Extracts. Central Government Abides by "One Country, Two Systems" Principle: Macao Chief Executive. Edmund Ho Hau Wah, chief executive of the Macao Special Administrative Region (SAR), Thursday spoke highly of the central government's adherence to the principle of "One Country, Two Systems" since Macao's return to the motherland. "The central government has demonstrated great faith and confidence in Macao's public administration and civil society by letting us running our internal affairs without any interference. At the same time, the central government has given us invaluable support to ensure Macao's stability and progress," he said. Ho made the remarks in a speech at the APEC CEO Summit 2001 held here Thursday. The implementation of the Macao Basic Law ensures Macao to enjoy a high degree of autonomy, he said, noting that the territory has experienced a sharp fall in serious crime over the past two years. Macao is now one of the safest cities to live in the world, he said. Macao's foreign investment is on the rise, while tourists are arriving in greater numbers than ever before, according to the chief executive. In 2000, Macao's GDP growth stood at 4.6 percent. He pointed out that the fundamental rights of Macao's 440,000 residents have been fully protected and Macao's traditional pluralistic culture has been fully respected. Macao's capitalist system and its unique way of life are fully protected by the Basic Law, he said. In his speech, Ho talked about Macao's unique lifestyle and harmonious society, geographical advantages and extensive international connections, as well as its free port and low taxation policies. "Macao 's relative small economy depends, quite naturally, on external factors," Ho said. As an integral part of the Asia- Pacific economy, Macao will strengthen cooperative ties with member economies of APEC, he said. **** Arafat Orders to Arrest Suspects of Israeli Minister Assasination. Palestinian National Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat has issued orders to arrest those who are suspected to be involved in the assasination of Israeli Tourism Minister Rehavam Ze'evi, reliable Palestinian sources said on Wednesday. Ze'evi, leader of the far-right Yisrael Beiteinu-National Union bloc, was gunned down by unknown gunmen in Jerusalem's Hyatt Hotel Wednesday morning and died of his wounds three hours later in hospital. The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), whose leader Abu Ali Mustafa was assassinated by Israel on August 27, reportedly has claimed responsibility for the shooting of Ze'evi. **** Israeli Tanks Move Into West Bank Towns. Israel tanks and bulldozers moved into Palestinian-controlled areas in the West Bank towns of Ramallah and Jenin Thursday, Palestinian security officials and witnesses said. In the area of Jenin, eight tanks, given air cover by helicopter gunships, pushed five kilometres (three miles) into Palestinian-controlled territory, the security sources said. At Ramallah, tanks rolled several hundred metres (yards) into the town, in the northern and northeastern fringes. In the northeastern area, seven tanks were seen accompanying a bulldozer, which removed iron anti-tank spikes put in place by Palestinian security forces outside the Best Eastern Hotel. There were no reports of Palestinian resistance to the incursions, which appeared to have taken place without shots being fired. The Israeli army confirmed both operations, saying their objective was to "take positions around these two autnomous towns." The foray came a day after Israel's hardline tourism minister, Rehavam Zeevi, was assassinated in his Jerusalem hotel, and just hours after a Palestinian suicide bomber blew himself up near an Israeli army patrol in the Gaza Strip, slightly injuring two soldiers. Both attacks were claimed by the radical left-wing Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), a group opposed to the 1993 peace accords between Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat and Israel. Israel had warned Arafat to hand over Zeevi's killers or face a collapse in the peace initiative he renewed with Israeli Foreign Minister Shimon Peres three weeks ago. Palestinian police arrested several PFLP members in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, PFLP officials said. **** Anthrax Spores Found in Kenya Mail. The U.S. anthrax scare was officially exported overseas Thursday, with Kenyan officials saying bacterial spores were found in a package of cloth samples mailed to a Nairobi doctor from a relative in Atlanta. While dozens of cases of suspicious powders continued to crop up Thursday from China to France to Germany, the package in Nairobi was the first piece of confirmed anthrax-tainted mail received outside the United States since the Sept. 11 terror attacks. The doctor and four family members ``may have come into contact'' with the spores when the package was opened on Oct. 11, Health Minister Sam Ongeri said. Tests were done, but the family was ``not in danger,'' he said. A task force was set up, including Kenyan health, defense and agriculture officials as well people from the World Health Organization and the Atlanta-based U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The package had been mailed via Express Mail Service on Sept. 8 from Atlanta and was received Oct. 9, Ongeri said. It was opened two days later. It was sent to the Nairobi doctor by a relative living in Atlanta, said Dr. Julius Meme, a Health Ministry official. It contained samples of cloth and was damp. Upon opening the package and seeing some powder, the doctor called his relative to find out what it was, Meme said. The relative said he had no knowledge of any powder. The relative then asked postal officials in the United States and was told the package was routed to Miami before arriving in Nairobi, Meme said. The Nairobi case came as the number of anthrax cases �� and hoaxes �� in the United States continued to rise. Among them were people diagnosed with the skin form of the disease in New Jersey and New York City. Kenyan police spokesman Peter Kimanthi said investigators there would be discussing the package with their U.S. counterparts. Other anthrax mail scares reported in Kenya on Thursday were a letter apparently sent from Pakistan to an official at the U.N. Environment Program in Nairobi, and a letter from the Kenyan capital to a businessman in the central town of Nyeri. Both letters included white powder, were being examined, Ongeri said. Results were expected Friday. **** 29 at U.S. Congress Confirmed Positive for Anthrax Exposure. Twenty-nine people at U.S. Congress have tested positive for anthrax exposure, including many aides of Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle and two