Shenzhen plan calls for closer ties to Hong Kong
Pamela Pun, Hong Kong Standard
January 22, 2005

Shenzhen, Hong Kong's perennially jilted suitor, is trying once again integrate with its more glamorous neighbor, this time coming up with a "Shenzhen-Hong Kong twin city plan'' that would rely on the SAR to achieve its long-running internationalization strategy.

The country's first Special Economic Zone, Shenzhen developed from a fishing village to a modern in just 25 years. Its hubris began to show in 1998, when, in the wake of the Asian financial crisis, Shenzhen government officials spoke openly of overtaking the SAR to become South China's international commercial financial hub.

But as the rest of China began to open up to a market economy, Shenzhen's status as a special economic zone began to fade. Getting rich came to be glorious all over China. Shenzhen had to find other reasons for its existence.

Two years ago, the SEZ began discarding its boasts of being an international financial center and began calling for closer ties to Hong Kong.

Shenzhen's new strategy has been unveiled in the "Shenzhen urban plan 2030," according the website of the city's urban planning bureau. For the first time, the idea of a symbiotic relationship has been incorporated into the SEZ's official urban plan, according to Guo Wanda, deputy secretary general of Shenzhen-based China Development Institute. Instead of becoming the financial center of South China, Shenzhen now will seek to build itself into what it calls a pilot city with sustainable industrial yin to Hong Kong's financial yang.

It wants to connect its rapid transit system to Hong Kong's system, in effect turning itself into a bedroom community for the SAR.

The first step, Guo said, is to realize the free flow of people and goods between the two cities.

"The goal of free people and goods flow could be realized in 10 years or so," Guo said.

The biggest drawback is the financial center, as the yuan won't be fully convertible against international currencies anytime soon, he said.

Tourism might be easier. With Hong Kong's Disneyland opening in September, Shenzhen expects to lure visitors to travel a bit north on their same tour route.

On Tuesday and Wednesday, Shenzhen vice mayor Yan Xiaopei chaired a meeting to put final touches on the urban plan.

Yue Zheng, president of the Shenzhen Academy of Social Sciences, was one of the domestic scholars proposing integration of Shenzhen and Hong Kong.

According to Yue, Shenzhen's future lies in integrating with Hong Kong.

There is no sign, however, that Hong Kong officials have been listening. No overtures have been made by Hong Kong to Shenzhen for closer integration of the two cities.

hey you post on in here too, haha
well I think the free flow of people would bring problems like a lot people coming to seek jobs, born babies...etc. So it has problems. It would be a good idea but needs time to remove the problems between two places in order to integrate.

Shenzhen to speed up travel from HK
But the automated system has raised privacy concerns
Chow Chung-yan in Shenzhen and Dikki Sinn
19 February 2005
South China Morning Post

Shenzhen plans to install an automated clearance system at its border checkpoints to speed up travel from Hong Kong.

Passengers crossing the mainland border will just need to insert their home-return permits into card-reading machines, followed by a fingerprint scan to complete the process. But this process has raised concerns in Hong Kong about privacy issues.

A director of the Shenzhen General Station of Exit and Entry Frontier Inspection, who would only give his surname, Wang, said the system could be in service as early as June.

"It is not just a proposal. We are working hard on it and we hope the system will start running in June at the Lowu border checkpoints," he said.

It is estimated it will cut the time to clear the border from 20 seconds a traveller to eight.

Mr Wang said the system was based on the smart identity card system used by the Hong Kong Immigration Department. He was coy when asked how the mainland authorities would obtain the fingerprints of Hong Kong residents and if the travellers would need to apply for new home-return permits in order to use the system.

The traffic flow between Shenzhen and Hong Kong is increasing steadily. Shenzhen said 150 million people crossed the border last year, an 18 per cent increase on 2003.

In Hong Kong, a spokeswoman for the Immigration Department said it was aware of the plan to install the new system in Shenzhen, but she said the government would not provide fingerprints to the mainland authorities.

"We are using two separate immigration systems. I don't think we will exchange information," she said. "It will be a very complicated issue [if they ask for fingerprints of Hong Kong people] because it involves personal information of our citizens."

Chiang Chi-wai, chairman of the China-Hong Kong Freight Association, said the system could help bring the two cities closer.

"I don't see any problem in handing over our fingerprints to the mainland authorities.

"Our drivers now all have to give our fingerprints to the Public Security Bureau when crossing the border," he said.

But translator Leo Lam said he would prefer not to use the new system.

"The present system is convenient enough and I don't want to sacrifice my personal information for gaining a few seconds."

I agree to Leo Lam not to use the new system. I think there's still problems especially privacy problems of two different regions.

LCQ16:Facilities in Lok Ma Chau boundary crossing
Government Press Release

Following is a question by the Hon Lau Kong-wah and a written reply by the Secretary for Security, Mr Ambrose S K Lee, in the Legislative Council today (November 23):

Question:

Phase II of the Lok Ma Chau Control Point expansion project was completed at the end of 2003, with new facilities including a coach parking information system ("the information system") and travellators. However, I have received complaints about the information system being not fully utilized because of repeated failures, and because most coach drivers do not bother to enter the vehicle registration marks after parking their coaches. Moreover, there are also complaints that the travellators at the Control Point are often out of service. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council of:

(a) the anticipated and actual utilization of the information system and travellators mentioned above;

(b) the respective numbers of days since commissioning on which both of the two facilities were in normal operation, one or both of them were out of service; and

(c) the reasons for the two facilities being out of service, and the numbers of days on which such suspension of service was attributable to the contractor's quality of work, human errors or mechanical failures respectively?

Reply:

Madam President,

(a) The second phase of the Lok Ma Chau boundary crossing expansion project aims to cater for the cross boundary needs of an anticipated daily average of 35,000 passengers, mainly through the renovation and extension of relevant facilities.

The purpose of the coach parking information system ("the information system") is to make it easier for passengers who have completed the immigration procedures to locate the parking bays of their buses. The use of the system by bus drivers is on a voluntary basis. No record of the utilization rate of the system has been maintained.

Two simple surveys were conducted on the utilization of the ten travellators in March to April and October 2005 respectively, the result of which showed that a daily average of about 190 and 19,800 passengers had used the travellators at the drop-off and pick-up areas respectively.

(b) and (c) The information system was out of service because of mechanical failure for 74 days. As regards the 10 travellators, their operation has never been suspended across the board.

For individual travellators, owing to some minor failures (damaged glass modules or damaged belts), the service of three of them had been suspended three times for five, 22 and 27 days respectively. For another three travellators, their pallets had been damaged by jammed small metallic objects, and had become unable to meet the safety requirements under the Code of Practice on the Design and Construction of Lifts and Escalators published by the Electrical and Mechanical Services Department. As a result, they have been closed since July 23, 2004, August 17, 2004 and March 7, 2005 respectively (See Note). The relevant Government departments, consultant and contractor are actively exploring various remedial measures.

Note: It should be noted that energy-saving feature has been adopted in the design of the travellators. A travellator only starts to run when its sensor has detected passengers riding on it. It will stop automatically when there is no passenger using it. In addition, to ensure passenger safety, the Police would temporarily suspend the operation of certain travellators when their two ends are crowded with queuing people.

未來25年定位 專注高新產業
深港發展同城化
08/12/2005

http://the-sun.orisun.com/channels/news/20051208/img/sn05120820_big.jpg

【本報訊】面臨轉型求變的關鍵時刻，深圳日前公布二○三○城市發展策略，闡明與香港共同發展為國際都會的願景。策略預測，屆時與香港會逐步形成一體化的國際性樞紐城市，但能否融合成一個城市，策略未有明確結論。

國務院總理溫家寶年初視察深圳時要求深港加強合作。深圳市長許宗衡上任後，亦提出「為香港服務」的口號，使深港作為一個整體、一個城市組合，加強世界經濟競爭力。

提高通關效率
深圳市規劃局日前公布《深圳2030城市發展策略》，展示未來二十五年的功能定位。在區域發展策略中，深圳與內地的聯繫，以及香港的對外聯繫兩個優勢融合，將令深圳不斷走向國際市場，提升深圳的國際影響力。深圳將加強與香港在高端製造業、現代服務業以及其他領域合作，形成「同城化」。

深圳與香港可在高新技術產業、物流業、生產型服務業等方面加強合作，同時要加強口岸建設，推行「一站兩檢」模式，提高通關效率。《深圳2030》同時也對與周邊城市合作表示重視，例如未來區域空間結構方面，提出了「南北貫通、西聯東拓」的發展思路。

深港同城化，是否意味可融合成一個城市、消除一線的阻隔？深圳規劃局並未明確回答，只稱「長期以來我們與香港的合作是有目共睹的……近期洽談的合作項目則主要是基礎設施協調方面的。」

《深圳2030》與香港的《香港2030規劃遠景及策略》對接。雙方在研究過程中有互相交流，深圳方面在公眾諮詢期間，專程赴港聽取意見。

城市規劃師劉德說，本港地方細小，沒有容納小型工業發展的空間，這批小工業廠房近年已北上設廠，深港兩地已有一定程度合作，深圳的新計畫將是進一步深化兩地合作，擴大合作層面。http://the-sun.orisun.com/channels/img/endmarker.gif

LCQ6: Ties between Shenzhen and Hong Kong
Wednesday, December 21, 2005
Government Press Release

Following is a question by the Hon Chan Kam-lam and a reply by the Secretary for Housing, Planning and Lands, Mr Michael Suen, in the Legislative Council today (December 21):

Question:

In the Shenzhen 2030 Development Strategy published early this month, the Shenzhen Planning Bureau stated its wish for Shenzhen and Hong Kong to cooperate and develop jointly into an international metropolis. Regarding the integration of Shenzhen and Hong Kong, will the Government inform this Council:

(a) whether it will establish a regular mechanism with the Shenzhen authorities to
consider how the Shenzhen 2030 Development Strategy and the Hong Kong 2030: Planning Vision and Strategy prepared by the Hong Kong Planning Department may tie in with each other;

(b) whether, in addition to the Hong Kong-Shenzhen Western Corridor under
construction and the Eastern Corridor under consideration, the authorities have
studied other cross-boundary links; if not, of the reasons for that; and

(c) of the timing for the existing boundary control points to implement co-location
of immigration and customs facilities, in order to enhance efficiency and promote the integration of Shenzhen and Hong Kong?

Reply:

Madam President,

My reply to the 3-part question is as follows:

(a) With the ever-closer ties between Guangdong and Hong Kong in the realms of social and economic development, urban development in the two places is set to give rise to the Greater Pearl River Delta Township. Tied up with the above development, the Planning Department and various cities in the Pearl River Delta (PRD) Region have long ago mutually exchanged findings of strategic planning studies and the relevant planning information. Planning information is also exchanged through the existing liaison mechanisms, such as the Expert Group on Hong Kong/Guangdong Town Planning and Development (the Expert Group) under the Hong Kong Guangdong Cooperation Joint Conference.

In the study of "Hong Kong 2030: Planning Vision and Strategy" ("HK 2030"), the Planning Department confirms that strengthening ties with the Mainland is a basic planning direction for the future development of Hong Kong. In each of the first three stages of the Study, the Planning Department paid visits to the planning authorities in Shenzhen and other PRD cities to brief them on the proposals put forward in "HK 2030" and listen to their views, which are subsequently set out in the Stage 3 Public Consultation Report. In the meantime, the Shenzhen planning authorities, during the preparation of the "Shenzhen 2030 Development Strategy" ("Shenzhen 2030"), kept the Planning Department abreast of their studies through the information exchange mechanism under the Expert Group. To ensure that the development in the two places may tie in with each other, we will continue to exchange planning information with the "Shenzhen 2030" team through the Expert Group and use this forum for the exchange of planning ideas and deliberation of issues of mutual concern. Given that the Expert Group has served effectively as a channel for research and consultation, there is no need to set up any additional mechanisms.

(b) On the issue of cross-boundary facilities, in order to keep the forecasts on cross-boundary flow of people and goods up-to-date, Hong Kong and Guangdong authorities will exchange information on passenger and freight traffic between the two places on a frequent basis. We will keep an eye on the situation and consider if additional cross-boundary infrastructural facilities or crossings should be provided having regard to the long-term needs.

As regards specific cross-boundary projects, the Joint Expert Group set up by the Environment, Transport and Works Bureau and the State Ministry of Railways is pressing ahead with the advance work for the Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link (ERL). A consensus has been reached with respect to the alignment of and the locations of the stations for the Mainland section of the ERL. A dedicated express line linking Hong Kong, Shenzhen and Guangzhou, the ERL will cut the journey time between Hong Kong and Guangzhou from about 100 minutes as at present to within one hour. The Mainland section will start from Shibi Station in Guangzhou, pass through Humen in Dongguan and Longhua Station in Shenzhen, and then cross the boundary through Huanggang into Hong Kong.

The Mainland authorities have just embarked on the construction of the Shibi-Longhua section (the section connecting Guangzhou and Shenzhen) and arrangements will be made to synchronise the construction of the remaining section from Longhua in Shenzhen to the boundary with the project programme of the Hong Kong section. The HKSAR Government and the Shenzhen Municipal Government are now exchanging views on the planning and design for the Longhua Station and the connection of the two sections of the ERL. It is the common wish of both sides to design a station that will meet the needs of cross-boundary passengers and serve well as a transportation hub. As regards the Hong Kong section, we are now considering the feasibility study report submitted by KCRC in July 2005.

(c) According to the information from the Security Bureau, at present, our consensus with the Mainland is to implement co-location of immigration and customs facilities at the new control point for the Hong Kong-Shenzhen Western Corridor and to expedite construction works for such facilities to tie in with the commissioning of the Hong Kong-Shenzhen Western Corridor. There is at present no plan to implement co-location at other boundary control points.

Shenzhen-Hong Kong workshop on inspection and quarantine
Friday, January 20, 2006
Government Press Release

The Health, Welfare and Food Bureau (HWFB) of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government (HKSARG) and the Shenzhen Entry-Exit Inspection and Quarantine Bureau today (January 20) jointly held the "Shenzhen-Hong Kong Workshop on Inspection and Quarantine" to enhance professional exchange among food safety and quarantine experts of the two places.

