Hong Kong - China's Peoples' Liberation Army (PLA) found itself at the centre of a new controversy in Hong Kong yesterday for enjoying privileged exemption from frontier controls.
Leading figures of Hong Kong's democracy movement called on the
Hong Kong and Chinese governments to rethink the policy.
Britain handed the colony of 156 years back to China as a special capitalist region on July 1st, although a tightly controlled internal border remains in place. A 4,700-strong PLA garrison took over defence duties. On Saturday, Hong Kong's customs chief, Mr Li
Shu-fai, said PLA vehicles would be exempt from customs and immigration controls at the border because China's garrison law said local law enforcement officers had no right to check them.
The Democratic Party leader, Mr Martin Lee, said the posthandover constitution made clear garrison troops must obey local law, but
China's garrison law contradicted this by claiming exemptions. -
(Reuter)
