Tung Chee-hwa: ‘One Country, Two Systems’ secures Hong Kong’s future

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The "One Country, Two Systems" principle advantages Hong Kong, said Tung Chee-hwa, former chief executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR), in an interview with CGTN, expressing optimism about the future of the region.

"From my perspective, I am very optimistic about Hong Kong's future, and my optimism is not unfounded, because we have the 'One Country, Two Systems,'" said Tung, adding that the principle has been successfully implemented in Hong Kong.

'One Country, Two Systems' successfully implemented

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Tung was sworn in as Hong Kong’s first post-1997 leader on July 1, 1997, and resigned from the post in March 2005 over health reasons. He serves as vice chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC).

Tung said the firm implementation of the "One Country, Two Systems" principle is one of the biggest challenges Hong Kong faced after its return to the motherland.

Hong Kong citizens generally support the "One Country, Two Systems" principle, because they know it is crucial for Hong Kong's development, said Tung, noting that there are not many changes to the everyday life of Hong Kong citizens and their customs after 1997.

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"What has changed is that more and more people in Hong Kong now speak Mandarin, and Hong Kong citizens started to get to know more about their country, especially through people-to-people exchanges and economic interaction," he stressed.

Previously, the local economy relied heavily on trade with the US and Europe, but it now mainly banks on the Chinese mainland.

Tung concluded that, as a whole the "One Country, Two Systems" principle has been successfully implemented in Hong Kong.

Optimistic about Hong Kong’s future

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The Chief Executive-elect Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor will be facing challenges, such as land supply and housing shortage, economic inequality, and limited opportunities for young people, which should be imminently dealt with.

Still Tung said he is confident about Hong Kong's future because of the "One Country, Two Systems" principle, and expressed faith in Hong Kong's economic development.

Hong Kong's economy has taken multiple hits, from the 1997 Asian financial crisis to the SARS epidemic in 2003 and the 2008 subprime mortgage crisis, as Hong Kong features an open economic structure.

Still, it made great strides, transformed and recovered under the "One Country, Two Systems" framework.

Since Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying took office in 2012, Hong Kong's economy has realized an annual nominal GDP growth rate of over five percent.

"A two-percent economic growth is weak, if we can achieve a four-percent growth annually, a lot of problems could be solved. Therefore, it is not impossible to tackle the problems Hong Kong faces." Tung emphasized.

As long as the economic pie gets bigger while realizing fair distribution, all social problems will be solved, said Tung.

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