The workshop also facilitated the two places in enhancing understanding and upgrading technological standard of quarantine and food safety.

Items for in-depth discussion at the workshop were: prevention and control of avian influenza, prevention and control of red imported fire ants and food safety control.

Speaking at the workshop, the Permanent Secretary for Health, Welfare and Food, Mrs Carrie Yau, said the topics of discussion were closely related to animals, plants and food for supply to Hong Kong and hence affected the successful implementation of inspection and quarantine work of the two places.

"The workshop provides a platform for the inspection and quarantine staff of the two places to exchange views, which is very conducive to enhancing each other's understanding in inspection and quarantine system, standard and technical requirements. This in turns will help enhance co-operation and raise work efficiency," she said.

Noting the proximity and high visitor flow between Shenzhen and Hong Kong, Mrs Yau said any major health, animal and plant, as well as food incident in Shenzhen and the contingency measures taken by municipal government would arouse widespread concern in Hong Kong.

"The Shenzhen Municipal Government and the HWFB have been discussing actively the setting up of 'Shenzhen–Hong Kong communication mechanism on emerging incidents of food and public health' to facilitate the timely exchange of information on food safety and public health to protect public health of the two places," she added.

Inspection and quarantine authorities of the two sides agreed to work closely, especially on frontline work, by devoting more resources to support the inspection and quarantine work on import and export of animals, plant consignments and food to safeguard the food safety and public health of the two places with the approach of the Lunar New Year.

On prevention and control of red imported fire ants, the HKSARG has enhanced communication with the Mainland authorities and stepped up inspection at border checkpoints to guard against the insect.

Other representatives of the HKSARG included the Director of Food and Environmental Hygiene, Mr Gregory Leung; Deputy Director of Food and Environmental Hygiene, Dr Mak Sin-ping; Assistant Director of Food and Environmental Hygiene, Dr Thomas Chung; Principal Assistant Secretary for Health, Welfare and Food, Mr Wallace Lau; and Senior Agricultural Officer of the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department, Ms Wendy Ko.

Among the Mainland representatives at the workshop were the Director-General of the Shenzhen Entry-Exit Inspection and Quarantine Bureau, Mr Liu Shengli, and Deputy Secretary-general of Guangdong Provincial People's Government, Mr Liu Youjun.

CS meets Shenzhen Mayor
Thursday, February 23, 2006
Government Press Release

The Chief Secretary for Administration, Mr Rafael Hui, visited the Mayor of Shenzhen, Mr Xu Zongheng, in Shenzhen Citizens' Centre today (February 23). Mr Hui was accompanied by the Secretary for Constitutional Affairs, Mr Stephen Lam; the Head of Hong Kong Guangdong Co-operation Co-ordination Unit, Mr Arthur Ho; and the Director of Hong Kong Economic and Trade Affairs, Guangdong, Mr Peter Leung.

Mr Hui first went to the Mayor's office to exchange new year greetings and then had lunch with Mr Xu.

Mr Hui said he was glad to meet Mayor Xu and his colleagues of Shenzhen Municipality at the beginning of the new year. "Geographical proximity makes Hong Kong and Shenzhen closely connected to each other. Our strengths are also highly complementary. Co-operation between the two places is very important for both practical needs and strategic development, therefore, the Government attaches great importance to co-operation and exchanges with Shenzhen."

In September last year, Mr Xu led an official delegation to Hong Kong to attend a Shenzhen-HK co-operation meeting, during which many co-operation items were discussed.

Regarding the proposed setting up of a new control point at Liantang, the two sides agreed to set up a joint study group to consider relevant issues. Apart from cross-boundary traffic flow analysis, they will study the proposal from a strategic and macro perspective, and look into the various implications of the proposal.

On preventing and controlling avian influenza, the two sides will continue to enhance co-operation on areas such as combating illegal import and export of live poultry and strengthening surveillance and inspection in markets.

HK should annex SZ and make it a suburb of HK.

That is not going to happen any time soon. There are too many fundamental economic and social differences to make a tie-up work.

i don't expect full integration of hk and sz before 2047.

Topping-out ceremony for boundary passenger terminal of Shenzhen Bay Port
Monday, February 27, 2006
Government Press Release

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The Secretary for Security, Mr Ambrose SK Lee, representing the Hong Kong Government, attended the topping-out ceremony for the Passenger Terminal Building of the Shenzhen Bay Port in Shenzhen today (February 27). The Shenzhen Municipal Government was represented by Executive Vice-Mayor, Mr Liu Yingli; and Vice-Mayors, Mr Lu Ruifeng; and Mr Chen Yingchun.

At the ceremony, Mr Lee thanked the Shenzhen authorities for their co-operation in taking forward the project and their efforts in implementing the co-location arrangements for the new control point, adding that the passenger terminal building was the largest and most symbolic structure of the new control point. He said today's topping-out not only represented the smooth completion of the core construction works, but also signified the joint efforts in moving full steam ahead towards the completion of the whole project.

Mr Lee said that based on the good co-operation between the two sides and the existing work progress, he was confident that construction works at the new boundary control point could be completed within the target time and according to quality standards, thus providing a more convenient and comfortable boundary crossing environment for Hong Kong and Shenzhen residents.

Also speaking at the topping-out ceremony, Executive Vice-Mayor Liu Yingli said the Shenzhen Bay Port was mainland's first boundary control point adopting co-location arrangements by the Hong Kong and Shenzhen authorities. Upon its completion, it will be the world's largest modernised control point of its kind. The new passenger terminal building, which is the main construction work in the Shenzhen Bay Port, will be the largest structure of the control point in terms of volume and importance.

Mr Liu hoped that based on the smooth joining of the main structure of the Shenzhen Bay Bridge and the timely topping-out of the passenger terminal building, both sides could continue to work towards completing the remaining works, thereby contributing to the sustaining and rapid socio-economic development of Hong Kong, Shenzhen and the Pearl River Delta region, as well as maintaining Hong Kong's long-term prosperity and stability.

From news.gov.hk:
HK-Shenzhen financial cooperation grows (http://news.gov.hk/en/category/businessandfinance/060412/html/060412en03008.htm)

Wenweipo today has a series report from the SZ Gov't on having an idea of developing the Comprehensive Bay Area Cities of Shenzhen and Hong Kong, worth to read if you can read Chinese, Brief English summery at the bottom: :|

http://wenweipo.com/image/2006/05/02/chaa.jpg

深港擬聯手 建灣區組合城

http://wenweipo.com/image/2006/05/02/ch0502a.jpg

■深港將聯合開發深圳灣、大鵬灣、大亞灣。圖為大亞灣。 本報深圳傳真


通過與香港的充分溝通，在剛出台的《深圳市海洋經濟發展規劃（2006－2010）》中，提出了依靠深港雙方合作，構建「深港灣區組合城市」的構想。參與審批該規劃的深圳大學產業經濟研究中心主任教授、廣東省產業與區域經濟研究會副會長魏達志透露，雙方將通過溝通，聯合開發深圳灣、大鵬灣、大亞灣等海域，主力發展五大海洋產業。

　【本報珠三角新聞中心記者岳仿嶙深圳1日電】深圳市當局在昨日出台的《深圳市海洋經濟發展規劃（2006－2010）》提出，深圳海洋工作應進一步樹立深港灣區組合城市的概念，形成深港灣區海洋產業與灣區組合城市的發展互動，加強深港兩地在灣區產業項目和公共事業項目方面的全面協調與合作，共同構建一個具有區域重心地位和全球影響力的灣區組合城市。

將為最具成長性灣區之一

　專家指出，「深港灣區」是指深圳與香港之間的海域，包括深圳灣、大鵬灣、大亞灣等在內的一個組合港灣，該灣區是全世界最具成長性和最值得關注的組合灣區之一。

　深圳市社會科學院院長樂正介紹，深圳的遠景規劃，都要考慮與香港的區域聯動因素，海洋經濟發展也不例外。因此，提出「深港灣區組合城市」是具有可行性的。該規劃的出台，將有利於深港雙方能從更新的視角來看待兩地海洋產業，能更好地整合及合理利用兩地的岸線、島嶼、灘塗、海灣、港口、海洋生物、旅遊等海洋資源，充分發揮灣區整體的、綜合性的資源優勢。

產業選擇須考慮可行性

　《規劃》提出，在產業選擇上，優先發展海洋交通運輸業、濱海旅遊業、海洋服務業、海洋文化產業和海洋油氣業這五大產業；扶持海洋漁業、海洋化工業和海洋生物醫藥產業；將海水綜合利用業和海洋環保業作為創新產業來發展。

　深圳大學產業經濟研究中心主任教授、廣東省產業與區域經濟研究會副會長魏達志指出，在產業選擇上，均考慮了深港雙方實際操作可行性。例如交通運輸業，深港兩地港口均排名世界前四位，可利用雙方資源整合，形成良性競爭與合作的世界第一大港區。而對於海洋油氣業，在南海珠江口區域，有著比較豐富的原油和天然氣資源，雙方可通過溝通共同開發。

將促進深港經濟一體化

　據魏達志介紹，前不久提出的深港創新圈，得到兩地的共識，取得很好成效，促進了深港經濟一體化的進程。而此次提出的「深港灣區組合城市」，可以說是另一個經濟圈，即「深港海洋經濟圈」。他認為，假如該設想成真，必定起到與「深港創新圈」同等效果，可推進深港經濟一體化進程。



優先開發五大海洋產業

http://wenweipo.com/image/2006/05/02/ch0502b.jpg

■深港將聯合開發海洋運輸業等五大產業。圖為位於大鵬灣畔的鹽田港。 本報深圳傳真


【本報珠三角新聞中心記者岳仿嶙深圳1日電】《規劃》提出，在產業選擇上，優先發展海洋交通運輸業、濱海旅遊業、海洋服務業、海洋文化產業和海洋油氣業這五大產業；扶持海洋漁業、海洋化工業和海洋生物醫藥產業；將海水綜合利用業和海洋環保業作為創新產業來發展。

　深圳東臨大亞灣，西抵珠江口，北與東莞、惠州相接，南與香港接壤，全市海岸線長230公里，海域面積1145平方公里(其中灘塗面積70平方公里 )，大、小島嶼有24個，島岸線長12.78公里，總面積1.1126平方公里。東部大鵬灣、西部深圳灣、珠江口水域水深灣闊，平均水深10米-20米，可建10萬噸級以上大型泊位，為珠江三角洲地區乃至全國範圍內難得的優良港灣資源。沿岸海域具有經濟價值的各類生物資源400餘種，其中海洋漁業資源約50多種(包括魚類40多種、蝦類8種、貝類10多種 )。

　目前，深圳海洋經濟以海洋交通運輸業、海洋漁業以及濱海旅遊業為主。根據規劃，21世紀初期，深圳市將分兩步實現海洋經濟強市的戰略：第一步是優化海洋經濟結構，初步建立以海洋交通運輸業、濱海旅遊業、海洋漁業、濱海工業為支柱的海洋產業格局，逐步增加高新技術的應用力度，不斷提高海洋產業附加值。第二步是逐步實現海洋產業升級，重點發展海洋生物工程技術、海洋精細化工、海洋信息等新興產業，實現由傳統產業為主向高新技術產業為主的轉變，形成高素質的海洋產業體系。




打造深港共擁「地中海」

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■濱海旅遊業，也將成為深港聯合開發的產業之一。圖為臨海的蛇口酒吧一條街。 本報深圳傳真

　【本報珠三角新聞中心記者岳仿嶙1日電】海洋產業發展涉及用海佈局，為此，《規劃》認為，在「十一五」期間，深圳用海佈局必然考慮為城市景觀、城市品位，為市民生活的豐富化，為休閒旅遊業的發展，預留和調整出充足的海域、岸線空間。

科學規劃用海佈局

　具體而言，珠江口和深圳灣海域，宜堅持工業嚴格排放，現有養殖基本退出，合理安排西部港口群的岸線和海域使用，濱海休閒帶今後應盡量不再搞新的填海造地；東部港區海域要通過規劃長期鎖定港口、油品碼頭、電廠的用海和岸線使用地段和規模，禁止任何個人和組織以任何名義超越環保標準安排項目，加大環境監測和環境治理的力度；大鵬、南澳海域，禁止引進有污染、高耗水、高耗能的產業，逐步擴大旅遊功能，建成深港共擁的「地中海」，同時政府應設立專門的生態補償基金，幫助當地居民發展。



兩地須設專責部門協調

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■橫跨深圳灣，連接香港、深圳西部通道的深圳灣公路大橋。


　【本報珠三角新聞中心記者岳仿嶙深圳1日電】對於深港雙方共同開發灣區，魏達志認為，雙方在立法、政府引導方面可以做到補缺，更好、更合理的開發三大海灣。他指出，在海洋開發方面，香港有成熟的立法，可規範海洋經濟的發展，這是深圳方需要借鑒之處；而香港政府在立法之外，沒有適當的政府引導，可能會導致盲目開發，而政府引導卻是深圳方的強項。通過雙方聯合開發海洋，則可以做到相互補缺。

　在深港合作的基礎上，魏達志認為，珠海、東莞、廣州等臨海城市，應建立協調機制，共同開發利用和保護海洋。同時，有廣州專家也提出，該機制不但可以行使開發海洋資源的協調的功用，還可成為各地共同抗擊海洋自然災害的風險應對功能。據魏達志介紹，在規劃出台後，深港雙方政府，均要加強對海洋管理的行政資本投入，即成立專門的部門或指派專人，專職負責海洋經濟的聯合開發，積極推進「深港灣區組合城市」的完善。由於深港兩地的地域和經濟實力，假如加上政府的專項管理，「深港灣區組合城市」的開發模式，或許將成為中國開發海洋的一個範本。



用海缺規劃 深岸線幾耗盡

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■深圳沿海若再缺乏科學規劃，其海邊岸線可能會消耗殆盡。圖為深圳沿海的工業區。 本報深圳傳真

　【本報珠三角新聞中心記者岳仿嶙1日電】由於前期開發未有規範，深圳海洋資源存在著種種問題。對此，專家表示，隨著《規劃》的出台，以及深港雙方將合作開發海域的構想出現，將促進海洋資源的合理利用和開發。

　海域基本處於中度污染程度的深圳，並沒有迴避問題，在《規劃》中指出，深圳行業用海缺乏科學規劃，岸線幾乎消耗殆盡，生態環境仍惡化。

海岸生態調控空間漸少

　深圳總長約257.3公里的海岸線中，港區及港區填海岸線長33公里，佔岸線總長的13%；工業岸線長13公里，佔岸線總長的5%；如果壩光精細化工園開工建設，岸線長度達17公里的白沙灣海域保留區岸線將變成工業岸線；屆時，深圳的保留區岸線將減少到30公里，僅佔總長的12%。海岸生態控制空間越來越小，差不多已無調節的餘地。

　有參加審批的專家指出，此次推出的「規劃」，是深圳首次對海洋經濟發展進行規劃。在其中，隨著「深港灣區組合城市」合作的不斷深化，深圳將合理的借鑒香港發展海洋經濟的管理經驗，不但可以更好的發展海洋經濟，更可以保障其達到「循環經濟」與可持續發展的軌道，從而緩解深圳目前存在的資源開發不合理所造成的海洋資源日益惡化的現狀。



Brief summery from the series report:

--The SZ Gov't leasted the Ocean Economic Development Planning of the Shenzhen City (2006-2010) suggested the SZ and HK Gov'ts to develop the Comprehensive Bay Area Cities.

