Hong Kong people should study Shenzhen to better understand how the mainland Chinese legal system works

In late July, former chief executive Tung Chee-hwa told an audience in Singapore: "If I'm 25 years old, I'll go to China." But he admitted he couldn't understand what young people want in life.

Tung might be interested to know that the rule of law, according to a Chinese University study conducted on behalf of the Bauhinia Foundation Research Centre earlier this year, is important to many young people considering working on the mainland, with 22 per cent saying they lacked confidence in the system there.

While the lack of confidence is a more difficult issue that concerns the nature of the legal system, increasing the public's knowledge of mainland law and the operations of the mainland's legal system is a task that those in the know can tackle.

As Shenzhen is the place on the mainland most Hong Kong residents are most likely to visit or work in, and because mainland authorities are using Shenzhen as a laboratory for experimenting with innovations to the legal system, I recommend focusing on Shenzhen when disseminating information on mainland law.

Information on mainland law should be made bilingual so it is accessible to as many Hong Kong residents as possible. It could be put together in a joint project involving law students from both sides of the border, and could include the following topics:

• Police and crime. Under mainland law, some minor offences are not heard in the courts. Mainland police can impose penalties which include short periods in detention centres for persons who commit minor offences. What right does an offender have to be represented by a lawyer in such cases? How soon must the mainland police notify the next of kin? Are juveniles and adults treated the same?

• Starting up a business. If you start a business on the mainland, what procedures do you need to complete in Hong Kong first? What do business licence reforms mean for Hong Kong entrepreneurs?