China urges Hong Kong to 'do better'

Activists march with a coffin condemning China's 'murderous regime'

HONG KONG, China (CNN) -- China's president has urged Hong Kong to do a better job for its people as the former British colony marked its fifth anniversary under Chinese rule.

"I hope the people of all circles in Hong Kong will do still a better job in adapting themselves to the new Hong Kong after 1997 and become better masters of Hong Kong and of our great motherland," Jiang Zemin said on Monday.

The president made his speech as low-key ceremonies under stormy skies mirrored an economic gloom hanging over the territory, mired in its second recession since it changed hands.

Inside the territory's harbor front Convention Center newly sworn-in Chief Executive Tung Chee-hwa acknowledged the city was "facing unprecedented difficulties" and warned that solving the city's economic problems will be "long and arduous."

AUDIO CNN Senior Asia Correspondent Mike Chinoy on Hong Kong's future 2.13MB / 3min. 23secs WAV sound   RESOURCES Photo gallery: 1997-2002 through the lens  Timeline: Five years under Chinese rule    CNN NewsPass VIDEO The People's Liberation Army stages training drills for the Hong Kong news media. CNN's Mike Chinoy reports. Play video Five years after its handover to China, fears over Hong Kong's political fate have given way to concerns about its economic viability. CNN's Lisa Barron reports. Play video   IN-DEPTH One Country Two Systems: 5 Years On    MORE STORIES • HK's Tung: Down but not out  • Falun Gong kept out of Jiang's sight  • Hong Kong tops economic freedom rating  • Gloomy forecast for Hong Kong democracy  • Repression marks anniversary  • China assures economic push  • Who needs Hong Kong?

"Worries are weighing on the hearts of Hong Kong people...the biggest challenge facing the second term government is to lead Hong Kong out of the economic downturn and to restore the confidence of Hong Kong people," he said.

For many in Hong Kong, the anniversary marks little to celebrate, with record unemployment of 7.4 percent, property prices -- a major source of the territory's wealth -- falling by half, and consumer confidence on the slide.

'Evil cult'

With Jiang in the territory for the anniversary, a smattering of protest groups took to the streets to demonstrate against what they say are worsening human rights and the government's poor economic record.

Scuffles broke out shortly after dawn when police blocked a group of protesters carrying a mock coffin to the convention center where Tung and some 800 dignitaries were attending a flag-raising ceremony.

The protesters denounced the Communist Party's iron grip on the mainland. They splashed red paint over themselves to symbolize Beijing's bloody 1989 crackdown on pro-democracy activists in Tiananmen Square.

"Down with Jiang Zemin," several dozen chanted as they marched with the coffin condemning China's "murderous regime."

As Jiang's motorcade slipped out from the Hong Kong Convention Center, well hidden behind the bulk of the 27-storey Wanchai Tower some 100 members of the Falun Gong group sat in silent meditation. (Full story)

Beijing has labeled the group an "evil cult," and it is outlawed in China, although not in Hong Kong, which has a high degree of autonomy under the "one country, two systems" formula agreed ahead of the 1997 handover.

Opposition groups say several critics of the Chinese government have been barred from entering the territory, while Falun Gong leaders say around 100 members were deported by immigration officials.

'Safeguard the motherland'

Right after Tung was sworn in, Jiang urged the tiny territory on China's southern coast to support Hong Kong's government, but also said he would like to see the administration work even harder.

"I hope the executive, legislative and judicial bodies of Hong Kong will constantly improve their job performance to provide better services to the public and society," he said.

An early-morning flag raising ceremony marked the handover anniversary

For his part, Beijing-backed Tung pledged to create jobs but gave few concrete details of how to ease the economic pain, except to say he would build on the global gateway to the mainland while focusing on "the application of new knowledge and new technology."

He concluded by saying that what he called "the Hong Kong spirit" would enable the territory and its people to rise up to the challenges ahead.

Unpopular

Critics of Tung's rule in Hong Kong have condemned his appointment for a second five-year term saying he is deeply unpopular with the territory's 6.7 million residents.(Down, but not out)

Rather than being chosen in a popular vote, the chief executive is nominated by an 800-member committee dominated by pro-Beijing figures.

Tung begins his second term with a new cabinet of political appointees, many of whom take on roles once occupied by civil servants.

Analysts expect Tung to use the new 14-strong cabinet to tighten his grip on the territory, push through a controversial new anti-subversion law and possibly introduce new taxes.

Tung says the new arrangement is an "accountability system" but critics say the new appointees will only be accountable to the chief executive.

Critics fear Hong Kong's freedoms are fading and many ordinary citizens say Tung has shown no inclination to move toward full democracy.

Breaking more than a year's silence on Hong Kong politics, the territory's popular former No. 2 official, Anson Chan, said Monday people will regain lost confidence if they get more say in who governs them.

"Somewhere along the way, we seem to have lost our 'can do' spirit," Chan wrote in London's Financial Times.