--Wei Dazhi, Vice President of the Guangdong Industries and Regional Economic Development Research, urged SZ and HK Gov'ts to develop the bay areas, such as SZ Bay, Dapeng Bay and Daya Bay, together.

--There are suggestions to both the Gov'ts to develop the industries on transportation, coastal tourism, sea service, sea culturery and sea petroleum mining development.

--The Bay areas of SZ and HK have rich resources for developing the fishnery, ports and tourism. It is necessary to coordinate between the benefits of the both Gov't. Both Gov'ts also need scientific plannings on the coastal areas.


Related news on the HK and SZ Relations can be found here (http://skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=336602). :|

From news.gov.hk:
Closer co-operation focus of Shenzhen meeting (http://news.gov.hk/en/category/businessandfinance/060515/html/060515en03007.htm)

Drop border post at Shenzhen: academic
6 June 2006
South China Morning Post

The head of a Hong Kong university has proposed dropping immigration checks between Shenzhen and the city to speed up the flow of people to and from the special economic zone.

Chinese University vice-chancellor Lawrence Lau Juen-yee said his proposal would require immigration checkpoints to be placed only between Shenzhen and the rest of Guangdong.

Hong Kong residents would then "have to go through an immigration checkpoint only if they went to other parts of Guangdong province", Professor Lau told a seminar at the university yesterday.

Liu Yingli , Shenzhen's executive vice-mayor, described Professor Lau's suggestion as "very innovative".

"We are interested in Professor Lau's proposals but it's a matter under the jurisdiction of the central government," Mr Liu said.

Professor Lau said Shenzhen authorities should also allow vehicles registered in Hong Kong to drive into the special economic zone without border checks.

"The two cities may also join hands to set up universities, stadiums and even a stock exchange," he said.

"Hong Kong and Shenzhen have the potential to develop into twin cities similar to San Francisco and Oakland," the former Stanford University academic said.

Chinese University and the Shenzhen municipal government yesterday signed a memorandum of co-operation covering scientific research and the nurturing of talent. Professor Lau said his university planned to admit 20 students from Shenzhen, which has no medical school, to its medical faculty every year.

Meanwhile, Mr Liu said the shared border checkpoint at the Western Corridor linking Deep Bay in the northwest New Territories with Shekou was expected to be complete by the end of the year.

He said the Hong Kong government would be responsible for traffic control on the Western Corridor.

But he said it was up to the central government to decide when the cross-border link, which had been expected to open last year, would be operational.

Xinhua News:
Shenzhen, HK to allocate funds for innovation (http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2006-06/22/content_4730986.htm)

確實，作爲international city，一般都有上千万人口和上千平方土地，周圍更有多個衛星城支援，香港在各個方面都已接近飽和，就算不和深圳接，也要跟大陸多要點土地和人力，要不然再怎麽發展，也不會趕上東京，紐約等重量級城市了。這方面上海比香港更有潛力，可惜起步太晚...

LCQ16: Mutual use programme for Hong Kong's Octopus card and Shenzhen's TransCard
Wednesday, June 28, 2006
Government Press Release

Following is a question by the Hon Raymond Ho and a written reply by the Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury, Mr Frederick Ma, in the Legislative Council today (June 28):

Question:

It has been reported that the MTR Corporation Limited intends to implement a mutual use programme for Hong Kong's Octopus card and Shenzhen's TransCard, so that the two types of cards can be used in both Hong Kong and Shenzhen. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council whether it knows:

(a) the general arrangements for the programme at the present stage and implementation time; if so, of the details;

(b) the estimated increase in the daily usage of Octopus cards upon the implementation of the programme; if so, of the estimated rate of increase; and

(c) the number of people in Hong Kong and Shenzhen who will benefit from the programme?

Reply:

Madam President,

The Octopus Cards Ltd (OCL) has provided the following information -

"(a) The general arrangements for the programme at the present stage and implementation time; if so, of the details?

"Hong Kong Octopus and Shenzhen Transcard would discuss on the feasibilities of cooperation on the basis of the relevant legislations and policies of the two local governments.

"Hong Kong Octopus and Shenzhen Transcard have had discussions on this. However, the discussions so far are in the preliminary stage. It is difficult to predict the implementation schedule of the Hong Kong Octopus and Shenzhen Tran(s)card systems.

"(b) The estimated increase in the daily usage of Octopus cards upon the implementation of the programme; if so, of the estimated rate of increase?

"The interoperability plan for the Hong Kong Octopus and Shenzhen Transcard aims to bring greater convenience to the citizens of Hong Kong and Shenzhen by using one common IC card for transportation, and to accelerate the unification in the Pearl River Delta. We (OCL) are unable to provide an estimation of the increase in Octopus usage once the project is implemented.

"(c) The number of people in Hong Kong and Shenzhen who will benefit from the programme?

"Our company (OCL) estimates that after the implementation of the project, most of the citizens who are travelling between Hong Kong and Shenzhen would be benefited. However, we (OCL) are unable to estimate the number of people who might benefit from this project."

According to the MTR Corporation, the Corporation together with the OCL are interested in exploring the feasibility of using the Octopus Card in Shenzhen. However, the discussion with the Shenzhen counterparts is still in an initial stage and it is expected to take some time in order to have any conclusion(s) on the feasibility. The Corporation is not able to provide any details.

As the matter is being dealt with by OCL and the Shenzhen Transcard as a business proposal, the Government does not have any additional information to provide.

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深港開啟同城化時代

圖：在羅湖鬧市悠閒徜徉的人群中不乏北上安居港人的身影

深圳和香港僅「一河之隔」。香港回歸九年來，深港關係早已由最初的「前店後廠」經濟合作模式轉化為全方位、深層次的合作，同一生活半徑裡的兩座城市，你中有我，我中有你，兩地開啟了「同城化」的新時代。

據統計，目前深圳生活和工作的香港人就有20萬人。深圳羅湖、皇崗兩個口岸每日平均過境人數約為30萬人次，高峰時達到50萬人次。在皇崗口岸實現24小時通關後，日均2萬多人次香港客夜間來深圳消費。如今，在深就讀的港人子弟約有5.5萬名，其中每日過關到深圳上學的港童3000餘人。

未來5年內，深圳將有5個與香港對接的陸路和海港口岸開發或投入建設。其中陸路口岸將由目前4個增加到8個。新增口岸中，深圳灣口岸、福田口岸已開始建設，兩個聯檢樓均已封頂，今年底即可投入使用。除口岸建設之外，深港間的交通跨境合作還有一個十分引人注目的項目，即廣深港鐵路客運專線。2005年12月18日，廣深港鐵路客運專線的廣深段已經動工，預計2010年全線建成通車。屆時，香港到廣州將由目前100分鐘縮減至40分鐘。一小時內盡可穿梭廣深港三地。

深港合作之手越握越緊香港是深圳利用外資最多的地區，大約佔六成。深港在口岸建設、科技、物流、旅遊、金融、教育、醫療、文化以及聯合打擊跨境犯罪等方面有廣泛的合作。2004年6月，時任深圳市長李鴻忠率團訪港，深港簽訂了「1+8合作協議」，建立起了深港政府間重大事項協商溝通機制，對深港合作模式「翻新」具有里程碑意義。

2005年7月初，新當選的許宗衡市長會見香港貿發局總裁林天福帶領的香港金融業代表團時，首次提出了「深港同城化」的概念。9月5日，許宗衡率領的深圳市政府代表團，與香港政務司司長許仕仁及主要官員舉行「深港合作會議」。此次會談，雙方達成多項共識，一致同意提升兩地政府合作水平，著眼於中長期發展，圍繞城市發展策略、城市規劃、城市功能互補等重大戰略性議題，進行前瞻性合作並致力落實。

2006年3月，北京兩會期間，來自香港和深圳的全國政協委員聯名提交了一份題為《積極發揮香港深圳的創新優勢、建立有特色的區域創新體系》的提案。提案明確提出：建立「深港創新圈」。

「同城化」寫入未來規劃目前，有關「深港創新圈」的構想已在全面推動。深港合作的模式一直在不斷發展、不斷探索中：從深港「雙子城」到「一體化」，從「大自由貿易區」到「共同市場」，以及「同城化」。

2005年12月，由深圳市規劃部門對外公布了《深圳2030年城市發展策略》，明確了與香港共同發展成為國際都會的「深港同城」概念，提出加強與香港在高端製造業、現代服務業以及其他領域的合作，形成「同城化」發展態勢。「深港同城計劃」寫入了深圳未來25年的發展策略。

深圳綜合開發研究院秘書長李羅力表示，深圳將與香港實現全面的「同城化」，包括銀行服務，城市規劃建設，基礎設施建設，市場以及居民生活「同城化」。這一概念已贏得上至政府層面、下至企業百姓各界的高度認同，儘管許多細節還需要在實踐中摸索。

深港「同城化」時代已經啟動，它將給香港和深圳的未來帶來哪些推動和令人興奮的變貌，深圳河兩岸民眾都充滿期待。（大公報記者 黎冬梅）

Source : Takungpao (http://www.takungpao.com/news/06/07/01/ZM-587159.htm)

家在深圳/ 大公報記者/ 黎冬梅/ 葛通
2006-7-1


上世紀80年代，深圳女子嫁到香港，為的是解決溫飽；90年代初期，深圳女子與港人成婚，是為了早一步實現小康。但到了香港回歸後，兩地往來日漸頻密，兩地的生活差距也日益減少。許多港人選擇到深圳娶妻，安家置業，梁生就是其中一個。

今年42歲的港人梁生是香港一家諮詢公司的財務人員。97年，他在深圳結識了後來成為他妻子的阿香，隨後便在深圳買樓安家。1999年，他們的兒子出世。九年來，他成為地道的深港兩棲人，往返於香港的公司和深圳的家。

梁生的家在深圳南山區臨海的一個漂亮的小區。上周末，記者在他家的住宅小區花園裡約見他，梁生告訴記者，三年前就讓妻子阿香辭去了工作，在家做專職太太，因為他的收入已經足夠家人開銷，不想妻子太辛苦。至於孩子的教育，梁生還是比較推崇港式教育，所以他把兒子送到港人在深圳開辦的香港人子弟學校讀書。

梁生在深圳的住房面積有100多平方米，98年買時，花了不到40萬人民幣。而同樣條件的住房若放在香港起碼要300多萬港元，他在買時選擇了一次性付款。如今這套房子已經大大升值，可以賣到70多萬。

幾年來遊走於兩地之間，梁生感覺變化最大的是兩地的時間和空間距離都在縮小。早年往返深港兩地走羅湖口岸，必須趕在晚上12點之前，否則就關閘了。若趕在高峰時間，過關排隊猶如「打蛇餅」，所以每星期才回家一次。2003年，皇崗口岸實行24小時通關後，方便多了，無論工作到什麼時間，想家的時候隨時可以回來。近兩年，深港兩地大力改造口岸通關設施，簡化過關手續，加上深圳地鐵的開通，梁生回家的速度更快了。今年底，首次實行「一地兩檢」的深港西部通道將開通，而西部通道剛好在梁生家門口通過，屆時往返將更加便利。

梁生與阿香剛剛結婚的時候，總是梁生從香港帶過來大包小包的生活用品。如今，深圳的商品不但豐富，還比香港便宜好多，很多香港人都反而來深圳購物了。

雖然妻子還沒有轉成港人身份，但梁生並不急。開辦自由行之後，有深圳戶口的阿香想去香港轉轉並非難事。喜歡打扮的阿香，經常去香港買一點進口化妝品。

梁生說，將來香港的醫療保障若和深圳接軌，就更沒有後顧之憂了。他表示，退休後，將選擇在深圳長久居住。


Source: Takungpao (http://www.takungpao.com/news/06/07/01/ZM-587156.htm)

Hong Kong bargain hunters fuel a property rush in Shenzhen
By Le-Min Lim
Bloomberg News
Published: July 5, 2006

SHENZHEN, China The Hong Kong entrepreneur Lam Chiu Hong and buyers like him have pushed up home prices in the neighboring Chinese city of Shenzhen by 31 percent in the past year.

Lam, 55, paid $3.7 million in November for a five-bedroom, 680-square-meter, or 7,300-square-foot, villa in Shenzhen's Mission Hills - which boasts a Jack Nicklaus-designed golf course - to cut the commute to his Shenzhen packaging plant. A similar spread would cost about $20 million in Hong Kong, where detached houses are rare because of limited space, according to property consultant Knight Frank Hong Kong.

