, or 1,380 a year (as compared with 350
in 1997-98) to reach the target of 35 per cent by 2002 at
a recurrent cost of $147 million;

     *  providing about 210 graduate teaching posts in
prevocational schools in three years to improve the
graduate teacher to non-graduate teacher ratio of 7:3 at a
recurrent cost of $5.7 million; and

     *  providing training for about 38,000 serving
teachers to help language teachers and other subjects
teachers reach language benchmarks before 2005 and 2010
respectively, at a recurrent cost of $81 million.

     To cater for special education needs, the Government
will spend $74 million as recurrent expenditure to provide
additional educational and support services for an
anticipated increase in the number of newly-arrived
children from the Mainland, and $21 million to improve the
provision of boarding staff and janitor staff in special
schools.

     Additional administrative support will also be given
to schools at a recurrent cost of $130 million a year by
providing about 840 additional clerical posts for public
sector primary and secondary schools to relieve teachers
from non-teaching duties.

     As regards financial assistance to needy students, it
comes under two main categories: (i) travel subsidy will
be provided to about 19,000 needy public sector primary
school pupils residing outside Primary One Admission Nets
at a recurrent cost of $22.7 million a year, and (ii) the
School Textbook Assistance Scheme will be extended to
benefit about 100,000 Secondary 4 to 7 students at a
recurrent cost of $74 million.

     Turning to tertiary education, Mr Wong said the
expenditure for 1998/99 was estimated to be $18.14
billion, representing an increase of 15.8 per cent in
nominal terms or 7.1 per cent in real terms over the
current year.

     At a non-recurrent cost of $1.6 billion, he said the
Government would provide 11,000 additional hostel places
for undergraduates in the next five years to enable every
undergraduate to have at least on year of hostel life.
The construction works for 9,360 places will start within
this year and the first batch of 3,500 places will be
completed by 2001.

     The Government will also provide a $50 million grant
to the Open University of Hong Kong for development into a
centre of excellence in adult and distance learning.

     He added that a new Non-means Tested Loan Scheme
would be introduced to benefit 50,000 full-time tertiary
students with an estimated loan of $1.27 billion to
complement the existing means-tested Local Student Finance
Scheme.

End


6.  New employment and labour initiatives
    *************************************

     The Government's first priority in the area of
employment in the coming year is to step up efforts to
help the unemployed re-enter the labour market in the
coming year.

     At a press conference today (Friday), the Secretary
for Education and Manpower, Mr Joseph W P Wong outlined
the Government's major initiatives on employment and
labour in 1998-99 which included measures to improve
labour relations and safety and health at work.

     "To tackle the problem of a likely increase in
unemployment in the foreseeable future, the Education and
Manpower Bureau called a high level meeting last month,
involving all relevant Government bureaux and departments
and training bodies," Mr Wong noted.

     "The meeting took stock of the latest labour market
situation and discussed what more could be done to help
the unemployed," he said.

     "Meetings have also been held with employers' groups
to explore further scope for co-operation between the
Government, the training bodies and employers on tailor-
made retraining programmes which will provide new and
transferable skills for the unemployed and enable them to
secure and hold down a job."

     A comprehensive guide to employment and training will
be published shortly which sets out all the employment,
training and social welfare services available to the
unemployed.

     "We will also improve the coordination and collation
of information on job vacancies for dissemination to job-
seekers through the Labour Department," Mr Wong said.

     In parallel, the Labour Department will further
improve its employment services by setting up a second
employment and guidance centre for the new arrivals in
Kowloon in September this year, as well as completing the
computerisation of the entire local employment services in
11 centres by April.

     To further improve labour relations, Mr Wong said a
new unit would be set up in the Labour Department in April
this year to promote good communication between employers
and employees, including direct and voluntary negotiation
at the enterprise level.

     He also pointed out that greater efforts would be
made to strengthen the health and safety of workers at
work.  They include, among others, implementation of the
Occupational Safety and Health Ordinance which came into
effect in May last year.

