mk view of Hong Kong Photo: VCG" src="https://www.globaltimes.cn/Portals/0/attachment/2024/2024-06-30/97f524dd-a597-4da7-810a-eee2e29d0b73.png" />

The view of Hong Kong Photo: VCG

As the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) is set to celebrate the 27th anniversary of its return to the motherland on Monday, the city also embraced the 4th anniversary of the implementation of the National Security Law (NSL) for Hong Kong on Sunday. Meanwhile, with the completion of the Article 23 legislation and reform of the electoral system, Hong Kong has already entered the best development period from being well governed to achieving prosperity, where opportunities outweigh challenges, officials said. 

In summarizing his experiences as the HKSAR Chief Executive for two years, John Lee said from a global perspective, Hong Kong has performed well in many areas and continues to shine on the world stage, according to a video the Hong Kong official posted on his social media over the weekend. 

"Today's Hong Kong has entered the best development period from being well governed to achieving prosperity, stepping onto the fast track of national development, promoting the development of new quality productive forces and deepening reform. Opportunities and challenges coexist but opportunities outweigh challenges," Lee said. 

Lee also noted that Hong Kong society is now both safe and stable, making it the best time for development. 

On the occasion of the 4th anniversary of the implementation of the NSL for Hong Kong, a HKSAR government spokesperson said on Sunday that the law transformed Hong Kong society from chaos to order, allowing people's livelihoods and economic activities to return to normalcy. 

Hong Kong's rise in world competitiveness rankings to be among the world's top economies is the best testament to the fact that high-level security protection would underpin high-quality development, the spokesperson said. 

This year's anniversary of Hong Kong's return to the motherland also takes place after the long overdue local security law, known as the Safeguarding National Security Ordinance, took effect in March. 

The NSL for Hong Kong and the ordinance are compatible and complementary, jointly establishing a comprehensive and effective legal system for safeguarding national security and ensuring the effective protection of national security, the spokesperson said. 

This "dual legislation and dual enforcement mechanism" gives full play to institutional advantages, building a strong line of defense to maintain security and stability in the HKSAR, as well as providing solid institutional safeguards to promote good governance, the spokesperson added. 

This year marks the near complete reshaping of Hong Kong's political landscape and governance model, thereby laying a solid political foundation for Hong Kong's future development and allowing it to write new chapters from this historical starting point, Lau Siu-kai, a consultant from the Chinese Association of Hong Kong and Macao Studies who is also a senior policy advisor, told the Global Times on Sunday. 

Following those measures of safeguarding the national security in Hong Kong, almost all the anti-China and anti-Hong Kong figures who planned and directed the violent protests in Hong Kong have been brought to justice, put on trial, placed on wanted lists, or fled to avoid punishment, Lau said.

"The US and Western countries, along with 'Taiwan independence' separatist forces, have lost the opportunity and space to cultivate agents and accomplices in Hong Kong and to destabilize the city," Lau said, noting that Hong Kong is no longer a weak point or hidden threat to national security. 

The US and Western countries can no longer turn Hong Kong into a base for subverting the mainland or weaken Hong Kong's unique contributions to national development by disrupting its stability, the expert said. 

On the occasion of celebrating the 27th anniversary of Hong Kong's return to the motherland on Friday, Zheng Yanxiong, director of the central government's liaison office in the HKSAR, stressed the central government's unwavering commitment and full support of local people for One Country, Two Systems. 

"Hong Kong's prosperity remain rock solid, and the 'Pearl of the Orient' retains its charm," Zheng said, noting that the city has been reborn from the ashes, ushering in unprecedented development in various sectors.  

"Over the past two years, the CE has successfully transformed the current HKSAR government culture, making civil servants results-oriented," Chu Kar-kin, a veteran current affairs commentator and deputy secretary-general of the Hong Kong Association for Promotion of Peaceful Reunification of China, told the Global Times on Sunday.

The civil service team has implemented over 200 performance indicators, benefiting the public, and the HKSAR government has also promoted major events, aiming to revive Hong Kong's tourism industry by attracting visitors from the mainland and abroad, thereby revitalizing Hong Kong's tourism and enhancing its image, the expert noted. 

Over the past two years, there has been a noticeable change in the governance mindset and model of the HKSAR government, Lau said.

While generally maintaining a simple and low tax system and prudent financial management, the HKSAR government leads the business and social sectors in actively promoting Hong Kong's economic development, industrial transformation, improvement of people's livelihoods, optimization of the investment environment, and care for the underprivileged, Lau said. 

Also, over the past two years, the HKSAR government and patriotic forces have largely changed the long-standing "passive" stance toward the continuous slander, sanctions and suppression by the US and other Western countries, experts said. 

They have firmly rebutted the false and malicious slanders by US and Western politicians, media, and think tanks by "stating facts and reasoning," highlighting the political courage.

It has also enhanced the prestige of patriotic forces among Hong Kong residents and helped to further isolate and contain the remaining anti-China and anti-Hong Kong elements, experts noted.