"I bought this for convenience since I spend so much time in Shenzhen," Lam says. "The price is just a fraction of what I'd have to pay in Hong Kong."

Hong Kong residents are flocking to Shenzhen's real estate market, lured by the city's proximity and its growing stock of relatively cheap luxury homes. The property boom is a sign of deepening ties between Hong Kong and the mainland as China becomes more open to international investors and the economy grows 10 percent a year, almost three times the U.S. rate.

Hong Kong-based developers such as Li Ka-shing's Hutchison Whampoa and Sinolink Worldwide Holdings are feeding the appetite for high-end Shenzhen properties, undeterred by rising interest rates and government efforts to curb property speculation.

At Hutchison's Le Parc, a 3,010-apartment complex completed in 2003, units cost as much as 4 million yuan, or about $500,000, and amenities include tennis courts, a rock-climbing wall and a spa. The company is now planning a development of detached houses in the Guanlan neighborhood in Shenzhen, says Carina Wong, a Hutchison marketing official.

Li said he has invested more than 100 billion Hong Kong dollars, or $12.9 billion, in property in China, and planned to spend more to drive profit growth at Hutchison and its parent, Cheung Kong (Holdings).

Shenzhen offers mainland prices in a modern city that's only an hour from Hong Kong by train. Designated a "special economic zone" in 1979 as a testing ground for the former Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping's free-market principles, Shenzhen is one of the nation's wealthiest cities after decades of overseas investment. Yet its $3,990 average annual income still pales in comparison to Hong Kong's $16,184, according to 2004 figures from both governments.

"A huge wealth gap exists between Hong Kong and Shenzhen, but they are becoming more reliant on each other for survival," says Chris Leung, an economist at DBS Bank Hong Kong.

Hong Kong buyers account for about 30 percent of Shenzhen's luxury home sales, double the share a decade ago, says Patrick Hui, a director at the Shenzhen branch of Hong Kong-based property agent Midland Holdings.

"Hong Kong buyers are going for the cream of the Shenzhen property market, and luxury home prices set the pace for the entire market," says Yuan Mingzhe, an agent at Midland's Shenzhen branch.

Shenzhen's average residential property sale price rose 31 percent in the year ended May 31 to 8,950 yuan a square meter, according to government statistics and data compiled by Midland.

Price increases in Shenzhen outpaced those in Shanghai and Beijing - China's main commercial cities - for the first time in the first quarter, estimates Judith Chen, a Shanghai-based analyst at KGI Asia.

The average price of a new Shenzhen residence rose 10.2 percent during the three-month period, while Shanghai prices dropped 1.3 percent, according to figures from the National Development and Reform Commission, China's economic planning ministry.

Hong Kong companies account for 70 percent of overseas investment in Shenzhen, according to the Shenzhen government. Two decades ago, the figure was less than 10 percent, says Guo Shiping, an economics professor at Shenzhen University. The city of 10 million people has also attracted international companies such as Wal-Mart Stores and Sony.

About 100 million people a year travel between Shenzhen and Hong Kong, making the crossing between the two cities the world's busiest border.

Trains leaving every five minutes carry passengers from Hong Kong's Tsim Sha Tsui station to the border crossing of Lo Wu in 50 minutes. During morning rush hour, Shenzhen-bound trains are packed with commuters.

Inside the Lo Wu border checkpoint, loudspeakers blast immigration instructions in Mandarin and Cantonese. Vendors sell goods ranging from fresh lychees to duty-free imported cognac under banks of fluorescent lights. There are also two car crossings linking the cities, with a third scheduled to open later this year.

Rising interest rates may curb gains in Shenzhen luxury home prices, says DBS's Leung. The People's Bank of China raised the benchmark one-year lending rate by 27 basis points to 5.85 percent April 28, the first increase in 19 months. Economists surveyed by Bloomberg News expect another increase this year. A basis point is 0.01 percentage point.

"Raise borrowing costs too much and any property market, however well it's performing, will suffer," Leung says. "Shenzhen's is no exception."

To squelch speculation, the central bank in June 2005 imposed a 5 percent tax on homeowners who sell properties within two years after buying them. Last month, the bank doubled the tax and raised the minimum down payment for apartments larger than 90 square meters to 30 percent from 20 percent.

The market's recent rise may not be sustainable, says Jonas Kan, a property analyst at Daiwa Institute of Research in Hong Kong. "There's concern prices are overshooting their reasonable value," Kan says. "Prices probably won't collapse in the next few months, but if rates keep increasing and developers start undercutting prices to sell the apartments, that may trigger a slide."

Such concerns aren't stopping Sinolink, one of the first Hong Kong developers in Shenzhen, from expanding. The company is now selling 1,301 units at Mangrove West Coast, its second Shenzhen residential project.

The complex - designed by Bernardo Fort-Brescia, the architecture firm behind the Westin hotel in New York's Times Square - boasts kitchen appliances from Germany's Miele, soundproof floors and floor-to-ceiling windows.

"There's strong pent-up demand from Hong Kong buyers for the best Shenzhen homes," says Francis Tang, Sinolink's chief executive officer. "Shenzhen's economic growth, proximity to Hong Kong and rather low property prices are very attractive to buyers here."

Living in Shenzhen has its downside. Commuters from Hong Kong endure long immigration lines at rush hour, and the Lo Wu crossing closes every day between midnight and 6:30 a.m. Drivers are slowed by potholed roads that flood frequently, and the city offers fewer restaurants serving international food and shops that sell imported goods.

Some Hong Kong residents are buying Shenzhen apartments as investments, after a 62 percent surge in property prices at home put purchases out of reach for many potential buyers.

Gerry Wong, 30, a Hong Kong software salesman, bought a 12th-floor, 112- square-meter apartment near the Lo Wu station last June for 1.5 million yuan. It's now worth about 2 million yuan. The apartment, built by closely held Chinese developers East Pacific Investment Holdings and China Aidi Group, is in a gated community with its own swimming pool and gym.

"You can't get this kind of quality in Hong Kong for such low prices," he says.

In Hong Kong, 2.5 million yuan would buy Wong a 65-square-meter apartment in the suburb of Stanley, about half an hour's drive from downtown, or a 60- square-meter apartment in the Causeway Bay shopping and business district, according to Gohome.com, a property listing Web site.

At Mission Hills, Hong Kong buyers account for about 60 percent of luxury sales, says Ken Chu, vice chairman of Mission Hills Group. The closely held company was founded by his father, David Chu, a Hong Kong packaging tycoon.

The younger Chu, 32, sold about 143 villas at Mission Hills in the three years ended Dec. 31. He plans to sell 400 this year.

"To Hong Kong buyers, paying $6 million to $8 million for a villa is nothing," he says.

Mission Hills, built on former swampland about 45 minutes from the Huanggang car border crossing, boasts 10 golf courses designed by the likes of Nicklaus, Greg Norman and Annika Sorenstam. The 20-square-kilometer development also features hotels, swimming pools and spas.

The most expensive residential unit is a 1,500-square-meter house with its own yoga and steam rooms, an internal elevator and a swimming pool. Asking price: $10 million.

Lam, who plans to move his family to his Mission Hills villa from their home in Hong Kong's Yuen Long district when renovations are finished in July, estimates that the house's value has climbed by a third to 40 million yuan since he bought it.

"I see no downside to my decision," Lam said.

Oh, hkskyline, can you bold the main points of the passage, instead of just posting the passage? It's tooooooooooooo long to read the passage! :sleepy:

Shenzhen-Hong Kong Co-operation Forum held in Shenzhen
Thursday, August 3, 2006
Government Press Release

The Shenzhen-Hong Kong Co-operation Forum, jointly organised by the Central Policy Unit (CPU) of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR), the Shenzhen Special Economic Zone Research Association and the China Development Institute of Shenzhen, was held at the China Development Institute in Shenzhen today (August 3).

The Forum was initiated by the research institutions of Shenzhen and Hong Kong, with the objective of promoting co-operation between the two places in a pragmatic manner. Around 100 participants from Hong Kong and Shenzhen, including business representatives, academics, professionals and government officials, were invited to join the Forum.

The Chief Secretary for Administration of the HKSAR, Mr Rafael Hui, and the Mayor of Shenzhen, Mr Xu Zongheng, provided congratulatory messages for the Forum. The Head of the CPU, Professor Lau Siu-kai, and the Chairman of the Shenzhen Special Economic Zone Research Association, Mr Li Hao, delivered opening addresses at the Forum.

In his message, Mr Hui said that the economies of Hong Kong and Shenzhen had been closely linked to each other. Hong Kong and Shenzhen were the most significant economic partners in the Mainland, offering the widest range of services and the strongest international links. It was the consensus of the Governments of the HKSAR and Shenzhen to promote mutually beneficial co-operation led by research collaboration. The successful holding of the Forum marked a significant step in fostering mutual exchanges and innovative ways of co-operation in a pragmatic manner.

Mr Xu pointed out in his message that against the background of globalisation and integration of regional economies, Hong Kong and Shenzhen shared long-term interests and faced the same opportunities and challenges. The Forum would have a positive influence on the further deepening of co-operation between the two places.

"Over the past two decades or so, the co-operation between Shenzhen and Hong Kong has set an excellent example and laid an important foundation for further integration of the two economies. To speed up the two-way flow of people, goods and capital between Hong Kong and Shenzhen, both sides should take a market-oriented approach and endeavour to eliminate institutional and policy obstacles," said Professor Lau in his opening address.

"The Forum can develop into an important mechanism for research collaboration between Hong Kong and Shenzhen, and will continue to promote exchanges and co-operation between the two places," he added.

Mr Li said in the Forum: "Co-operation between Hong Kong and Shenzhen should follow a step-by-step approach and tackle the more straightforward issues as a matter of priority, until we reach a satisfactory outcome. The Forum provides a platform for candid exchange of views between professionals, academics, government officials and entrepreneurs of both sides, where they can explore problems on all fronts, forge consensus and strengthen co-operation in a practical manner."

During the Forum, participants had in-depth discussions in six priority research areas, namely, Shenzhen-Hong Kong logistics, headquarters economy, Shenzhen-Hong Kong living zone, technology and innovation, financial sector and creative industry co-operation. The views put forward and the recommendations made on areas of Shenzhen-Hong Kong co-operation requiring further investigation will be submitted to both governments for consideration and study.

SCIT officiates at opening ceremony of the first cinema on the Mainland wholly owned by HK company
Sunday, August 6, 2006
Government Press Release

The Secretary for Commerce, Industry and Technology, Mr Joseph W P Wong, officiated at the opening ceremony of the first cinema on the Mainland that is wholly owned by a Hong Kong company this afternoon (August 6).

Under the second phase of the Mainland and Hong Kong Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement (CEPA II), Hong Kong cinema operators are allowed to fully own, design, manage, and operate cinemas on the Mainland. MCL Cinema City in Shenzhen's Nanshan District is the first cinema on the Mainland that is wholly owned by a Hong Kong company under CEPA II.

Speaking at the opening ceremony, Mr Wong said that Guangdong Province and Hong Kong were neighbours sharing similar languages and culture backgrounds. There were ample opportunities to co-operate in film production between the two places.

He encouraged film industries in Guangdong and Hong Kong, within the framework of CEPA, to explore together certain concession policies that are not yet ready for full implementation across the country and make suggestions to the Central Government for trial in the Guangdong Province. "This will facilitate film industries in the two places to make an impressive start and seize the very opportunity to explore further business," Mr Wong said.

"In fact, the development of Mainland and Hong Kong film industries promoted by CEPA is not confined to the business of cinema operations. Under CEPA, motion pictures jointly produced by Hong Kong and the Mainland can be treated as Mainland motion pictures for the purpose of distribution on the Mainland. This will encourage more investment in Hong Kong-Mainland co-produced films.

"Hong Kong companies can provide film distribution services for Mainland motion pictures after obtaining a Hong Kong Service Supplier Certificate under CEPA."

Mr Wong hoped that the Hong Kong entertainment industry would continue to grasp the opportunities brought by CEPA to build and operate more cinemas of high standards on the Mainland, and provide world-class cinema experiences for Mainland audiences.

