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TWO former senior government officials were named yesterday to offer their expertise on government affairs to China's working panel overseeing Hong Kong's 1997 transfer.

   Arthur Garcia, the first ombudsman in Hong Kong, and Wilfred Wong Ying-wai, former deputy secretary for civil service, are among a group of 13 appointed by the National People's Congress Standing Committee to join the 57-member Preliminary Working Committee (PWC).

  The new members include eight from Hong Kong and five from the mainland. The total membership of the PWC has been boosted to 70, minus Liu Yiu-chu, who had earlier quit.

  Officials earlier promised to increase the membership of the PWC amid fierce criticism over its lack of credibility and dearth of dissenting views.

  The new batch of the think-tank, however, remains dominated by mainland officials and pro-China figures.

  The five mainland members come from the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office, the local headquarters of Xinhua (the New China News Agency) and the Sino-British Joint Liaison Group (JLG), which falls under the jurisdiction of the Foreign Ministry.

  Mainland officials admitted that the expertise of senior government officials was desperately needed in their work.

  ''We always hope that more former government officials will take part. But there are practical difficulties for some,'' one said.

  The appointment of Wilfred Wong, who has helped arrange private dialogue between serving colleagues in the bureaucracy and local officials from Xinhua, is significant.

 Mr Garcia, a retired High Court judge who was later named as the Commissioner for Administrative Complaints, will offer legal advice to the working panel, which has suffered from the shortage of legal experts.

  Although the Hong Kong Government does not allow any civil servants to brief PWC members, an Executive Councillor said they would not object to Chinese JLG members briefing the panel or even letting them read the documents as long as they could be kept confidential.

  Another local legal expert appointed to the panel is Ambrose Lau Hon-chuen, who is also convenor of the preparatory committee for the Hong Kong Progressive Alliance, a political party to be launched by the end of next month.

  Mr Lau said he would definitely join the PWC's legal sub-group to help in scrutinising existing Hong Kong laws and to bring them in line with the Basic Law.

  Two academics - Ng Ching-fai, dean of the science faculty at Baptist College, and Woo Chia-wei, a vice-chancellor of the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology - were also appointed.

  Also included were two businessmen; Paul Cheng Ming-fun, an executive committee member of the influential Business and Professionals Federation of Hong Kong, and Philip Wong Yu-hong, who represents the Chinese Chamber of Commerce in the Legislative Council and is also a member of the New Hong Kong Alliance.

  The publisher of the pro-China Hong Kong Commercial Daily , Lee Cho-jat, was also named to sit on the panel.

  Topping the list of the five mainland members are two high-flyers in the State Council's Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office - Zhang Liangdong and Xu Ze - who were recently promoted to head the office's Hong Kong administration department and economic department respectively.

  Mr Zhang and Mr Xu have been serving in the secretariat of the PWC since its inception last July.

  Two more local Xinhua officials were also appointed: Wulanmulum, a vice-director focusing on economic affairs in Hong Kong; and Weng Xinqiao, director of the department of education.

  HONG KONG MEMBERS Wilfred Wong Ying-wai AGE: 42. President of China Industries Investments Limited. Former Deputy Secretary for the Civil Service. Core organiser of the Former Civil Servants' Association which plans to advise China on matters relating to the transition.

Arthur Garcia AGE: 70. Recently-retired as Commissioner for Administrative Complaints which he took up in 1989. He was appointed a magistrate in 1959, and was subsequently promoted to District Court Judge and High Court Judge.

Philip Wong Yu-hong  AGE: 56. Legislative Councillor. Vice-chairman of the pro-China New Hong Kong Alliance. Deputy director of the Chinese General Chamber of Commerce. Former member of the Hong Kong Housing Authority. Hong Kong Affairs Adviser.

Ambrose Lau Hon-chuen AGE:47. Convenor of the preparatory committee for the Hong Kong Progressive Alliance, a pro-China party representing the interests of the business community. Chairman of Central and Western District Board. Ex-president of the Law Society. Hong Kong Affairs Adviser.

Lee Cho-jat  AGE: 60. Local delegate to the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference. Vice-chairman of The Publishers' Association of China. Director of the Hong Kong Chinese Enterprises Association. Chairman and president of Sino United Publishing (Holdings) Ltd.

Woo Chia-wei  AGE: 57. Vice-chancellor of the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. Widely-criticised in the cost overrun controversy that surrounded the construction of the institution. Hong Kong Affairs Adviser.

Ng Ching-fai  AGE: 54. Dean of the Science Faculty of Baptist College. Political affiliation unknown. Hong Kong Affairs Adviser.

Paul Cheng Ming-fun  AGE: 58. Former chairman of the influential General Chamber of Commerce. Chairman of Inchape Pacific Ltd. Hong Kong Affairs Adviser. Formerly an appointed legislator.

MAINLAND MEMBERS Guo Fengmin AGE: 64. Chinese team leader of the Sino-British Joint Liaison Group. A former head of the Hong Kong office of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs. A career diplomat and former Chinese ambassador to West Germany.

Wulanmulum  AGE: 59. Vice-director of the Hong Kong branch of Xinhua in charge of economic affairs, including the operation of China-funded firms in Hong Kong. He was formerly vice-minister of Foreign Economic Relations and Trade and was posted to Hong Kong in 1993.

Zhang Liangdong  AGE: 44. Director of the Department of Economic Affairs under the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office. A Guangdong native, Zhang has been deeply involved with the 1997 issues since early 1980s. He is one of the high-fliers in the HKMAO.

Xu Ze  AGE: 40. Director of the Department of Political Affairs under the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office. He has a similar background to Zhang and was closely involved with the marathon Sino-British talks over the Patten political blueprint.

Weng Xinqiao  AGE: 60. Head and senior engineer of the Department of Education, Science and Technology of the Hong Kong branch of Xinhua. Weng was formerly head of Xiamen University in coastal Fujian province before he was posted to the territory in mid-80s.



HK experts join Beijing panel