Hu Jintao urges HK businessmen to support their leader

Chinese President Hu Jintao (胡錦濤) has urged Hong Kong business leaders to support the territory's embattled chief executive, saying that was key to stability and economic recovery, the Communist Party's official newspaper said yesterday.

Hu's comments were a firm show of Beijing's support for Chief Executive Tung Chee-hwa (董建華) since Tung withdrew a controversial security bill earlier this month amid the biggest political crisis of his administration.

However, they also came with a qualification: China expects Tung to make improvements.

"In order to maintain Hong Kong's prosperity and stability [Hong Kong's people] must entirely support Mr. Tung Chee-hwa and the legal governance of the special administrative region government that he leads," Hu was quoted as telling a delegation of visiting Hong Kong tycoons.

"The central government fully affirms his work, trusts in him completely and believes he can definitely do his job even better," Hu said.

Tung, a former shipping tycoon hand-picked by Beijing to run Hong Kong, withdrew the security bill earlier this month, saying he would focus instead on tackling the territory's economic woes.

That came after half a million Hong Kong residents marched on July 1 against the proposed law.