It was also used by the government of Hong Kong to track the outbreak of SARS in 2003.
Only once before in 1999 has it pronounced on the law (on the question of who has residency rights in Hong Kong), and then it was at the request of the Hong Kong government.
Instead, says Loh, the government and influential segments of Hong Kong seem willing to address foreign concerns if it will redound to the SAR's material benefit.
Together these classes constitute the bulk of what the Hong Kong government now portrays as a tidal wave of humanity poised across the border, ready to swamp the territory.
It was all part of a public-private initiative led by Rachel Chan and supported by the Hong Kong government the idea being that these innovative startups could choose Hong Kong as a base of operations to scale.
Most importantly, Mr Ma professes not to give a damn what the Hong Kong government does, reinforcing China's promise to supervise in Hong Kong only matters of foreign affairs and defence.
Fred Hu, of Goldman Sachs in Hong Kong, argues that the government can afford the total costs of cleaning up the banking system if it acts now.
The American government has offered free flights out of both Hong Kong and Guangzhou to non-essential diplomats.
During his time as governor, the number of Chinese in senior government jobs in Hong Kong nearly doubled.
It is easy to put too much focus on the legislature, the most elective and politically charged branch of Hong Kong's government structure.
Yet in Hong Kong the government is sole supplier of fresh land for development.
Some marched off to the office of the Chinese government's liaison office in Hong Kong, though the movement failed to gather strength.
Heated discussion not so much about the rule of law in Hong Kong as the government's effort to beat down the no-confidence motion.
Yet such action exposes the flaw at the root of Hong Kong's economy: the government's addiction to revenues from land.
The Hong Kong government has come in for most of the blame, for taking the case up to Beijing in the first place and so compromising the judiciary.
An Indonesian Business Forum held in Hong Kong recently outlined the thrust of government policy, which aims to boost the skill sets of Indonesian foreign workers, particularly those working in building and construction.
Famous US investor Paul Tudor Jones has argued in a recent letter to investors that the US government should force a de-pegging of the RMB and Hong Kong dollar from the US dollar.
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Hong Kong's government has shown no hint of retreat, though it has promised to examine the public's concerns.
That's the trend worldwide - except in Hong Kong, where the government is eliminating layers of local government and centralizing their responsibilities.
With property values unlikely to soar again, at least in the short term, Hong Kong's government urgently needs fresh sources of revenue.
In February he proposed that the government set up a regulatory body called the Hong Kong Association of Minority Shareholders, which would protect the rights of investors (the proposal is under study).
With the first of the two phases scheduled to open in 2005, the government estimates Hong Kong Disneyland will attract about 5.2 million visitors in its first year.
The government objected to a ruling last January by Hong Kong's Court of Final Appeal, which had struck down a law denying residency to children born before one or other parent had acquired the right to live in Hong Kong.
The Beijing government will no doubt find ways to control Hong Kong's shortlist of candidates but, unlike the recent selection of Mr Leung, who was returned by an electoral college consisting mainly of party sympathisers, the public is supposed to have the final say.
He sold a piece of Hong Kong Telecom, its primary asset, to the Chinese government.
After the announcement, many Hong Kong tycoons came out slamming the deal, accusing the government of favoritism and not opening the project up to public tender.
The government is also taking a number of steps to improve the standard of English in Hong Kong schools, including the recruitment of some 750 additional native English-speaking teachers.
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