     Also, the Government will put forward legislative
proposals in the following areas to protect the workers:

     *  Mandatory safety training for those working in the
construction and container handling industries;

     *  Implementation of safety management system in
selected industrial undertakings;

     *  Better protection for those working in confined
spaces and at heights; and

     *  Medical examinations for those required to handle
hazardous substances and agents at work.

End


7.  Retired leaders to visit Hong Kong
    **********************************

     The next batch of retired Chinese leaders will visit
Hong Kong shortly, an SAR Government spokesman said today
(Friday).

     They are former members of the Central Advisory
Commission Standing Committee, Xiao Ke, Zhang Aiping, Chen
Xilian and member of Political Bureau of the 14th Central
Committee, Yang Baibing.

     The Central People's Government is responsible for
organising and arranging the visits of retired Chinese
leaders to Hong Kong.  The SAR Government will assist in
arranging some visit programmes for them.  As before, the
retired leaders are on private visit and hence their
itinerary will not be announced.

End


8.  Selection panel established for appointment of SFC Chairman
    ***********************************************************

     A government spokesman announced today (Friday) that
a selection panel has been set up to consider and identify
a suitable candidate to succeed Mr Anthony Neoh as the
Chairman of the Securities and Futures Commission.

     Mr Neoh was appointed as the Chairman of the
Commission in February 1995 initially for a term until
June 1997 which was subsequently extended by one year to
June 30, 1998.

     "We were glad when Mr Neoh agreed in April last year
to extend his term by one year until this June.  But very
regrettably, he has declined to serve for another term and
we therefore have to identify another suitable person to
fill his post," said the Secretary for Financial Services,
Mr Rafael Hui, at an occasion."

     The Financial Secretary, Mr Donald Tsang, had also
paid tribute to Mr Neoh's contribution to the further
development of the SFC and the enhancement of Hong Kong's
reputation as an international financial centre when
commenting on the extension of Mr Neoh's term last April.

     "The Chairman of the SFC is a high-profile post,
carrying with it considerable power and responsibility.
This underlies the importance of the recruitment exercise,
not only for the Commission but also for the financial
sector of Hong Kong as a whole.  A comprehensive search
will be conducted both locally and overseas to ensure that
the best qualified candidate will be identified for the
vacancy," added Mr Hui.

     The selection panel is chaired by the Financial
Secretary, Mr Donald Tsang, and comprises five other
members - Mr Charles Lee, Mr Antony Leung, Mr Roderick
Chalmers, Mr Henry Fan and Mr Hui.  An executive search
firm has also been appointed as the recruitment agent to
assist the selection panel in the exercise.

End


9.  Setting up of the HKSAR Passports Appeal Board
    **********************************************

     New subsidiary legislation is being proposed by the
government under the HKSAR Passports Ordinance for the
implementation of an appeal channel for persons aggrieved
in their HKSAR passport applications, a Government
spokesman said today (Friday).

     The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Passports
(Appeal Board) Regulation, gazetted today, provides for
the establishment of the HKSAR Passports Appeal Board as
well as the Board's functions and operations.

     "The Appeal Board handles appeals against the
Director of Immigration's decisions in respect of refusal
to grant a passport, a passport's validity period, refusal
of an application to amend passport particulars and
cancellation of a passport.

     "Any person aggrieved by a decision of the Director
of Immigration with regard to an HKSAR passport
application may lodge an appeal with the Board Secretariat
within 90 days of the decision," the spokesman said.

     The Chairman and Deputy Chairman of the Appeal Board
will be selected from persons qualified to serve as
District Court Judges and members will be drawn from the
legal profession or from persons with relevant experience
in right of abode matters, he said.

     A transitional provision also empowers the Appeal
Board to handle appeals against decisions made by the
Director of Immigration prior to the commencement of this
Regulation, the spokesman added.

     The Regulation, which has been endorsed by the
Executive Council, will be tabled in the Provisional
Legislative Council on February 25.

