Chinese President Jiang Zemin arrived in Hong Kong by special plane Sunday afternoon.

　　Jiang, who is also general secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and chairman of the Central Military Commission, will attend the celebration marking the fifth anniversary of the return of Hong Kong to the motherland and the inauguration of the second-term government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR) to be held here Monday.

　　Among those who arrived with Jiang aboard the same plane were Jiang Zemin's wife Wang Yeping; Vice Premier Qian Qichen and his wife Zhou Hanqiong; Wang Ke, member of the Central Military Commission and director of the People's Liberation Army (PLA) General Logistics Department; Wang Gang, chief of the General Office of the CPC Central Committee; Teng Wensheng, director of the Policy Research Office of the CPC Central Committee; and Liao Hui, director of the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council.

　　At 4:30 p.m., the special plane carrying Jiang landed at the Hong Kong International Airport. This is Jiang's fourth trip to Hong Kong since its return to the motherland.

　　Five years ago, Jiang led a Chinese government delegation to attend the handover ceremony on July 1, 1997, and declared to the world that the Chinese government resumed the exercise of sovereignty over Hong Kong and that the Hong Kong SAR was established.

　　Jiang also came to Hong Kong when Hong Kong celebrated its first anniversary of its return in 1998, and his third trip was made when the Fortune Global Forum 2001 was held in Hong Kong.

　　Jiang was accorded a red-carpet welcome from people of all walks of life in Hong Kong. About 150 children were lining up on both sides of the carpet, holding the miniature of the national flag and the SAR regional flag and flowers, while the band was playing welcome music.

　　When President Jiang and his wife Wang Yeping stepped down from the plane, two local children presented them with flowers. Jiang waved to the welcoming crowd with smiles.

　　Among those greeting Jiang at the airport were Hong Kong SAR Chief Executive Tung Chee Hwa and his wife Betty Tung, principal officials of the Hong Kong SAR government, and leaders of the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the Hong KongSAR, the Office of Commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairsin the Hong Kong SAR, and the PLA Hong Kong Garrison. Enditem

Xinhuanet 2002-06-30