深擬與港合建IT製造園

【本報珠三角新聞中心記者熊君慧深圳7日電】關於西部濱海區的建設，有3項規劃：一是在深圳機場以北的濱海地區，與香港合作建設一個定位於世界先進水平的高端製造業園區，發展信息產業與通訊產業等高端製造業；二是近中期建設大鏟港，遠期搬遷至蛇口南端新建港口，原大鏟港改建為旅遊休閒港。

兩地機場以鐵路「無縫對接」

　遠景考慮深圳機場的搬遷，在現在機場西部填海建新機場，原有機場改建為國際供應鏈基地，結合港口、機場、高速公路、口岸等大型交通基礎設施密集的優勢，發展現代物流業。

　另據透露，現正進行擴建工程、準備興建第二條跑道的深圳寶安機場，在2030年前可能將再會興建第三條跑道。

　按照長遠規劃，深圳會籌建一條由寶安機場直達香港國際機場、不經過深圳巿區的鐵路幹線，實現兩地機場的「無縫連接」。


http://www.wenweipo.com/image/2006/08/08/ch0808k.jpg

Source: Wenweipo

與港同建國際都會


http://www.wenweipo.com/image/2006/08/08/ch0808c.jpg

■深圳西部將建成基礎設施最密集的區域，圖為寶安中心區現狀。 本報深圳傳真

　【本報珠三角新聞中心記者熊君慧深圳7日電】按照《深圳2030城市發展策略（草案）》（簡稱《深圳2030》），未來25年，深圳將以「建設可持續發展的全球先鋒城市」為發展目標，建成國家級高新技術產業基地、區域性物流中心城市、與香港共同發展的國際都會。深圳將建設成為「與香港共同發展的國際都會」。

深人大立法城市規劃

　今年7月底，深圳市四屆人大常委會第七次會議上，以「31票贊成、7票棄權、1人反對」通過該份耗費近5年時間制定的規劃，成為全國第一部由人大立法的城市策略規劃。「該規劃是深圳中長期發展的指導性文件，是修編城市總體規劃的重要依據。如果要修改需要通過人大審議。」深圳市規劃局參與《深圳2030》的賀承軍處長今日接受本報訪問時說，「『與香港共同發展的國際都會』將成為今後深港關係的定位準則。」

香港定位仍為龍頭

　參與制定規劃的賀承軍表示，在制訂過程中，深圳仍然將香港定位為珠三角經濟圈的「龍頭」，希望進一步深化兩地在高新技術產業、物流業、高端服務業等方面的合作。「深圳可進一步服務香港的高端服務業。」他說，根據規劃，深圳將積極引進香港的高端服務業落戶，包括律師和法律服務、仲量師、會計師、廣告、傳媒等。

　根據規劃，在基礎建設方面，深圳主要集中在「構築海陸空立體化區域交通樞紐體系」，從多個方面加強與香港聯繫的基建：包括在蓮塘興建東部口岸，興建深圳機場連接香港國際機場的鐵路幹線，逐步形成與香港一體化的國際性樞紐城市。作為泛珠三角大型商貿服務設施的最佳區位之一，深圳將加強與香港的合作，發展現代服務業，把前海灣建設成為泛珠三角的現代服務業中心之一。

Source: Wenweipo

規劃一小時空港經濟圈

http://www.wenweipo.com/image/2006/08/08/ch0808d.jpg

【本報珠三角新聞中心記者熊君慧深圳7日電】作為《深圳2030》另一個深化專項規劃，深圳規劃部門正在加緊制訂一份名為《深圳機場周邊環境研究》的規劃。中國城市規劃設計研究院深圳分院研究室負責人普軍表示，將向國際航空港學習，以機場為中心，30分鐘至1小時車程內或15至30公里半徑內，15％為與空港密切相關的產業；70%至80％的產業為延伸產業，如物流、會展、高新技術等，互相促進共同發展。

15至30公里為半徑

　此次研究是為深圳航空港未來在珠三角發展中定位，除做內部功能調整外，還希望對機場周邊環境做出規劃。普軍分析，廣州依托新機場的投入使用，帶動了花都的汽車、房地產、旅遊等產業的發展，甚至輻射至佛山等地區。「與香港、廣州比，深圳目前僅僅發揮了機場的作用，『空港』的作用還沒有完全顯現。」

Source : Wenweipo

深港合作三大構想

構想一︰建深港自由貿易區

　可選擇接壤地自由貿易區、共同市場式自由貿易區和投資協議式自由貿易區3種形式。

構想二︰合建世界高端製造業園區

　合作建設世界高端產業園區，聯手引進世界高新技術，吸收後向內地推廣。

構想三︰合建生產性服務業中心

　依托珠三角製造業和香港作為國際港口物流、金融中心優勢，在深圳西部濱海地帶建一個泛珠三角區域經濟中心。

Source: Wenweipo

China lets HK run customs checkpoint on its soil

HONG KONG, Oct 31 (Reuters) - China has granted Hong Kong the right to set up a customs checkpoint in the southern city of Shenzhen, underscoring hopes for growing economic and trade integration in the country's booming south.

The national parliament passed a bill effectively allowing Hong Kong to run a customs and immigration checkpoint on Chinese soil for the first time, a gesture some experts say will reduce time and costs for manufacturers that have long used Hong Kong as an export and import window.

Officials have urged closer economic ties between China's southern province of Guangdong, where Shenzhen is located, Hong Kong and the gambling haven of Macau -- the heart of the Pearl River Delta region.

A new port in Shenzhen is expected to be operating by the middle of next year and will be able to handle 58,600 vehicles and 60,000 passengers per day, the official Xinhua News Agency reported.

"It's a symbolic political milestone," said Mo Pak-hung, associate professor of economics at Baptist University in Hong Kong.

China's ceding of such legal rights to Hong Kong was a breakthrough, he said.

The so-called "Shenzhen Bay Port", located to Hong Kong's west, will be linked by a highway and could relieve some of the congestion at Hong Kong's three existing land ports, which have had to cope with major increases in cross-border passenger and cargo flows in recent years.

The port would be split into a Hong Kong area and a Shenzhen area, with each side following its own law enforcement procedures.

Lawmaker urges action on new checkpoint Shenzhen officials are ready for fifth border crossing
5 February 2007
South China Morning Post

A fifth border crossing in the northeastern New Territories should be established as soon as possible given the rapidly growing links between Shenzhen and Hong Kong, a lawmaker said.

An initial study of a new border point connecting Heung Yuen Wai with Liantang in Shenzhen is being carried out by authorities from both cities and is expected to be completed in the third quarter.

The Shenzhen government included the border crossing in its 11th five-year plan.

The gateway would connect to the Shenzhen-Shantou and Shenzhen-Huizhou super highways and provide quick access to eastern Guangdong.

Legislator Cheung Hok-ming, of the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong, said the government should speed up the pace of its research.

"Shenzhen authorities are ready for the new border point. They have already spared land at Liantang," Mr Cheung said during a site investigation at Heung Yuen Wai yesterday.

"But it remains a remote area across the border with basically no infrastructure at Heung Yuen Wai. We have to act quicker to accommodate the rapid economic development in Guangdong."

He said the increased traffic load brought by the new crossing could be drastic and must be considered comprehensively.

"An eastern corridor which links up the new border point, the Tolo Harbour Highway and new towns such as Sheung Shui and Fanling will be needed to alleviate the cross-border traffic flow," he said.

"The traffic problem brought by the Western Corridor must not be repeated again in east New Territories."

The government said a consultancy report on the planning and infrastructure development of a new border point would be ready early next year.

Heung Yuen Wai is located at the north of Ta Kwu Ling, which has been classified as a closed area since 1951. But a 300-hectare area will be opened when the revised closed area boundary is introduced in 2010.

"It was a political reason which made the area closed for 50 years," Mr Cheung said.

"But with the much improved security condition around the border in recent years, it is the time to grasp the opportunity to facilitate the cross-border activities."

From news.gov.hk:
Shenzhen Bay Port HK Port Area Bill gazetted (http://news.gov.hk/en/category/lawandorder/070206/html/070206en08005.htm)

Info from the Gazette:
Shenzhen Bay Port Hong Kong Port Area Bill (http://www.gld.gov.hk/cgi-bin/gld/egazette/gazettefiles.cgi?lang=e&extra=e&year=2007&month=2&day=6&vol=11&no=05&gn=3&header=1&part=1&df=1&nt=s3&newfile=1&acurrentpage=12&agree=1&gaz_type=ls3)

Shenzhen flats curb
Hong Kong Standard
Wednesday, July 11, 2007

Shenzhen has put into effect strict regulations on home ownership by Hong Kong residents and foreigners in a bid to cool the market, where average prices have surged by more than 50 percent this year.

Effective immediately, foreigners can buy only one flat for their own use. To qualify, they need to have spent more than a year working or studying in Shenzhen.

The same one-home limit also applies to residents of Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan.

The Shenzhen Municipal Bureau of Land Resources and Housing Management and the Shenzhen office of the State Administration of Foreign Exchange issued a joint notice Monday saying that anyone not meeting the requirements would not see their properties registered as belonging to them.

Property professionals said Shenzhen's move is aimed at foreign and local speculators.

Centaline China managing director Sherman Lai Ming-kai said the market has been aware of the regulations since the central government first announced them in July last year.

Only Beijing and Shanghai implemented them at first. However, circumstances in Shenzhen have forced the municipal government to act.

"This year, the market in Shenzhen has seen quite an exaggerated increase," Lai said.

Shanghai Securities News pointed to official government figures showing the average price of new homes reached 14,223 yuan (HK$14,626) per square meter in May - an increase of 51.57 percent from 9,384 yuan per sq m for the whole of 2006.

Lai attributed the rapid rise in prices to low supply and high demand as the Shenzhen government has kept tight control on new land supply in recent years.

He said the new measures would have some effect on the Shenzhen property market as speculators get run out of town.

"In the end though, the people who buy flats for their own use or for investment in Shenzhen are [mostly] mainlanders. So most of the demand will not be affected, only a small part," Lai said.

Andy Keung Shu-wing, group managing director at property consultant Land Power International Holdings, said Hong Kong residents account for only about 7 to 8 percent of all transactions in Shenzhen each year.

In the first quarter of 2007, Hong Kong residents spent 4.2 billion yuan on mainland property, primarily in Shenzhen, according to Land Power data.

"Shenzhen is not their primary residence. Hong Kong is their primary residence after all," Keung said. "[In Shenzhen], they buy one flat for their own use, investment or retirement. They don't need to buy two or three."

From news.gov.hk:
Lok Ma Chau checkpoint to open mid-August (http://news.gov.hk/en/category/infrastructureandlogistics/070808/html/070808en06003.htm)

Ideas floated for HK-Shenzhen mega-city
10 August 2007
South China Morning Post

A plan to make Hong Kong and Shenzhen a single metropolis and an economic powerhouse bigger than London, Paris, Chicago or Los Angeles by 2020 has been set out by a think-tank close to Chief Executive Donald Tsang Yam-kuen.

The Bauhinia Foundation Research Centre issued a 10-point plan for achieving this goal. It includes fostering cross-border business co-operation; creating a multiple-entry electronic smart card for Shenzhen permanent residents to enter Hong Kong; building a rail line between the two cities' airports; and a joint programme aimed at nurturing talent.

The foundation says if the metropolis maintained gross domestic product growth of 8 per cent a year until 2020, its GDP would reach US$1.11 trillion, putting it behind only Tokyo and New York.

It proposes that the Lok Ma Chau Loop, a 1 sq km site beside the Shenzhen River, become a "special region within special regions", with simplified entry procedures for Shenzhen residents. The site came under Hong Kong's jurisdiction in 1997 when the river was straightened.

The report proposes a joint development management authority run the area, which would remain under Hong Kong's legal jurisdiction.

Study consultant Zhu Wenhui said the idea was that investment in what the report calls the Hetao development zone would be "high-value, low-pollution and with high land utilisation", though the market would determine who invested there.

However, he admitted HK$2.4 billion would be needed to clean up and prepare the area. The site contains 4.5 million cubic metres of toxic mud.

He noted that the two governments had formed a group two years ago to study the feasibility of developing the site. Previous plans for it have included making it a trade expo zone, a container storage park or the Pearl River Delta's answer to Silicon Valley.

A Hong Kong government spokesman said it would look further at developing the site once the study begun in 2005 was ready.

Fifty Hong Kong officials and 50 mainland officials, from the State Council, Ministry of Commerce and National Development and Reform Commission were interviewed for the foundation's study.

The Shenzhen-based China Development Institute said it was important that such ideas, which its own and other mainland academics had previously put forward, were now being advocated in Hong Kong.

Politicians back bid to open door to Shenzhen
11 August 2007
South China Morning Post

Two big political parties have backed a think-tank's proposal to make it easier for 2 million Shenzhen residents to travel to Hong Kong.

The Democratic Party and the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong said both cities could benefit from enhancing the flow of passengers, and that it was natural more Shenzhen residents should be able to come to Hong Kong easily since the cities had close ties.

Sin Chung-kai, vice-chairman of the Democratic Party, said the gap in living standards between the cities had narrowed and allowing more Shenzhen residents to enter Hong Kong would even out consumption between the two cities.

The Bauhinia Foundation Research Centre, a think-tank that has close ties to Chief Executive Donald Tsang Yam-kuen, published proposals on Thursday for making Hong Kong and Shenzhen a single "world-class" metropolis.

One of its 10 proposals was that the 2 million Shenzhen permanent residents be given multiple-entry smart cards allowing them to visit, but not work in Hong Kong.

Others include building a high-speed rail link between the cities' airports, creating a jointly run development zone on a 1 sq km no-man's land beside the Shenzhen River, and co-operating to foster innovation and nurture talent.

The Hong Kong government has put forward proposals in the past for easing entry for Shenzhen residents. A source familiar with the situation said the government had informally notified Beijing of its idea, but that it was not clear what the central government thought of the proposal.

The foundation's suggestions are expected to be discussed at a meeting on Monday of the intergovernmental Hong Kong-Shenzhen Co-operation Forum.

Tam Yiu-chung, a vice-chairman of the DAB, said it was merely a matter of time before entry arrangements to Hong Kong for Shenzhen residents would be relaxed.

Such an arrangement would not involve policy changes, he said, adding there would only be technical problems to overcome.

Tsang Hin-chi, a Hong Kong delegate to the National People's Congress Standing Committee, welcomed the foundation's report.

He disagreed with suggestions from some quarters that the proposal might have a negative impact on the "one country, two systems" formula for governing Hong Kong.

"There should be some way to solve these problems. After all, we are one country," he said.

Lingnan University analyst Li Pang-kwong shared Tsang Hin-chi's view.

"[The proposal] is about facilitating passenger and cargo flow. Institutional changes are not involved," said Dr Li.

But he said the central government would have to treat the proposal cautiously since it might trigger intense competition with other mainland cities, particularly those in the Pearl River Delta.

City University political scientist Joseph Cheng Yu-shek agreed such problems could arise, and said the foundation had ignored them.

"No one doubts better integration [between Shenzhen and Hong Kong] will bring along with it capital, stocks and talent."

"But will other cities in the Pearl River Delta demand the same privileged relationship with Shenzhen, and will the relationship between Hong Kong and other regions worsen if they are not given equal treatment?" he said.

Dr Cheng said Hong Kong had long sought to avoid being "just one of China's coastal cities", but the idea of a megacity might eventually blur the boundary between Hong Kong and the mainland.

From news.gov.hk:
HK-Shenzhen metropolis broached (http://news.gov.hk/en/category/administration/070813/html/070813en01001.htm)

Shenzhen mayor backs metropolis, urges smoother links
Hong Kong Standard
Tuesday, August 14, 2007

A Hong Kong-Shenzhen partnership is an "economic dream team," which could become a world-class metropolis in 15 years, the mayor of Shenzhen said at a two-city cooperation forum yesterday.