End


10. Adaptation of Laws (Interpretative Provisions) Bill gazetted
    ************************************************************

     The Adaptation of Laws (Interpretative Provisions)
Bill is gazetted today (Friday).  The Bill seeks to adapt
provisions relating to the construction, application and
interpretation of Hong Kong laws to ensure conformity with
the Basic Law and with the status of Hong Kong as a
Special Administrative Region of China.

     The Interpretation and General Clauses Ordinance
(Cap. 1) contains a number of provisions relating to the
construction, application and interpretation of Hong Kong
laws.  In particular, it defines terms and expressions
used in other laws.

     It is essential that these provisions are adapted as
early as possible so as to remove any legal uncertainties.
Early adaptation of the Ordinance will also assist in the
adaptation of other Ordinances, as the matters so adapted
will not then need to be provided for in other Ordinances,
a government spokesman said.

     The bill seeks to define terms which were not
previously defined because they will be used in many
ordinances with, almost invariably, the same meaning.
Such terms include "Chief Executive", "Chief Executive in
Council", "Court of First Instance", "Government lease",
"Hong Kong Special Administrative Region", "national law
applying in Hong Kong" and "Secretary for Justice".

     The detailed amendments in the Bill provide a clearer
basis on which all other Hong Kong Ordinances are to be
interpreted and obviate the need to make cross-references
to the Hong Kong Reunification Ordinance for interpreting
the various provisions in the Ordinance, the spokesman
noted.

End


11. Update on avian flu
    *******************

     The Department of Health (DH) announced today
(Friday) that there were no new cases of influenza A
(H5N1) today.

     The total number of cases stands at 18 confirmed
cases.

     The conditions of these cases remain the same as of
February 10.

End


12. External trade statistics for December 1997
    *******************************************

     In December 1997, the value of re-exports increased
by 7.4% over a year earlier to $105.7 billion, while that
of domestic exports increased by 2.8% to $18.7 billion.
Meanwhile, the value of imports increased by 4.9% to
$137.8 billion.

     The Census and Statistics Department today (Friday)
released detailed statistics on external trade with
breakdown by country/territory and commodity for December
and the whole year of 1997.

     Comparing December 1997 with December 1996, increases
were recorded in the value of re-exports to the United
Kingdom (+18%), France (+16%), the United States (+11%),
the Netherlands (+10%), Taiwan (+9.2%), the mainland of
China (the Mainland) (+7.1%) and Germany (+6.8%).

     However, decreases were recorded in the value of re-
exports to South Korea (-24%), Singapore (-12%) and Japan
(-0.2%).

     Comparing 1997 with 1996, increases were recorded in
the value of re-exports to Taiwan (+11%), the Netherlands
(+8.7%), the United Kingdom (+8.5%), the United States
(+7.9%), France (+7.8%), the Mainland (+6.3%) and
Singapore (+3.5%).

     However, decreases were recorded in the value of re-
exports to South Korea (- 3.9%), Japan (-3.0%) and Germany
(-1.9%).

     Taking all destinations together, the value of re-
exports for the whole year of 1997 was $1,244.5 billion,
5.0% higher than that in 1996.

     Comparing 1997 with 1996, the value of re-exports of
all principal commodity divisions increased.  More notable
increases were registered for office machines and
automatic data processing machines (by $15.5 billion or
22%); miscellaneous manufactured articles consisting
mainly of baby carriages, toys, games and sporting goods
(by $13.1 billion or 8.8%); electrical machinery,
apparatus and appliances, and electrical parts thereof (by
$13.0 billion or 11%); clothing (by $6.1 billion or 6.1%);
textiles (by $4.7 billion or 4.9%); photographic
apparatus, equipment and supplies, optical goods, watches
and clocks (by $3.3 billion or 6.0%); and plastic in
primary forms (by $1.2 billion or 4.3%).

     Comparing December 1997 with December 1996, increases
were recorded in the value of domestic exports to the
Netherlands (+14%), the United Kingdom (+13%), Taiwan
(+11%), France (+8.8%), the United States (+7.6%) and the
Mainland (+6.6%).

     However, decreases were recorded in the value of
domestic exports to Singapore (-15%), Germany (-8.2%),
Canada (-4.1%) and Japan (-0.4%).

