Hong Kong ‘transformed from chaos to governance’ in the last year, Xi Jinping says

Name: Dozens of positive Covid cases found in Beijing Olympic bubble and airport ahead of Winter Olympics
Uploaded: 2022-01-30T13:30:09.000Z
Duration: 1 min 11 s
Description: Dozens of positive Covid cases found in Beijing Olympic bubble and airport ahead of Winter Olympics

Gains made in struggle against independence and promotion of reunification, Chinese president says

Former Hong Kong chief executive Leung Chun-ying also makes appearance at annual gathering in Beijing

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President Xi Jinping takes part in an annual gathering with non-Communist Party members at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Saturday. Photo: Xinhua

Amber WangandTony Cheung

Published: 9:30pm, 30 Jan 2022

Chinese President Xi Jinping outlined what he referred to as last year’s national achievements, including in relation to Hong Kong, as he extended Lunar New Year greetings at a reception in Beijing on Sunday.

Xi said Hong Kong had been “transformed from chaos to governance”, and the struggle against “independence” and the promotion of reunification had been intensified.

Major-country diplomacy with Chinese characteristics continued to advance, Xi said, adding that the overall social situation remained stable in the past year.

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Dozens of positive Covid cases found in Beijing Olympic bubble and airport ahead of Winter Olympics

A day earlier at an annual gathering with non-communist political parties, Xi also hailed the national zero-Covid strategy, which he said made China a leader in both pandemic control and economic development.

Former Hong Kong chief executive Leung Chun-ying also attended the Saturday gathering, amid speculation that he could vie for the city’s top job.

China has pursued strict epidemic controls, locking down cities and restricting travel, particularly in the lead-up to the Winter Olympics and the Lunar New Year holiday season.

With no signs of easing from the top, observers have raised concerns that the economic cost to halt the spread will only increase.

Xi said the country had overcome a series of risks and challenges in the past year and had responded with calm to a pandemic and other changes not seen in a century.

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