Xu Zongheng told the forum on "Jointly developing a World-Class Metropolis" in Hong Kong that high- level cooperation between the two cities was needed to kick the metropolis plan into high gear.

A stronger rail and airport connection, smoother customs procedures at border crossings, and better people and information flow would be needed, Xu said.

Acting Chief Executive Henry Tang Ying-yen said the two cities had built up a solid foundation for the building of a metropolis such as New York City and London. But he said he remained realistic about the challenges that would confront a metropolis of 3,200 square kilometers with 20 million people.

"This partnership came under `one country, two systems' - two neighboring cities with two different customs duty zones. We must remain clear- headed and must not underestimate the difficulties that lie ahead in this process for the two parties," he said.

The metropolis idea was first mooted by Bauhinia Foundation Research Centre last week.

According to keynote speaker Professor Fan Gang, the mainland has become one of the world's top manufacturing centers in the past 28 years and the next stage is to develop a hi-tech and service industry.

Fan, director of the National Economic Research Institute, cited a study which ranked Hong Kong No3 and Shenzhen 46th in the list of business centers. When partnered, their ranking would rise to No1.

Xu said collaboration would propel both cities forward.

However, Columbia University sociology professor Saskia Sassen, another keynote speaker, said "getting bigger is not always better."

She warned the two partners must know what they seek in the relationship.

On the plus side, Sassen said, the drastic differences in Hong Kong's and Shenzhen's strengths may prove to be a blessing instead of an obstacle.

Hong Kong has a deep economic history, remarkable in its versatility and as a financial center, while Shenzhen's specialty lies in manufacturing, the service industry and an exchange for small and medium companies.

"The fact that economic differences between the two are very sharp, in itself, can produce a symbiotic advantage."

Sassen told The Standard that mega regions are a world trend, with the United States working on 10 emerging cross-states mega regions.

Xu Chongguang, vice chairman of Guangdong City Planning Association, called for the quick realization of the new Lientong customs border at Shenzhen east and the express railway between the two airports.

Professor Anthony Yeh Gar-on of the University of Hong Kong suggested the setting up of special counters for business people at border crossings.

Gov't Press Release:
Lok Ma Chau Spur Line enhances HK-Shenzhen connectivity (http://info.gov.hk/gia/general/200708/15/P200708150171.htm)

You have another thread about this topic already :

http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=336009

You have another thread about this topic already :

http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=336009

Not really the same, as this topic is mainly for the Crossing Border Port. Also, you can go the new Port NOT JUST by railway, but also by KMB Bus Route B1 and NT Minibus Route 75 from Yuen Long, or even the red or green taxis as well. Besides, you can watch the birds in the Port. :)

Fortress mentality
Hong Kong needs to reduce barriers, not raise new ones in its search for closer ties with delta cities
15 August 2007
South China Morning Post

One of the great views of Shenzhen is from Hong Kong's closed boundary area near the border crossing of Lok Ma Chau. The towers of the special economic zone, a chaotic jumble, rise sheerly from the black and lifeless waters of the Shenzhen River.

Derelict concrete buildings with prominent patriotic signs stand next to glass high-rises. Across the river from the Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation's immaculate new train station, scheduled to open today, lies its double, nestled among construction sites. Over your shoulder is the pastoral landscape of Hong Kong's protective frontier, with its white cranes and fish farms, and abandoned British garrisons brooding in the low hills behind.

The scene is a striking visual metaphor for the social and cultural isolation that exists between Hong Kong and its closest urban neighbour a quarter of a century after the Sino-British negotiations over Hong Kong's future.

Hong Kong's return to China in 1997 inaugurated a decade of soul-searching. But a pervasive reaction of disgust has governed any thinking about its relations with the grimy factory towns to the north.

The time has come to think harder about Shenzhen, and also Dongguan , Huizhou , Guangzhou , Foshan , Jiangmen , Zhongshan and Zhuhai - an inverted "V" of cities whose edges run together in a continuous strip of urban slum, crumbling industrial zones, and toxic farming and aquaculture. The massive urban funk of the Pearl River Delta is, in large part, Hong Kong's legacy, a product of US$194 billion in investment between 1979 and 2005 as Hong Kong exported its labour-intensive manufacturing economy to the delta. The partnership created great wealth for both, so that Guangdong has the mainland's highest per capita income - as long as its migrant worker population remains outside the equation - while Hong Kong has only recently been overtaken by Macau as China's wealthiest city. That productive collaboration is coming to an end, and Shenzhen is one of its symbols. Guangdong is under pressure from yuan appreciation, rising production costs and labour shortages, and is attempting to solve its problems by moving up the value chain, which means higher wages, skilled labour and goodbye to the type of contract manufacturing supported by Hong Kong investment.

Shenzhen has the mainland's highest minimum wage, its largest and most prosperous collection of private enterprises, the first stock exchange to publish corporate social responsibility guidelines, and even the first business association to promote good corporate citizenship, led by China Merchants Bank, China's first privately owned commercial bank.

The gap between Shenzhen and Hong Kong is still large. But it is closing, so that Hong Kong and the cities of the delta increasingly occupy one basket in terms of global competition for capital and resources. They bring each other up, through economic growth, but also drag each other down, through the worsening pall of regional air pollution and environmental degradation.

Yet Hong Kong continues to lobby the central government for protection from the regional economy. A Trade Development Council report released in June argued that Hong-Kong-funded export processing deserved relief because it had contributed so much to China's economy. A new report from the Bauhinia Foundation Research Centre, closely linked to the government, argues that Hong Kong should conduct a branding exercise with Shenzhen by establishing a nominal "Kong Shen City" (a name that, even in Chinese, sounds awkward, translating as "Harbour Deep"). The report has been ridiculed for the wrong reasons. The problem is that it does not go far enough, focusing on barriers between Hong Kong and Shenzhen, rather than China as a whole.

Instead of seeking to align Hong Kong's interests with Guangdong, it draws two new borders, one around Hong Kong and Shenzhen, and another between the two cities with new restrictions. Only certain Shenzhen residents will be granted more access to Hong Kong. The two cities will not be "assimilated". The wetlands of the Lok Ma Chau loop will become a hi-tech zone under management of the "Hetao Development Authority" with workers from Shenzhen entering through a "passageway" with only their identification papers, while those from Hong Kong would need to pass through the border checkpoint.

Hong Kong needs to look for ways to reduce barriers rather than raise new ones, and find symbols of unity with real meaning. The Lok Ma Chau loop should remain a green lung for Shenzhen and become an open space where Hong Kong people and their cousins from Guangdong can meet for a bicycle ride or a concert.

Our city is in need of a reality check - recognising that the world around us is changing not through virtue of central planning, but by market forces.

Edith Terry is a writer based in Hong Kong

Hong Kong’s Cash Cows and White Elephants
K Y Bao
29 August 2007
Irrationally exuberant planners seek to cobble Hong Kong and Shenzhen together into a big-budget metropolis.

Hong Kong’s urban planners may be on their way to a new adventure, signaled by an August 9 report by a government-linked think tank proposing that Hong Kong and Shenzhen join hands to create “China’s world-class metropolis.” Four days after the release, Government Secretary Henry Tang, in a speech to the Hong Kong-Shenzhen Co-operation Forum, proclaimed that “the long-term objective of our co-operation is to jointly develop a world-class metropolis comparable with New York and London.”


The report’s authors, from the Bauhinia Foundation Research Center, advocate creating a “joint-administrative zone” at the border between the two cities, a high-speed rail line linking the two cities’ airports, and increased legal “flexibility”–among other ideas – for Hong Kong and Shenzhen.


But the broad-brush effects of the report and its intricacies are wholly representative of the way endemic mismanagement, poor planning and cowering before powerful interest groups is pulling Hong Kong further from the “one country, two systems” principle under which the territory is supposedly governed.


An opinion piece by the Bauhinia report’s authors in the South China Morning Post calls for integration in order to “break out of the straitjacket imposed by ‘one country, two systems.”’ Yet for all the concrete it wants to pour, the report’s proposals have a poor foundation.


The airport link (whose cost, not included in the report, would doubtless be in the tens of billions), they say, is needed in the event of a “natural disaster” befalling the complex of bridges that link mainland Kowloon to the Hong Kong airport on Lantau Island. A 1-sq km “Hetao Development Management Authority” is also called for as an initial “model area for a Hong Kong-Shenzhen Metropolis,” that would operate under joint management but with Hong Kong laws and “special convenience measures for business people.”


The stitched together metropolis, the planners say, would be the world’s third-ranking city economy by net GDP – they fail to mention the more balanced per-capita effects of such a merger (the per capita difference between the two cities is US$29,000). These forecasts and rankings are themselves based upon econometrically questionable use of the same average growth rate figure over the past five years, to cumulatively determine those rates for the next 15.


Neither of the big construction suggestions seems economically viable. There are already four vehicular and two rail crossings over the border, as well as a US$3.7 billion bridge in the works that will join Hong Kong to Macau and Zhuhai. The bridge, which would itself link Hong Kong to the airports of the two cities in question, is the 20-year brainchild of local tycoon Gordon Wu, many of whose business interests lie in Zhuhai.


The Hetao (or Lok Ma Chau Loop) area is currently filled with toxic mud that would cost billions just to clean up, not to mention the expense of building “a special region within regions,” or administering an area that would have far more lax immigration controls than Hong Kong.


That Bauhinia’s findings might provide the basis for government policy is worrying. Indeed, a spokeswoman from the Hong Kong Transport and Housing Bureau has said, ‘We already plan to suggest building the Tuen Mun western bypass and another link of Tuen Mun and Chek Lap Kok . . . to shorten the journey between the two airports.’


It isn’t that Hong Kong doesn’t require greater links with Shenzhen, or that big-money projects are a waste of time. Hong Kong needs, and would benefit, from better infrastructure. However, these projects are often created outside a fair, competitive market and without proper public representation or strategic foresight of what is actually needed – the Bauhinia report consulted 100 Shenzhen residents and none from Hong Kong.


This is out of tune with the free-market fundamentals on which Hong Kong is supposedly based – where competition induces innovation, productivity and growth, and supply should correspond to demand – and risks turning such projects into white elephants for the government, and cash cows for developers.


Examples of this abound. The Lok Ma Chau Spur Line (a new railway link to Shenzhen), and the Shenzhen Western Corridor road and bridge project are two recently opened construction giants that have consistently failed to meet the projected capacity loads that might justify or recoup their cost – HK$10 billion and HK$2.3 billion dollars respectively.


Poor planning plays a part. The Western Corridor ends up in west Shenzhen, a disincentive for freight trucks trying to get to Futian, the commercial heart of the city. On the other side of the border, Lok Ma Chau villagers complain about the inadequate planning that has saturated their crucial bus facilities since the opening of the spur line.


Stonecutters Bridge, currently a 2.8 billion-dollar construction site earmarked for a 2008 opening, is set to link Cheung Sha Wan in Kowloon (of which Stonecutters Island is now geographically a part), to Tsing Yi on Lantau Island. The idea is ostensibly to cater to the increasing number of people who will live in new developments on the island, as well as road freight coming from Kwai Chung Port Terminal at the start of the bridge.


But Hong Kong’s population growth is low and falling, and immigration laws are strict. Its status as the region’s supreme logistics hub – while strong – is unlikely to rapidly accelerate, as the import-export business increasingly moves to cheaper and more direct ports on the mainland. Paul Zimmerman, convenor of ‘Designing Hong Kong Harbour District’ has said of the Highways Department’s public works industry: “they’re almost inventing excuses right now to build.”


Meanwhile, Cyberport – Hong Kong’s “IT flagship” and Hong Kong Disneyland have been disappointing. The former has little in the way of innovation and exists essentially as another property development rent spinner, not a real IT hub. The latter has not met attendance projections and the city’s HK$22.5 billion Disney investment is looking less rosy all the time. Indeed, Ocean Park, the city’s venerable amusement park and Disney rival is under new management, has been given a face life and is seeing its attendance growing.


A city that is battling with pollution, over-urbanization, high car taxes and a woefully high Gini ratio –a standard measure of income inequality, for which Hong Kong is ranked far below oligarchic Russia –should put more of its infrastructural eggs into the average man’s basket, by expanding fast, clean, cheap and efficient public transport like the MTR, instead of providing underused roads for expensive cars and developer’s wallets.

Mega-city plans for Hong Kong

By Vaudine England
BBC News, Hong Kong

Hong Kong may seem crowded enough to the seven million people who live in small flats in high-rise neighbourhoods.

But government-backed planners say the city's future lies in numbers, big numbers.

They say Hong Kong should be merged with Shenzhen, the southern Chinese city across the border, to make a mega-city of 20 million people.

Only then can Hong Kong be one of the world's great cities, argues a research report by the government-linked Bauhinia Foundation.

"It is not only merging, it is really creating a metropolis between Hong Kong and Shenzhen," Anthony Wu, director of the Bauhinia Foundation, said.

"If you look at the long term competitiveness of Hong Kong, Hong Kong has only got seven million people, and... Shenzhen has 13 million people. You need to merge the two to create a bigger metropolis to take advantage of China and the world."

So does he envisage an endless sprawl of buildings and highways to gobble up all the space and greenery between urban Hong Kong and southern China?

Mr Wu says the first goal is to build a direct express train link between the two cities' international airports.

The next goal would be to ease visa procedures for residents of Shenzhen to come into Hong Kong more readily.

At present, Hong Kong people can move in and out of China on a thumb-print if they have their permanent residency smart card.

Mainland Chinese must apply in advance for visitor permits, and can only get two at a time. They cannot wake up in the morning and decide to pop across to Hong Kong for some business without planning ahead.

Money-maker

More controversial is the Lok Ma Chau Loop - one of those quirks of history which may have huge repercussions.