     Comparing 1997 with 1996, increases were recorded in
the value of domestic exports to the Netherlands (+9.9%),
France (+8.9%), Taiwan (+4.8%), the Mainland (+3.6%), the
United States (+2.3%) and the United Kingdom (+1.2%).

     However, decreases were recorded in the value of
domestic exports to Singapore (-16%), Germany (-9.4%),
Japan (-6.1%) and Canada (-0.3%).

     Taking all destinations together, the value of
domestic exports, at $211.4 billion, decreased slightly by
0.4% in 1997.

     Comparing 1997 with 1996, more notable decreases in
the value of domestic exports were registered for office
machines and automatic data processing machines (by $2.7
billion or 20%); textiles (by $1.0 billion or 7.6%);
manufactures of metals (by $799 million or 19%);
miscellaneous manufactured articles consisting mainly of
jewellery, goldsmiths' and silversmiths' wares (by $695
million or 3.8%); and photographic apparatus, equipment
and supplies, optical goods, watches and clocks (by $596
million or 3.9%).

     Over the same period, more notable increases in the
value of domestic exports were registered for clothing (by
$2.8 billion or 4.0%); and electrical machinery, apparatus
and appliances, and electrical parts thereof (by $2.6
billion or 8.6%).

     Comparing December 1997 with December 1996, increases
were recorded in the value of imports from the Mainland
(+12%), Germany (+12%), the United States (+11%), the
United Kingdom (+3.2%), Japan (+3.0%) and Taiwan (+0.5%).

     However, decreases were recorded in the value of
imports from Italy (-16%), Malaysia (-9.9%), Singapore
(-9.1%) and South Korea (-6.3%).

     Comparing 1997 with 1996, increases were recorded in
the value of imports from Germany (+14%), Malaysia (+12%),
the United Kingdom (+9.1%), the Mainland (+6.6%), Japan
(+6.4%), the United States (+3.6%) and Taiwan (+1.1%).

     However, decreases were recorded in the value of
imports from Singapore (-2.8%), Italy (-2.5%) and South
Korea (-0.1%).

     Taking all sources together, the value of imports, at
$1,615.1 billion, increased by 5.2% in 1997.

     Comparing 1997 with 1996, the value of imports of
most principal commodity divisions increased.  More
notable increases in the value of imports were registered
for electrical machinery, apparatus and appliances, and
electrical parts thereof (by $23.8 billion or 12%); office
machines and automatic data processing machines (by $18.6
billion or 23%); telecommunications and sound recording
and reproducing apparatus and equipment (by $11.3 billion
or 8.0%); clothing (by $10.9 billion or 10%); road
vehicles (by $8.4 billion or 21%); and miscellaneous
manufactured articles consisting mainly of baby carriages,
toys, games and sporting goods (by $7.3 billion or 6.8%).

     Over the same period, a slight decrease in the value
of imports was recorded for textiles (by $2.3 billion or
1.8%).

     All the trade statistics described here are measured
at current prices and no account has been taken of changes
in prices between the periods of comparison.

     A separate analysis of the volume and price movements
of external trade for December 1997 will be released in
early March 1998.

     Detailed trade statistics analysed by commodity and
by country/territory are published in trade statistics
reports.

     The December 1997 issue of the "Hong Kong External
Trade" with detailed analyses on the performance of Hong
Kong's external trade in December 1997 will be on sale at
$111 per copy around 24 February 1998.

     The report can be purchased at the Government
Publications Centre, Ground Floor, Low Block, Queensway
Government Offices, 66 Queensway, Hong Kong, or the
Publications Unit of the Census and Statistics Department,
19th Floor, Wanchai Tower, 12 Harbour Road, Wan Chai, Hong
Kong.

     Enquiries regarding regular subscription to this
report may be directed to the Publications (Sales) Office
of the Information Services Department at 28th Floor, Siu
On Centre, 188 Lockhart Road, Wan Chai, Hong Kong (Tel.
No. 2598 8194) and enquiries on trade statistics to the
Census and Statistics Department (Tel. No. 2582 4915).

