Christian Service News
Issue 63 (April 2009)
Newsflash
National Studies on "China's 30-Year Reform"
In order to increase our staff's concern for and understanding of our country, and also to raise their enthusiasm to participate in our projects in China, our Agency has held Study Tours to Beijing and Shanghai in the past two years. This year, we organized a "National Studies Programme" for them.
The first part of the programme consisted of a seminar on "China's 30-Year Reform", held in the morning of 24 February. Mr. Huang Xiao Jun, researcher at the Guangdong Social Science Research Institute gave a profound and comprehensive account of modern China during and after China's 30 years of reform from different aspects, including her achievements, her powerful influence on the world's superpowers, environmental issues, civic and moral issues, and social problems.
In the afternoon, a sharing session was held. Mr. So Man Hing, the Ex-Chief Officer of the Inland Consultation Services Centre of Hong Kong Federation of Trade Unions and Ms. Bonnie So, the Ex-Head of the International & Relief Service Department of Hong Kong Red Cross shared their experience and feelings working in the Mainland.
Then on 6 March, our 2 Deputy Chief Executives, Ms. Betty Woo and Mr. Suen Lai Sang led 14 Agency staff to Shenzhen on a National Studies Tour. Ms. Lü Xiao Wen, the Secretary-General of Shenzhen Association of Social Workers guided us to visit an exhibition titled "Shenzhen's Reform and Opening-up History" at the Shenzhen Museum, and the Shenzhen Hi-Tech Industrial Park Bio-incubator, a site built to support those newly set-up bio-engineering enterprises. The tour members also visited Fishermen Village, one of the New Socialist Rural Villages in Luwo District.
The changes, opportunities and challenges brought about by the 30-year reform have certainly affected the development of social welfare in both the Mainland and Hong Kong.