Back when Hong Kong was a British colony, its border with China was marked by the Shenzhen River, and like many rivers, it curved.

When the river was straightened, it left a square kilometre of land, technically owned by China and now under Hong Kong rule, known as the Lok Ma Chau Loop.

"Hong Kong and Shenzhen have been arguing about this, who should do what, so we're suggesting, in this place here, the land-right belongs to Shenzhen, but the administrative rights are Hong Kong's," Mr Wu said.

"So if we could use this as an example, as a pilot, Shenzhen people could just go there without visas, Hong Kong people could just go there, and let the market decide.

"Maybe this is a very good place for health care... for high-tech factories... for museums and whatever. This could be an example where the mainland and Hong Kong actually work together, borderless."

It sounds exciting, particularly for those Chinese local government officials who stand to make a fortune if the Loop is developed, Hong Kong's leading business commentator, Jake van der Kamp, says.

"They would stand to make a lot of money. At the moment they can't develop it because it has got no water, no sewer, and lots of contaminated mud that can't be dug out because the Mai Po nature reserve is just down the stream," he says.

"And they've been, for the last 10 years, trying to get it developed and sold and make a lot of money. They haven't been able to do it yet and I think this whole idea of a megapolis is in fact a red herring to try to get the Lok Ma Chau loop developed."

But what of the larger idea. Does a bigger population make a greater city?

Mr Wu, whose research report was promptly followed by a seminar hosted by the government's Central Policy Unit backing the same idea, says yes.

"If you look at London, New York [and] Tokyo, all these major metropolises, first of all you do need a big population," he says.

Put it to him that what makes cities great is culture, history, traditions and values more than mere numbers of people, and Mr Wu barely rests for breath.

That is why Hong Kong should merge with China, he argues, as Hong Kong has the legal system and China the 5,000 years of culture.

The local establishment newspaper, the English-language South China Morning Post, seemed to support this all the way.

An editorial argued that the "one country, two systems" mantra, designed to guarantee Hong Kong's autonomy under Chinese rule, was a "straitjacket", which "but for history" was holding Hong Kong back.

Different wish-lists

This barrage of big ideas has left not a few Hong Kong people breathless, but in a different way to Mr Wu.

No sooner has the idea of merger arisen, than it seems to have become a political re-arrangement, in which Hong Kong risks losing its status as an independent international city and becoming just another bit of China.

The implications of that worries those concerned about Hong Kong's other freedoms - of press, of assembly and of ideas.

"What is required for a merger? This place is already merged," Mr van de Kamp says.

"Hong Kong provides the services to the whole Pearl River Delta that provides manufacturing and cheap wages and together they put junk Christmas toys into the United States."

He went on: "There are too many government officials in Hong Kong who believe it their duty to please the authorities in the mainland and because the ones in Shenzhen and Guangzhou are nearer than the ones in Beijing, those are the ones they please."

It is left to a population geographer, Professor Jianfu Shen at Hong Kong's Chinese University, to bring the grand plans back to earth. He says the key is to allow those who want to move across the border more freely, to do so.

But, he says, the two cities have different wish-lists and finding a consensus will not be easy.

Hong Kong wants the airports connected, a clear division of labour, co-ordination so that the ports do not compete, better environmental measures and more investment.

Shenzhen, he says, wants easier travel arrangements into Hong Kong for its people, and more co-operation of scientific research.

"Recently, yes, the two governments have become much more interested in how we can do something together," said Professor Shen. "But it will never become a single city, it's not possible."

Nahh .. too big a social gap to put the two together now.

The whole BBC article is just what we, locally, read a month ago and got published in the UK only. Nothing new to us.

Not gonna happen in the near future. The title of the article seems to give a sense of exaggeration, although the content has valid points. HK is not ready, nor is the rest of the PRD.

there official news from SAR government indicated that current chief officer are interested in to built a even greater size of hk to compete other metropolises such like nyc, tokyo, and london. the hk and shenzhen uni-city are shortest cut to achieved this goal.

should hk and shenzhen be merged into one city? why, when and how?
should hk and shenzhen not be merged into one city? why when and how?

no

no, Hong Kong is special

No.

No, because the exact set of questions--why, when, how--has not been answered.

No. Shenzhen still has the worst reputation in the hearts of HK people. Shenzhen is not Canton, the residents there don't even know how to speak Cantonese. You know, Mandarin language and simplified Chinese characters are the scars of Han Chinese culture. Luckily, Manchurians and communists both have a minimum impact on HK.:cheers:

No. Shenzhen still has the worst reputation in the hearts of HK people. Shenzhen is not Canton, the residents there don't even know how to speak Cantonese. You know, Mandarin language and simplified Chinese characters are the scars of Han Chinese culture. Luckily, Manchurians and communists both have a minimum impact on HK.:cheers:

So? Most Londoners think their city is overrun by Poles (or other immigrants) who can't speak a word of English.

Never.

At the risk of going in opposition to everyone here I would like to voice a contrary opinion. (Actually it's because my base is in Shenzhen :D )

I say yes, but not just yet. Two conditions will be required for it to happen: economic parity across both sides of the river and the population of either Hongkong or Shenzhen finally using up all available land.

As for Shenzhen being not culturally Cantonese, well that's because unlike Guangzhou (Canton) it's an immigrant city! But fear not, as long as the recent infusion of Hongkong residents and their present and future families continue to grow and exert their influence there is still a chance that they can eventually "culture-flip" Shenzhen.

Hell No.

I say yes~:banana:

Umm, if you ask this question you're incredibly ignorant of the local culture in the PRD.

Even in places like the United States, Megalopolis's are still considered distinct cities, even though HK and Shenzhen's economies are tied together more and more it still lacks the transparency and compatibility for them to merge together.

So? Most Londoners think their city is overrun by Poles (or other immigrants) who can't speak a word of English.

I couldn't help but think that during my stay in HK this summer. I stayed at a hotel in Tsing Yi targeted mainly towards mainlanders going to Disneyland tours (there were places SPECIFICALLY for tour buses to drop people off in the hotel, not a common sight in HK), and everyday there almost EVERYONE spoke mandarin and were incredibly loud and rude.

If it wasn't for the red taxi cabs outside I would've thought I was in China.

I think it'd be hard given that the two places have different law & order,
probably institutes like ICAC, will find it hard to operate in such an environment. Remaining as close economic partners is fine, no need for a merger ~

You know, Mandarin language and simplified Chinese characters are the scars of Han Chinese culture. Luckily, Manchurians and communists both have a minimum impact on HK.:cheers:
Why you equate Mandarin with Manchurians is beyond me. I hope you read up a little more on the history of Mandarin before making such baseless connections.

Also to call Mandarin "scar" of Han Chinese culture is extremely ignorant.

I don't think merging these two cities into one is a good idea, at least for now. there are just too many differences between these two cities, and there will be tonnes of policy changes to be made to either hk or sz if both gov't do decide to merge into one. Moreover, HK will definitely lose its appeal to the western world if that happens, and foreign investment will either flow to shanghai or out of hk. Maybe another 30 years to go before we might see a referendum about amalgamating these two cities, but if that does happen, this will be one of the most influential regions in the world!

^^ Extremely ignorant indeed (refering to Pangu's comment)...that guy must be one of those HK people that hates simplified characters and mandarin with a passion.

More and more people in HK are gonna speak mandarin whether you like it not, believe it or not about just 15 years ago no one in Shanghai spoke mandarin (they understood mandarin but no one speaks it), if you spoke mandarin in Shanghai you'd be looked down upon, this is hardly the case now in Shanghai. I can see the same thing happening in HK.

Having said that I like the idea of a HK/SZ megacity, given their proximity I think market forces will push the two cities to further intergration.

It won't happen in the next 40 years..

Beijing would go against this because of political resaons. you know how the central government have been emphasizing the concept of "one country, two systems"? It has a strong political meaning to both Beijing and Hk. They aint going to break that bond for the sake of economical benefits.

More and more people in HK are gonna speak mandarin whether you like it not, believe it or not about just 15 years ago no one in Shanghai spoke mandarin (they understood mandarin but no one speaks it), if you spoke mandarin in Shanghai you'd be looked down upon, this is hardly the case now in Shanghai. I can see the same thing happening in HK.


It's just the trend HKers have to know mandarin giving the fact there are more and more interaction with the mainland in the business world as well as massive amount of mainland tourists in HK. You just can't live without it. Cantonese will still be the day-to-day dialect for the local, but we will live in a trilingual society.

Personally, I hate simplified Chinese, too, the charaters just look awful compares to traditional charaters and simplitfied charaters take away the key concept of Chinese charaters in many aspect. No doubt that simplified is easier to write and save time for jotting notes, there are benefits to it. But I still think we should learn Chinese with traditional charater in school. Once you know the traditional one, it is rather easy to pick up the simplified; not vice versa though.

Personally, I hate simplified Chinese, too, the charaters just look awful compares to traditional charaters and simplitfied charaters take away the key concept of Chinese charaters in many aspect. No doubt that simplified is easier to write and save time for jotting notes, there are benefits to it. But I still think we should learn Chinese with traditional charater in school. Once you know the traditional one, it is rather easy to pick up the simplified; not vice versa though.
I sort of agree with you.

In general, I prefer Traditional Chinese too but let's face it, some characters are needlessly complex and needed to be simplified, while others didn't need to be simplified were anyway and ended up looking quite ugly. The ideal situation would be to somehow combine the two.

Yes it is extremely easy to pick up Simplified Chinese if you already know Traditional Chinese. It took me matter of days, actually more like hours as I didn't study & practice all day long, to master Simplified Chinese. I definitely think it's harder the other way around but not by much. I know many people who grew up in Mainland China who picked up Traditional Chinese without trouble.

should hong kong and japan merge?

Personally, I hate simplified Chinese, too, the charaters just look awful compares to traditional charaters and simplitfied charaters take away the key concept of Chinese charaters in many aspect. No doubt that simplified is easier to write and save time for jotting notes, there are benefits to it. But I still think we should learn Chinese with traditional charater in school. Once you know the traditional one, it is rather easy to pick up the simplified; not vice versa though.

I think its great that theres two set of characters, each has its own purpose, no doubt ONLY traditional characters should be used for art, calligraphy, all things pertaining to classical & ancient chinese and sometimes signs. (and it should never be allowed to fade) But simplified characters are just more practicle in everyday life. I mean when you need to write a note or something informal it wouldn't need it to be aesthically pleasing (not that I think simplified look bad) or for it to have a strong chinese element to it, and simplied characters are easier to write in absolute terms.

Yes it is extremely easy to pick up Simplified Chinese if you already know Traditional Chinese. It took me matter of days, actually more like hours as I didn't study & practice all day long, to master Simplified Chinese. I definitely think it's harder the other way around but not by much. I know many people who grew up in Mainland China who picked up Traditional Chinese without trouble.

Also I don't think its any harder to a person knowing simplified to pick up traditional than it is for a person knowing traditional to pick up simplified. When I came to NZ just when I was 7 all the chinese signs and newspapers were in traditional (mainly HK/TW people here at the time) and I learnt it by just reading those signs, and occassionally reading some newspapers. (one european friend of mine learning chinese in uni learnt traditional by singing kareoke and reading the subtitles)

I really can't imagine writing an essay in traditional though, but then again I can't really write an essay in simplified either. :lol:

I think its great that theres two set of characters, each has its own purpose, no doubt ONLY traditional characters should be used for art, calligraphy, all things pertaining to classical & ancient chinese and sometimes signs. (and it should never be allowed to fade) But simplified characters are just more practicle in everyday life. I mean when you need to write a note or something informal it wouldn't need it to be aesthically pleasing (not that I think simplified look bad) or for it to have a strong chinese element to it, and simplified characters are easier to write in absolute terms.

You can still scribble with tradition character even if you need to write it fast, not necessarily write in simplified. And in HK, people use English to jot notes for Chinese, too.

A lot of the time simplified chinese combined all the characters that sound alike into one single character. When you speak, you have the tone to figure out what the words mean. But when you read, you don't get the tone speak to you and the same character can mean very different things in just one sentence. Simplified takes away the basic logical of traditional, it's like a puzzle you have to figure the real meaning of a single character where traditional doesn't have that problem.

Also I don't think its any harder to a person knowing simplified to pick up traditional than it is for a person knowing traditional to pick up simplified. When I came to NZ just when I was 7 all the chinese signs and newspapers were in traditional (mainly HK/TW people here at the time) and I learnt it by just reading those signs, and occassionally reading some newspapers. (one european friend of mine learning chinese in uni learnt traditional by singing kareoke and reading the subtitles)

I really can't imagine writing an essay in traditional though, but then again I can't really write an essay in simplified either. :lol:

I also know people that have problem to pick up traditional after learned simplified. Because there are too many strokes and characters for them.

You can still scribble with tradition character even if you need to write it fast, not necessarily write in simplified. And in HK, people use English to jot notes for Chinese, too.

I'm not saying you can't scribble in traditional, I'm saying simplified has its uses. If you were a foreigner who didn't know any chinese, would you think its easier to scribble '义' or '義'

A lot of the time simplified chinese combined all the characters that sound alike into one single character. When you speak, you have the tone to figure out what the words mean. But when you read, you don't get the tone speak to you and the same character can mean very different things in just one sentence. Simplified takes away the basic logical of traditional, it's like a puzzle you have to figure the real meaning of a single character where traditional doesn't have that problem.

No idea what you're saying there.

No idea what you're saying there.

Just an example. In simplified,「丁」can mean 「丁」,「叮」,「盯」,「釘」or「靪 」
in traditional. If I write 「丁上了」, which one do I really mean? It can be 「盯上了」or「釘上了」, first one means "attracted to" and the second one means "nailed to."

Just an example. In simplified,「丁」can mean 「丁」,「叮」,「盯」,「釘」or「靪 」
in traditional. If I write 「丁上了」, which one do I really mean? It can be 「盯上了」or「釘上了」, first one means "attracted to" and the second one means "nailed to."