End


13. Broadcasting Authority and TELA view future with commitments
   ************************************************************

     The Chairman of the Broadcasting Authority, Mr Norman
Leung, has pledged that the Authority would ensure that
the broadcasting regulatory framework and system were
fair, reasonable, open and up-to-date.

     Speaking at the Broadcasting Authority's Spring
Reception today (Friday), Mr Leung noted that in the past
year, the Authority had successfully concluded the mid-
term review of Metro Broadcast's Sound Broadcasting
Licence.  The recommendations regarding the tender of the
Programme Service Licenses were also submitted to the
Chief Executive-in-Council during the year.

     Looking ahead, Mr Leung said the Authority would
focus on the mid-term review of the Subscription
Television Licence, of which the most immediate task was
to conduct a comprehensive opinion survey.

     "We will keep a close eye on the technical
development of the broadcasting industry, such as digital
broadcasting, and make reference to other countries'
experiences on the regulation of the broadcasting
industry," he stressed.

     Also speaking at the reception, the Commissioner for
Television and Entertainment Licensing, Mr Eddy Chan, said
his department would continue to ensure that the
broadcasting services provided meet viewers' requirements;
while allowing room for licensees to develop their
creativity and business.

     He noted that rapid technological development had
brought on new broadcasting modes such as interactive
broadcasting or video on demand, adding that the number of
broadcasting channels had been on the rise and the nature
of programme services was changing.

     The Commissioner also believed that public
participation was an essential factor for effective
monitoring of the broadcasting services.  In fact, the
department has stepped up publicity over the past year on
the functions of the Broadcasting Authority and the
channels available for lodging complaints with the
Broadcasting Authority.

     More than 3,600 complaints about television and radio
broadcasts were processed by the Authority last year, an
increase of 43 per cent as compared with the previous
year.

     "This shows that the Authority's complaint hotline is
well recognised by the public as a channel for the
monitoring of the broadcasting services, and the public
are willing to make use of it to express their opinion on
broadcasting matters," said Mr Chan.

     Members of the public can lodge complaints to the
Broadcasting Authority by electronic mail via its Home
Page on the Internet.  Since its launch in April 1996 and
up to the end of 1997, the Authority's Home Page on the
Internet had received approximately 20,000 visits and
enquiries.

End


14. End-1997 population estimate released
    *************************************

     The estimated end-1997 population of Hong Kong was
6,617,100, according to figures released today (Friday) by
the Census and Statistics Department.

     There was an increase of 195,800 persons as compared
with the estimated end-1996 population, representing a
growth rate of three per cent.

     The balance of arrivals and departures showed a net
inflow of some 167,700 persons in 1997, constituting 86
per cent of the population growth.

     During the same period, there were 59,400 births and
31,300 deaths in Hong Kong.  The natural increase (births
less deaths) thus amounted to 28,100, accounting for 14
per cent of the population growth.

End


15. Land resumption in Sheung Shui for flood control works
    ******************************************************

     The Government will resume about 106,188 square
metres of agricultural land in Sheung Shui for river
training works to reduce flooding.

     A spokesman for the Lands Department said today
(Friday) that the land covered 132 agricultural lots along
the River Indus, River Beas and Shek Sheung River running
from Pai Tau Lo to Sheung Shui Temporary Housing Area.

     "Flood-prone sections of the rivers will be dredged
and widened," the spokesman said.

     "The project also includes the construction of new
river channels, flood embankments and associated
infrastructure such as maintenance access roads on both
sides of the river channels," he added.

     The spokesman also said that a fabric dam, measuring
70 metres in width and 2.7 metres in height, would be
built in the River Indus adjacent to the Sheung Shui Water
Treatment Works.

     "The dam will be inflated during heavy rainstorm to
head off and divert the surging water away via a nearby
pumping station," he said.

     Works will begin in mid-1998 following successful
resumption of the lots, and will take three years to
complete.

