Civil service reassured on 'retaliation'

CHINA yesterday reassured civil servants they would not be subject to any retaliatory activities after the transition of sovereignty.

The director of Xinhua (the New China News Agency), Zhou Nan, said he wished to see most civil servants stay on to serve the Special Administrative Region (SAR) government.

He also warned against any attempt to politicise the civil service, saying that it would be against the Sino-British Joint Declaration.

Mr Zhou was speaking at a reception to celebrate the setting-up of the Former Senior Civil Servants' Association headed by former secretary for lands and works Nicky Chan Nai-keong.

He praised the new group for its important role in uniting the 190,000-strong civil service in the territory and in ensuring the stable transition of the system.

During his brief stay for the cocktail reception, Mr Zhou had a rare chance to talk to Chief Secretary Anson Chan Fang On-sang, whom Chinese officials have refused to meet since she took her office last November.