'HK Should Flag Up Its Uniqueness To Stay Ahead'

The US-based Heritage Foundation says Hong Kong should flag up how the SAR differs from the mainland, saying this is crucial to maintaining the city's competitiveness.

The conservative think tank had last week ranked Hong Kong as the freest economy in the world for the 25th straight year, but this time it raised concerns about the mainland's growing shadow on the city's affairs.

In its latest report, the foundation gave the city a score of 75.3 (out of 100) for its judicial effectiveness category, down sharply from 84 the previous year. The mainland also got the same marks this year.

The foundation's ambassador, Terry Miller, who is visiting Hong Kong to publicise the findings to the authorities here, said the government, as well as businesses and residents, should do more to flag up the city's distinctiveness.

He said Hong Kong's ranking in the judicial effectiveness category is down to perceptions and media coverage and it is up to the people here to change the perception elsewhere that Hong Kong's economic and judicial environment here is no different from that on the mainland.

But questioned about the accuracy of the foundation's report, being as Hong Kong and the mainland scored almost identically on "judicial effectiveness", Miller said the foundation was always looking to improve its data-collection process.