End


16. Electronic data format for building plans submission
    ****************************************************

     The Buildings Department has commissioned a
feasibility study with a view to formulate a scheme for
building plans to be submitted in electronic data format,
the Director of Buildings, Dr Choi Yu-leuk, said today
(Friday).

     Dr Choi said the study, to be completed in August
this year, would examine the use of computer technology
for the preparation of plans and documents both locally
and overseas.

     "The legal implications of the scheme will also be
looked at, as will the means of using information
technology to amend, store and retrieve plans and
documents."

     Dr Choi added that such a scheme would save the large
volume of paper needed for printing drawings, reports and
calculations; greatly reduce the storage space for plans
and documents; and expedite the retrieval of building
records.

     Dr Choi was speaking to the media to review the work
of his department last year.

     "During the year, 6,829 items of unauthorised
building works were removed," he said.

     "In 1997, we received 12,427 complaints, an increase
of 27 per cent over the previous year.  A total of 18,785
advisory letters and 3,103 statutory orders were issued.

     "We took out 127 prosecution cases for erecting
unauthorised building works or failure to comply with
removal orders.  These resulted in 77 convictions with a
total fine of $2.04 million.

     "We kept up our efforts in cracking down on dangerous
and abandoned air conditioning water-cooling towers in old
industrial areas of Kwun Tong, Kwai Tsing and Tsuen Wan,
with 455 towers and associated frameworks removed last
year," he said.

     Dr Choi pointed out that since the tragic fires in
Garley Building, Top One Karaoke and Mei Foo Sun Chuen,
his department had conducted 648 inspections in 145
buildings, issued 6,423 advisory letters and 72 statutory
orders to rectify deficiencies in fire safety standards of
buildings.

     "Rectification works have been completed in six
buildings," he added.

     On slope safety, Dr Choi said that a new site safety
supervision plan system to enhance demolition and
construction site safety was implemented last December.

     "The supervision plan clearly set out the safety
management of all private building projects and define the
tasks and responsibilities of various parties.

     "Investigation of balconies in buildings built in
1946 to 1958 will be completed at the end of March," he
added.

     On slope safety, Dr Choi said 178 statutory orders
were served on building owners last year, requiring slope
upgrading works to be carried out.

     "In addition, emergency action was taken by
contractors in response to 38 reports on landslip
incidents.

     "To ensure proper maintenance and repair of buried
water-carrying services, leakage from which would endanger
slope, 328 fill slopes were studied resulting in the issue
of 33 investigation or repair orders," he added.

     Looking ahead, Dr Choi said 1998 is a very important
year as the department will celebrate its fifth
anniversary.

     "Throughout these years, we have improved our control
in building activities and have tried our best to ensure
that statutory standards of safety, health and environment
are met in all buildings and building works in the private
sector.

     "We will continue to take forward these strategies
for the promotion of building safety in Hong Kong," he
added.

End


17. Weather of January 1998
    ***********************

     January 1998 was slightly warmer than normal.  The
maximum temperature in the month, 25.9 degrees, was the
eighth highest for January and the mean temperature of
16.8 degrees was one degree higher than normal.

     On the other hand, the total bright sunshine duration
of 86.0 hours was 66.4 hours below normal while the mean
monthly total cloud amount of 77 per cent was 19 per cent
higher than normal.  The total rainfall in the month was
48.9 millimetres against a normal of 23.4 millimetres.

     The first day of 1998 was warm and sunny.  A weak
cold front crossed the south China coast in the evening
and generally fine weather prevailed during the next few
days.

     Another cold front crossed the coast in the afternoon
of January 4, bringing cooler air to Hong Kong.  Winds
freshened from the north but moderated the next day.  The
weather became cloudy and there were light rain patches in
the mornings of January 7 and 8.

     A maritime airstream affected our region on January 8
and temperatures rose to 25.9 degrees that afternoon, the
highest in the month.  Easterly winds freshened on January
9 bringing periods of rain to local areas.  Winds subsided
the next day and there were mist patches in the harbour as
rain eased off.

