The special administrative regions (SAR) of the People's Republic of China are one of four types of province-level divisions of the People's Republic of China directly under the control of its Central People's Government,being integral areas of the country. As a region,they possess the highest degree of autonomy from China's central government. However,despite the relative autonomy that the Central People's Government offers the special administrative regions,the National People's Congress and its Standing Committee remains capable of enforcing laws for the special administrative regions.
"Mainland China" is a geopolitical term defined as the territory under direct administration of the Chinese Communist government of the People's Republic of China in the aftermath of the Chinese Civil War. The geopolitical sense of the term includes islands such as Hainan,Chongming,and Zhoushan,even though those islands are offshore of the Chinese mainland. By convention,the territories that fall outside of mainland China include:
Right of abode in Hong Kong entitles a person to live and work in the territory without any restrictions or conditions of stay. Someone who has that right is a Hong Kong permanent resident. Foreign nationals may acquire the right of abode after meeting a seven-year residency requirement and are given most rights usually associated with citizenship,including the right to vote in regional elections. However,they are not entitled to hold territorial passports or stand for office in some Legislative Council constituencies,unless they also naturalise as Chinese citizens.
The existing Hong Kong honours system was created after the transfer of government of Hong Kong to the People's Republic of China as a special administrative region in 1997. Before that,Hong Kong was a British dependent territory and followed the British honours system.
Ng is a Cantonese transliteration of the Chinese surnames 吳/吴 and 伍. Alternately,it is a common Hokkien transcription of the name 黃/黄.
The Hong Kong Civil Service is managed by 13 policy bureaux in the Government Secretariat,and 67 departments and agencies,mostly staffed by civil servants. The Secretary for the Civil Service (SCS) is one of the Principal Officials appointed under the Accountability System and a Member of the Executive Council. He heads the Civil Service Bureau (CSB) of the Government Secretariat and is responsible to the Chief Executive (CE) for civil service policies as well as the overall management and development of the civil service. His primary role is to ensure that the civil service serves the best interests of the community and delivers various services in a trustworthy,efficient and cost effective manner. The CSB assumes overall policy responsibility for the management of the civil service,including such matters as appointment,pay and conditions of service,staff management,manpower planning,training,and discipline.
The Immigration Department of the Government of Hong Kong is responsible for immigration control of Hong Kong. After the People's Republic of China assumed sovereignty of the territory in July 1997,Hong Kong's immigration system remained largely unchanged from its British predecessor model. Residents from mainland China do not have the right of abode in Hong Kong,nor can they enter the territory freely,both before and after 1997. There are different regulations that apply to residents of Macau,another Special Administrative Region of China. In addition,visa-free entry acceptance regulations into Hong Kong for passport holders of some 170 countries remain unchanged before and after 1997.
Stephen Lam Sui-lung was the Chief Secretary for Administration of Hong Kong and Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs.
Many of the Vietnamese people in Hong Kong immigrated as a result of the Vietnam War and persecution since the mid-1970s.
The Transport Department of the Government of Hong Kong is a department of the civil service responsible for transportation-related policy in Hong Kong. The department is under the Transport and Logistics Bureau.
The Consulate General of Canada in Hong Kong and Macao represents Canada in the Hong Kong and Macau Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China. As Hong Kong was linked to the Commonwealth during British administration,Canada's mission was called the Canadian Commission before the transfer of sovereignty to China on July 1,1997. Since 1980,the Head of Mission in Hong Kong has also served as Consul-General to Macau.
Immigration Tower is a skyscraper located in the Wan Chai District of Hong Kong completed in 1990. The tower rises 49 floors and 181 metres (594 ft) in height. Immigration Tower,which stands as the 93rd-tallest building in Hong Kong,is composed entirely of office space. The building houses government offices,principally those of the Immigration Department.
Geoffrey Ma Tao-li is a retired Hong Kong judge who served as the 2nd Chief Justice of the Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal—the court of last resort in Hong Kong. Between 2001 and 2010,he held various positions in the High Court of Hong Kong,including Chief Judge,Justice of Appeal,and Judge of the Court of First Instance. Before his judicial career,he was a barrister-at-law in private practice at Temple Chambers,and was qualified to practice in England and Wales,Hong Kong,Australia and Singapore.
Hong Kong's Goddess of Democracy is a 6.4-metre faux bronze statue sculpted by Chen Weiming,inspired by the original 10-metre tall Goddess of Democracy. The original foam and papier-mâchéstatue was erected by the Chinese pro-democracy movement in Tiananmen Square at the end of May 1989,and destroyed by soldiers clearing the protesters from Tiananmen square on June 4,1989.
The British National (Overseas) passport,commonly referred to as the BN(O) passport,is a British passport for persons with British National (Overseas) citizenship. BN(O) citizenship was created in 1987 after the enactment of Hong Kong Act 1985. BN(O) citizens are permanent residents of Hong Kong who were British Overseas Territories citizens until 30 June 1997,and chose to remain British by registering for BN(O) citizenship when Hong Kong was a British overseas territory.
Andrew So Kwok-wing,SBS,OBE,JP is a Hong Kong educator and politician.
Alan John Carter was a British and Hong Kong immigration official. He was the Director of Immigration of Hong Kong from 1983 to 1989,being the last expatriate to hold the office. He died in April 2016 at the age of 86.
Nicholas Ng Wing-fui,GBS,CBE,JP is a former Hong Kong government official and former chairman of the Public Service Commission.
John Martin Rowlands,CBE was a British civil servant working in the Hong Kong government from 1952 to 1985. He was the Secretary for the Civil Service from 1978 to 1985 and official member of the Legislative Council of Hong Kong from 1978 to 1984.
