Main Who's Who Itinerary Sites News

---

Clinton met with pro-democracy politicians, including opposition leader Martin Lee

In This Story:

• Lee praises Clinton trip
• Second most important speech
• Dinner with Hong Kong leader

HONG KONG (CNN) - U.S. President Bill Clinton, at the risk of irritating China, met Hong Kong pro-democracy leader Martin Lee on Friday and told him there should be more democracy in this capitalist enclave.

But Clinton was careful not to endorse Lee's demands that Hong Kong's Beijing-backed administration speed the timetable for full direct elections for the 60-seat legislature, the president's national security adviser, Sandy Berger, said.

Britain handed over its former colony of 6.6 million people to communist China last July, ending 156 years of colonial rule.

Lee, a prominent lawyer, is an outspoken critic of Beijing's communist leadership and of its appointed leader in Hong Kong, Chief Executive Tung Chee-hwa.

Clinton and Lee met for 20 minutes at the Grand Hyatt Hotel where Clinton is staying on the last stop of his nine-day China tour, which ends on Friday.

The White House had initially refused media coverage of the Lee meeting but relented and allowed a handful of photographers in to take pictures at the beginning.

Lee told reporters after the meeting that he was glad the White House allowed the media in for part of the session, saying it "would lose some of its significance if held behind closed doors."

Lee and other pro-democracy politicians were ousted from the legislature hours after China took over last year. They were replaced by Beijing-appointed deputies.

Pro-democracy candidates, including Lee, were swept back into the legislature in the first elections under Chinese rule in May and Lee has referred to himself since as the only elected leader in Hong Kong. Tung was appointed by Beijing.

Pro-democracy politicians won 60 percent of the vote but under a stacked electoral system, they secured only 20 seats. Lee has called repeatedly for all seats to be elected directly. He also wants the chief executive directly elected.

Lee said he also told Clinton: "I would like to see the day when all Chinese citizens can discuss freely all these sensitive issues without fear of being put in prison."

He praised Clinton's China trip as a good first step towards promoting democracy and human rights in mainland China.

"It is a very good opening, a dialogue, it is like opening a door. I don't want the door to close. I want democracy to open and I want to see more concrete steps," he said.

Berger said Lee talked about the importance of increasing democracy in Hong Kong and told Clinton the first year under Chinese rule had gone relatively well.

"He obviously believes that the process of democratic elections should be accelerated," Berger told reporters.

For his part, Clinton told Lee that "there ought to be more democracy in Hong Kong, not less" but skirted around specifics, Berger said.

Berger said Lee would like to see the number of directly elected seats in the legislature increased from the present 20 but said that was up to Hong Kong to decide.

"But I think the president expressed the overall sentiment that more democracy, not less, will be good for Hong Kong and good for China," Berger said.

Berger said that the White House neither sought nor needed permission from the Beijing government to meet Lee.

Meanwhile, Clinton on Friday also addressed community and business leaders on the theme of "building stability in Asia for the 21st century." The White House billed it as the second most important speech of his trip, after his Peking University speech on human rights and the steps China should take in the 21st century.

Ending his trip on the themes that opened it, Clinton said, "Political freedom, respect for human rights and support for representative government are both morally right and utlimately the best guarantor of the stability in the world of the 21st century."

He spoke in the Hong Kong convention center, the sight of last year's handover ceremony where the Union Jack was lowered one last time and the red flag of China was raised.

Clinton's address carried a political and economic message of cooperation and trust. "Americans can remember three wars we have fought in Asia," he said. "We must make it our mission to avoid another." Scolding India and Pakistan for their nuclear tests, he said the two South Asian nations "bucked the tide of history."

With Asia's economy in a tailspin, Clinton said that "too many booming economies, too many new skyscrapers now vacant and in default were built on shaky foundations of cronyism, corruption and overextended credit, undermining the confidence of investors with suddent swift and severe consequences."

He welcomed a plan unveiled Thursday to revive Japan's sickly economy by giving the government power to take over failed banks and spend more than $200 billion to protect depositors and businesses. He said it was a "potentially quite significant banking reform proposals."

He said Hong Kong, grappling with its own economic woes, "can help Asia out of turbulent times as it contributes to China's astonishing transformation by providing investment capital and expertise and privatizing state enterprises and sharing legal and regulatory experiences."

Clinton said the future of Hong Kong under China should be one of more democracy, not less, with no intrusions on freedom here.

"All this must continue," he said. "I look forward to the day when all of the people of Hong Kong realize the rights and responsibilities of full democracy."

He said some leaders worry that loud voices of dissent "can pull a nation apart," but said he fundamentally disagrees. He said no set of leaders has the wisdom to make all the decisions without hearing opposing views. "Ideas are creating wealth in this economy," the president said.

Clinton met over dinner Thursday night with Tung, who was installed by the Beijing regime. In a dinner toast, Clinton looked back over his trip and said he was "profoundly appreciative" to President Jiang Zemin for helping make his trip to China "a remarkably successful attempt to continue to build our partnership for the future."

And in a message sure to resound in Hong Kong, Clinton said he was encouraged by signs "that we can build together a future that is more stable, more prosperous and free."

Tung, in turn, assured Clinton that Jiang had reaffirmed his commitment to maintain autonomy for Hong Kong, one year after the former British colony returned to Chinese rule after 156 years.

News: • Clinton takes tall agenda to China • Visit fuels debate over Sino-U.S. policy Background: • The politics of engagement: U.S. and China since 1949 • China's challenge: Shaking the 'Asian flu' Interactive Features: • Who's Who in U.S.-China relations • President Clinton's Itinerary Streaming Video: •Clinton explains why he’s going to China • A CNN Special Event: The Legacy of Tiananmen

"The central government leaders are determined to ensure the implementation of the basic law," Tung said, referring to the rules under which Hong Kong is administered.

Fears that Beijing would crack down on demonstrators and push political opponents to the margin after the July 1, 1997, transition have so far proved unfounded.

Instead, Asia's sagging economy has eclipsed political concerns.

Tourism is down 20 percent while unemployment is at a 15-year high. Sharing the woes felt across Asia, Hong Kong's housing values and stock market have declined.

Clinton is the first U.S. president to visit Hong Kong, although he and his wife Hillary visited before they moved to the White House.

The president and his family arrived in Hong Kong late Thursday on Air Force One in a flurry of excitement. The president's aircraft was the first passenger plane to land at the city's new $20 billion Chek Lap Kok International Airport. Hours earlier, Jiang dedicated the airport and left; his was the first plane to take off.

The president flew here after a leisurely boat trip down the Li River in Guilin, among storybook limestone mountains that have inspired artists for generations. He urged China not to sacrifice its already heavily polluted environment for the sake of economic growth.

As Clinton left mainland China, police freed the last of seven dissidents rounded up in connection with his visit. A human rights group said police in eastern Hangzhou released Zhu Yufu after holding him for 48 hours.

Main Who's Who Itinerary Sites News

---