     It was sunny and warm on January 11, but a cold front
crossed the coastal areas that afternoon.  Winds
strengthened from the east the next day and it became
cloudy with periods of light rain.  Easterly winds
moderated on January 13.

     Another cold front crossed Hong Kong on January 14
accompanied by heavy and thundery showers in the afternoon
and early the next day.  The second half of the month saw
cooler temperatures than the first couple of weeks.

     It became fine and sunny during the day on January
15, but cloudy condition with periods of rain returned the
following day.  A dry northerly airstream reached Hong
Kong on January 17 clearing up the clouds.  Winds became
strong offshore in the afternoon and persisted till next
morning.

     Cloudy weather returned on January 19.  Widespread
mist occurred on January 20 till the morning of January
23.  In particular, fog was reported at Chep Lap Kok on
January 22 with visibility there reduced to 600 metres.
Visibility improved significantly on January 23 after the
passage of a cold front.  Winds were strong at times
offshore but the weather remained cloudy to overcast.

     Temperatures dropped to 9.7 degrees, the lowest in
the month, on January 24.  Winds turned more to the east
and moderated the next day while cloudy to overcast
conditions persisted the next couple of days.

     There were long sunny periods on January 28 as a
drier airstream behind a cold front reached the coastal
areas.  Although it was cloudy again on January 29, the
weather was fine and sunny the last two days of the month.

     During the month, no tropical cyclone occurred in the
western North Pacific or the South China Sea.  Details of
the issuance/hoisting and cancellation/lowering of various
warnings/signals in the month are summarised in Table 1.1.
Monthly meteorological figures and departures from normal
of January are tabulated in Table 1.2.

Table 1.1  Warnings and Signals in January 1998

                           Beginning Time   Ending Time
Type of Warnings/Signals   day/month hour   day/month hour

Thunderstorm Warnings        14/1    1315    14/1    1915
                             15/1    0000    15/1    0700

Strong Monsoon Signals        4/1    1500     5/1    0800
                              9/1    1145    10/1    0745
                             12/1    2015    13/1    1145
                             14/1    2300    15/1    0700
                             17/1    1200    18/1    1100
                             23/1    0530    23/1    1200
                             28/1    0615    28/1    1330

Fire Danger Warnings
Yellow                        1/1    0750     1/1    1800
Yellow                       12/1    0615    12/1    1630
Yellow                       18/1    0600    19/1    1600
Yellow                       25/1    0600    25/1    1730
Yellow                       28/1    1000    29/1    0600
Red                          29/1    0600    29/1    1800
Yellow                       29/1    1800    30/1    1800

Gas Water Heater Safety      15/1    1915    16/1    0600
 Alerts                      17/1    1630    20/1    0330
                             20/1    1630    21/1    1630
                             23/1    1630    26/1    1630
                             27/1    1630    29/1    1630


Table 1.2 Figures & Departures from Normal - January 1998

Meteorological        Figure of    Departure from normal
 Element              the month  above normal below normal

Total Bright Sunshine    86.0         ----         66.4
 Duration(hours)

Mean Daily Global        7.73         ----         3.90
 Solar Radiation
 (MJ/Square Metre)

Total Rainfall (mm)      48.9         25.5         ----

Mean Cloud Amount (%)     77           19          ----

Mean Relative             81           10          ----
 Humidity (%)

Mean Daily Maximum Air   19.0         0.4          ----
 Temperature (Degree
 Celsius)

Mean Air Temperature     16.8         1.0          ----
 (Degree Celsius)

Mean Daily Minimum Air   15.0         1.4          ----
 Temperature (Degree
 Celsius)

Mean Dew Point           13.4         3.2          ----
 (Degree Celsius)

Total Evaporation (mm)   53.5        ----          44.0

Remarks: All measurements were made at the Hong Kong
Observatory except sunshine, solar radiation and
evaporation which were recorded at King's Park
Meteorological Station.

End


18. Air Quality Report for January released
    ***************************************

     The Environmental Protection Department today
(Friday) released air quality information for January
1998.