How does the character「丁」mean 「丁」,「叮」,「盯」,「釘」and「靪」in simplified?「丁」in simplified means a person who does a particular job, e.g 园丁, or it can mean a small peice of vegetable or meat, e.g 鸡丁.

'Attracted to' written in simplified is 盯上了, and 'Nailed to' is 钉上了. Whats so confusing?

Why you equate Mandarin with Manchurians is beyond me. I hope you read up a little more on the history of Mandarin before making such baseless connections.

Also to call Mandarin "scar" of Han Chinese culture is extremely ignorant.
Sure, it is beyond you. I expect the Mandarin speakers will pop up and tell me to read more history books that are politically correct under the Beijing-centered throne.

Study more phonetics and its history. Mandarin first appeared near the capital of Mongolian Yuan Dynasty (ie today's Beijing) and the language had been constantly influenced by northern foreign rulers for centuries.

學(to learn) in Cantonese, Hakka, Minnan, Sino-Vietnamese, Sino-Korean and Sino-Japanese are "hok", "hok", "hak", "hoc", "hak" and "gaku". In Mandarin, it is "xue".
角(horn) in Cantonese, Sino-Vietnamese, Sino-Korean and Sino-Japanese are "gok", "goc", "kok", "koku". In Mandarin, it is "jiao".
二(two) in Cantonese, Sino-Vietnamese, Sino-Korean and Sino-Japanese are "yi", "nhi", "i" and "ni". In Mandarin, it is "er".

It isn't baseless to say Mandarin had weaker connections to Middle Chinese language when it comes to the pronunciation of Han Chinese characters. Mandarin didn't preserve any final sounds(-m, -p, -t, -d) except the simple -n and -ng. The tones of Han Chinese language during Tang-Song era were 平(flat), 上(up), 去(away), 入(in). Tones then could be divided to two textures, 陰(dark, means female higher pitch) and 陽(bright, means male lower pitch). What happened after Northern Song Dynasty? The political center of China had shifted to a town at the fragile edge of Great Wall, a place now known as Beijing. In fact, the place that cradled Mandarin was not even Han Chinese after the ceding of northern sixteen prefectures(燕雲十六州) from AD 938 to 1911, except the 276 years of Ming rule. Now who is ignorant? Mandarin IS the scar of Han Chinese unless you think the Mongolians/Manchurians have justified reasons to conquer China, and declare their adapted versions of Chinese language to be the only standard Chinese language.

Before you all go all the long way to argue about culture and language differences between HK and SZ (and PRC), would anybody please first suggest a definition of merger? On what aspect? Economical? Cultural? Governmental and institutional?

If you are talking about Governmental merger i think it is not quite practical in next 100 years. For we still an independent government and legal system that is entirely different from SZ. But if you are just talking about having governments which policy/organisation are compatitable with each other, that would have some possibilities. For Economic integration, it is taking place every single day.

Please know the question before you answer.

^^ The question is plain simple. It's all about politics. In China (PRC), politics always leads administration, culture, language and economy. Politics is led by nothing except the communist party.

Frequent economic interactions won't make two cities become one. However, politics can make a bunch of villages and towns with tiny economic interactions become one huge city in China.

In short, the communist party defines that one city is one level of political division. Cultural differences are discouraged because they may weaken the central power in Beijing.

Personally, I hate simplified Chinese, too, the charaters just look awful compares to traditional charaters and simplitfied charaters take away the key concept of Chinese charaters in many aspect.

A sad fact is that over 90% of Chinese population in the world are using Simplified Characters--- Characters showing outright ignorance towards the traditions followed throughout 2000 years, despite some simplification are following the traditional "Cao Shu" scripts.

Now who is ignorant? Mandarin IS the scar of Han Chinese unless you think the Mongolians/Manchurians have justified reasons to conquer China, and declare their adapted versions of Chinese language to be the only standard Chinese language.

It is lucky that the conquerers were largely primitive tribes, so that we could still preserve the traditional characters in most of Chinese world right until 1950.

Remember the Sino-British Joint Declaration and the Basic Law remain in effect until at least 2047. That means it is very unlikely there will be a merger within the next 40 years.

I say the merge of Hong Kong and Shenzhen would come true one day. Whether you like it or not, the change would be gradual and natural just as Hong Kong is being merged as part of the country. With the opening of Shenzhen Bay Port, I feel like going to Shekou just as going to Mong Kok :lol:. BTW, Putonghua and Simplified Hanzi are not hard to learn. Listen more and read more and you will get used to it.

I think its great that theres two set of characters, each has its own purpose, no doubt ONLY traditional characters should be used for art, calligraphy, all things pertaining to classical & ancient chinese and sometimes signs. (and it should never be allowed to fade) But simplified characters are just more practicle in everyday life. I mean when you need to write a note or something informal it wouldn't need it to be aesthically pleasing (not that I think simplified look bad) or for it to have a strong chinese element to it, and simplied characters are easier to write in absolute terms.
Chinese have used simplified characters to write notes, letters and other unofficial documents for hundreds of years. Simplified characters existed way before the Communists standardized them. :) I can't speak for people in HK but in TW, even today, many people still mix in simplified characters when they write notes or letters.

Also I don't think its any harder to a person knowing simplified to pick up traditional than it is for a person knowing traditional to pick up simplified. When I came to NZ just when I was 7 all the chinese signs and newspapers were in traditional (mainly HK/TW people here at the time) and I learnt it by just reading those signs, and occassionally reading some newspapers. (one european friend of mine learning chinese in uni learnt traditional by singing kareoke and reading the subtitles)

I really can't imagine writing an essay in traditional though, but then again I can't really write an essay in simplified either. :lol:
I only assumed it's SLIGHTLY harder for a person who knows simplified Chinese to learn traditional Chinese as it seems logical. I personally believe the difference in difficulty is extremely minimal though.

Who really writes anymore? It's all about typing ;)

Sure, it is beyond you. I expect the Mandarin speakers will pop up and tell me to read more history books that are politically correct under the Beijing-centered throne.

Study more phonetics and its history. Mandarin first appeared near the capital of Mongolian Yuan Dynasty (ie today's Beijing) and the language had been constantly influenced by northern foreign rulers for centuries.

學(to learn) in Cantonese, Hakka, Minnan, Sino-Vietnamese, Sino-Korean and Sino-Japanese are "hok", "hok", "hak", "hoc", "hak" and "gaku". In Mandarin, it is "xue".
角(horn) in Cantonese, Sino-Vietnamese, Sino-Korean and Sino-Japanese are "gok", "goc", "kok", "koku". In Mandarin, it is "jiao".
二(two) in Cantonese, Sino-Vietnamese, Sino-Korean and Sino-Japanese are "yi", "nhi", "i" and "ni". In Mandarin, it is "er".

It isn't baseless to say Mandarin had weaker connections to Middle Chinese language when it comes to the pronunciation of Han Chinese characters. Mandarin didn't preserve any final sounds(-m, -p, -t, -d) except the simple -n and -ng. The tones of Han Chinese language during Tang-Song era were 平(flat), 上(up), 去(away), 入(in). Tones then could be divided to two textures, 陰(dark, means female higher pitch) and 陽(bright, means male lower pitch). What happened after Northern Song Dynasty? The political center of China had shifted to a town at the fragile edge of Great Wall, a place now known as Beijing. In fact, the place that cradled Mandarin was not even Han Chinese after the ceding of northern sixteen prefectures(燕雲十六州) from AD 938 to 1911, except the 276 years of Ming rule. Now who is ignorant? Mandarin IS the scar of Han Chinese unless you think the Mongolians/Manchurians have justified reasons to conquer China, and declare their adapted versions of Chinese language to be the only standard Chinese language.
Read your original post and my reply again.

You equated Mandarin with Manchurian.

I agree with 99% of what you said as most of it are simply facts.

The ONLY thing I don't agree with is your prejudice and ignorant hatred for "impurities" in Mandarin

Fact is, languages evolve and change over time, sometimes the changes are influenced by foreign languages, sometimes it evolves from within. Are you so certain that Southern Chinese dialects have no foreign influence at all?

But of course, it's your right to hate Mandarin for having foreign influences, however ignorant as that opinion may be...

Who really writes anymore? It's all about typing ;)



One week at my dad's office in Hong Kong completely proves your point...I'm great at reading and typing, but... :nuts:

One week at my dad's office in Hong Kong completely proves your point...I'm great at reading and typing, but... :nuts:
Typing can be both a blessing and a curse ;)

I remember back in college, many students don't even know how to spell words properly thanks to spellcheck. They would just try to sound it out or type the words as how they think they are spelled and spellcheck would automatically correct them in the end. Of course, spellcheck isn't smart enough to correct MISUSAGE of words such as their/there/they're, its/it's or your/you're... etc.

It's the same with Chinese. I noticed that my reading skill is superb while my actual writing skill has deteriorated because when you type in Chinese, you get to pick from a list of characters. For example, if I typed "beijing", I get to choose between 北京 and 背景, and most of the time the computer is even smart enough to choose for you (mine is anyway) :)

But with typing, the difference between simplified & traditional Chinese becomes moot and depending on how often you type, you can type Chinese just as fast, if not faster, than English, as it is in my case, and I type English pretty damn fast too!

What if central government to hand sz's administration over hk?

by the way, if we still bound our feet because of the issues like the writing system, i feel worry about the future

So? Most Londoners think their city is overrun by Poles (or other immigrants) who can't speak a word of English.

Oh really? Breaking news! Most of Polish imigrants in UK know English (and many of othem know it pretty well). There're always be imigrants who can't speak a word in a country's language they're in, but don't generalize. Most of Polish imigrants in UK are people in age between 18-35. They educated and know languages.

And BTW I don't think HK and Shenzen should merge.

Oh really? Breaking news! Most of Polish imigrants in UK know English (and many of othem know it pretty well). There're always be imigrants who can't speak a word in a country's language they're in, but don't generalize. Most of Polish imigrants in UK are people in age between 18-35. They educated and know languages.


Talk about taking offence...if it's of any consolation, it wasn't meant to be offending - just stating that's what the idiotic average Londoner believes.

深港機場巴士明通車
31/10/2007

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【本報訊】設於九龍機鐵站、首設一站式深港登機服務的「深圳機場城市候機樓」及「深圳機場香港快線」跨境巴士，明日起正式投入服務。旅客可在港直接辦理深圳機場登機手續後，乘坐深圳機場香港快線跨境巴士，直達深圳機場，內地旅客亦可在同大樓內辦理轉機前往外地的手續。

可預先辦登機手續
中港通集團有限公司獲授權經營候機樓及跨境快線，該公司董事總經理陳宗彝表示，城市登機服務是國際大勢所趨，一站式登機服務對商務旅客、經常往返內地市民或個人遊旅客尤其方便，預先辦理登機手續簡單，可減省到機場再輪候，延長旅客在港的消費時間。

陳宗彝指出，現時每年有三百萬名內地旅客經深圳機場到港，若百分之五至七旅客利用該項快線服務，已足令每班車爆滿，深圳機場前往內地各大城市的航班頻密，可以隨到隨走，機票價格比本港便宜三至六成，而直通巴士由九龍站機鐵站經西部通道過關前往深圳機場，全程約七十五分鐘，單程票價為九十元，適合商務及個人遊旅客。

深圳機場集團有限公司總裁汪洋指出，深圳機場佔內地航線優勢，現有一百零二條內地航線，通達七十個城市，相對在國際航線上佔優勢的香港機場，結合兩個機場優勢可以互補，對兩地經濟有利。

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Thousands from HK now calling Shenzhen home
21 August 2009
The Standard

Who is the typical Hong Kong citizen living and working in Shenzhen?

The person is a man in his 40s, married to a mainland woman, and living in Futian, Lo Wu or Longgang districts.

Educated up to matriculation level, he is probably employed as a manager and administrator in Shenzhen.

So finds the first ``Survey of Hong Kong People Living in Shenzhen,'' jointly commissioned by Hong Kong's Planning Department and the Statistics Bureau of the Shenzhen municipal government last year.

The findings show that 61,865 Hong Kong people from 40,731 households have taken up residence in Shenzhen.

Two-thirds are men with a median age of 43, the rest women age 35 on average. Of the total, 28,100 are employed and 10,800 retired, with the remainder either students or unemployed. The survey did not include children. For those with a job, about 67 percent and 29 percent work in Hong Kong and Shenzhen, respectively.

But of those who work in Shenzhen there is more commitment to being a resident in our neighboring city, visiting Hong Kong just to see friends and relatives and not to use facilities.

The survey found 62 percent of those living in Shenzhen had not used any health-care services in Hong Kong in the past six months. Up to 80 percent had not used sports or recreational facilities.

Around 87 percent of the Hong Kong households live in their own homes in Shenzhen, with flat sizes ranging from 61 square meters (656 square feet) to 100 sqm, which they had bought for 210,000 yuan (HK$238,200) to 500,000 yuan _ and 70 percent had fully paid up.

Those renting flats paid between 1,501 and 2,500 yuan.

The median monthly household income was 10,000 yuan. Excluding mortgage or rental payment, the median monthly cost of living in Shenzhen was 5,000 yuan.

The median salary for men was 9,154 yuan and for Hong Kong women working in Shenzhen, 6,249 yuan.

Most of those living and working in Shenzhen did not have ``a usual home base'' in Hong Kong.

And 71 percent of Hongkongers now living in Shenzhen say they do not intend to return to the SAR for residence in the next five years. If they do ever come back to take up residence, it will be for work or study.

For retirees, the main reason was for reunions and because living in Shenzhen is cheaper than it is in Hong Kong.

``It is believed that the phenomenon of Hong Kong people taking up residence in Shenzhen will continue. It is worthwhile for both sides to pay attention to this social phenomenon and the issues that may follow, such as the demand for cross-boundary infrastructure and the demand for housing, school places and public services,'' the report concluded.

A total of 4,200 households with 6,900 Hong Kong people were interviewed in September last year for the landmark survey, which covered Hong Kong residents who had lived in Shenzhen for three months or more during the six-month period before they were surveyed.