     The report showed that all measurements recorded in
the month had complied with the air quality objective
(AQO) values.

     The preceding 12-month averages of respirable
suspended particulates recorded at the three stations
ranged from 50 ug/m3 to 73 ug/m3.  The annual AQO is 55
ug/m3.

     For nitrogen dioxide, the 12-month averages ranged
from 48 ug/m3 to 85 ug/m3.  The annual AQO is 80 ug/m3.

     The report includes the monitoring results from Mong
Kok, Central/Western and Kwai Chung, which represent three
important land use types in the territory:

     *  locations close to road traffic in built-up urban areas;
     *  combined commercial and residential districts; and
     *  districts close to industrial areas.

     Air pollutants reported included sulphur dioxide,
nitrogen dioxide, total suspended particulates, and the
respirable suspended particulates.  All these pollutants
can affect respiratory health in sufficient concentration.

     Air pollution originated from various sources,
including combustion, industrial and construction
processes.  In terms of impact on local air quality, motor
vehicle exhaust is the most important source of nitrogen
dioxide and airborne particulate matter, especially the
smaller respirable particles.

End


19. Lunar New Year philatelic products
    **********************************

     The Postmaster General, Mr Robert Footman, announced
today (Friday) that Lunar New Year philatelic products of
Australia, Canada, the Mainland, Macau, Singapore and
United States Postal Services for celebrating the Year of
the Tiger will be available for sale at 22 philatelic
offices from Wednesday, February 18.

     They include the Year of the Tiger miniature sheet
and serviced first day cover issued by Australia Post for
Christmas Island; the Year of the Tiger miniature sheet
and serviced first day cover issued by Canada Post; the
Year of the Tiger stamp pack issued by China National
Philatelic Corporation; the Year of the Tiger stamps and
miniature sheet issued by Macau Post; the Year of the
Tiger stamps and presentation pack issued by Singapore
Post as well as the Year of the Tiger stamp sheet and
panel issued by United States Postal Services.

     Details of the philatelic products, their selling
prices and quota for each queuing customers are listed
below:-

Issuing Postal       Products          Price/HK$     Quota
Administrations

Australia
Christmas Island     miniature sheet   $ 5.50     5 sheets
                     serviced first    $ 7        5 covers
                     day cover

Canada               miniature sheet   $ 5.50     5 sheets
                     serviced first    $ 7.50     5 covers
                     day cover

The Mainland         stamp pack        $12        2 packs

Macau                miniature sheet   $11        5 sheets
                     mint stamp        $ 6        5 stamps

Singapore            mint stamps(set)  $11.50     3 sets
                     presentation pack $18        2 packs

United States        sheet of          $55        2 sheets
                     20 stamps
                     stamp panel       $68        2 panels

End


20. Import and export licensing pamphlet published
    **********************************************

     The Trade Department has published a bilingual
pamphlet entitled "The First Step to Import and Export
Licensing" to give traders a brief introduction to the
department's import and export licensing services.

     "The publication of the new pamphlet is part of the
department's continuous efforts to publicise and improve
its services to traders," acting Assistant-Director
General of Trade (Systems Division), Mr Edmund Cheung,
said today (Friday).

     "Small or infrequent traders who are unfamiliar with
the import and export licensing requirements would find it
especially useful," Mr Cheung said.

     The pamphlet contains useful information on the steps
of obtaining import or export licences for textiles,
pharmaceutical products and medicines, strategic
commodities, reserved commodities, ozone depleting
substances and radioactive substances and irradiating
apparatus.

     It also contains telephone numbers and location of
the department's various counters/offices for traders to
make further enquiries on import or export licensing
matters.

     Free copies of the pamphlet are now available for
collection at the following venues:

     *  Enquiry Counter Trade Department
        Ground Floor, Trade Department Tower
        700 Nathan Road, Mong Kok, Kowloon;

     *  Business Licence Information Centre Industry Department
        Room 501, 5th floor, Ocean Centre
        5 Canton Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon.

     The pamphlet is also available on the department's
Home Page at http://www.info.gov.hk/trade.

End





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