Capitol police officers, House Speaker Dennis Hastert and Health Secretary Tommy Thompson said Wednesday. The news has promoted Congressional leaders to shut down the Senate and the House of Representatives unprecedentedly to search for anthrax spores. At a news conference in the Capitol basement, Hastert said that the House will shut down from Thursday through Monday. He said that lawmakers would leave Congress later Wednesday and the buildings on one side of the Capitol complex would be submitted to a "methodical sweeping" to check for evidence of anthrax. Hastert announced that anthrax also had been found in the Senate's mailroom and had gotten "into the ventilation system." There was no immediate announcement from Senate leaders as they grappled with the news that 29 people have tested positive for anthrax exposure after being in the vicinity where an anthrax- laced letter to Daschle's office was opened. The tests found that the letter contained a highly refined form of anthrax and suggested that it was produced by experts. Democratic House leader Dick Gephardt said that it is a " prudent" and "cautious" step to shut down Congress. In Florida and New York, four people are known to have contracted anthrax and nine others have tested positive for the anthrax bacteria, including one who died earlier this month. The anthrax scare came five weeks after the worst terrorist strikes in U.S. history killed more than 5,000 in New York and Washington. At a hearing before a Senate committee, Secretary Tommy Thompson said that "there is no question this is a very serious attempt at anthrax poisoning." "Bioterrorism has never hit America like it has in the last couple of weeks and what we're trying to do is we're trying to calm down the American public, tell them we can respond to a bioterrorism attack," he told CBS' "The Early Show" earlier Wednesday. "There's no question that right now we are in a period of the unknown," but he assured that the government was working to strengthen local and state public health systems, and to stockpile more antibiotics. "We are prepared to respond and we have been able to respond." The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is stepping up its investigation into the anthrax cases in the country. Tests were under way to determine whether the anthrax found in New York and in Florida were from the same strain, FBI officials said. "While organized terrorism has not been ruled out, so far we have found no direct link to organized terrorism," FBI Director Robert Mueller said Tuesday. **** Over 2,000 Afghan Refugees Ready to Join Taliban. Over 2,000 Afghan refugees in Haripur city, around 40 kilometers north of Islamabad, are ready to join Taliban forces within the next few days should the U.S.- led coalition launch a ground offensive against the Muslim regime, according to a leading Pakistani English paper daily Dawn on Thursday. The newspaper quoted sources close to the Haripur-based Afghan Clerics' Council as saying that over 2,000 trained Afghan youngsters had got their names registered for the Holy War against the U.S.-led forces in Afghanistan. The refugees have expressed their resolve to stand by the Taliban regime, following a religious decree issued by the Taliban supreme leader Mullah Mohammed Omar exhorting the Muslims all over the world to wage Holy War against the United States. "They all are well trained in warfare and know how to deal with enemy", said a member of the council when he was asked to comment on the ground attacks expected to be launched against the Taliban regime. According to Dawn, the Haripur-based Afghan Clerics' Council would send the reinforcement in groups, comprising 200 holy warriors each, clandestinely. However, the newspaper said, the local administration has finalized a plan to tackle with such a situation effectively. It said heavy contingents of police and frontier constabulary personnel had been deployed near the camps where the 2,000 Afghans lived. **** APEC CEO Summit 2001 Opens in Shanghai. APEC CEO Summit 2001 Opens in Shanghai APEC CEO Summit 2001, which is honored to have the top business people from 21 APEC member economies of the Asia-Pacific region as delegates, opens today in the Grand Hyatt Shanghai, Shanghai, China. Mr. Qian Qichen, Vice Premier of China, addresses the Summit on behalf of the Chinese Government and extends his cordial congratulation on its opening. Mr. Yu Xiaosong, Chairman of the Organizing Committee of APEC CEO Summit 2001 and the China Council for the Promotion of international Trade (CCPIT), and Mr. Xu Kuangdi, Mayor of Shanghai Municipal People's Government, also address the Summit. Mr. Qian Qichen speaks highly of the important role that every previous APEC CEO Summit has played in promoting the economic prosperity and development of the Asia-Pacific region. "The APEC CEO Summit has set up a platform for communication and cooperation, which gives expression to the long-held APEC spirit of equality and cooperation. Today, the elite of the Asia-Pacific business community meet once again in Shanghai to express their views and discuss major issues under the theme of 'New Century, New Economy: Developing in the Globalizing World'. Chinese President Jiang Zemin and many leaders from other member economies will address the Summit. This will be an occasion under the new situation for important communication and exchanges between entrepreneurs as well as between entrepreneurs and governments. It will help increase cooperation between enterprises in the Asia-Pacific region as well as strengthen relations between the enterprises and governments," says Mr. Qian. Mr. Qian points out that in the new century, the trend towards economic globalization has grown stronger. The New Economy has developed at an extraordinary speed. The economic situation in the Asia-Pacific region has undergone many changes. As major players in economic activities and technological innovation, enterprises are obviously under pressure from competition. However, a wider range of competition implies a wider range of cooperation at the same time. We stand for cooperation amidst competition, common development through cooperation and economic prosperity from common development, which will eventually lead to a better life for all people together. For enterprises from different APEC economies, it is entirely possible for them to bring into play their respective comparative advantages, boost inter-regional economic and technological cooperation, optimize the allocation of resources in a wider scope and on a greater scale and achieve an all-win outcome while seeking to maximize their profits. Mr. Qian says that China's accession to the WTO is imminent at present. The Chinese market and the world market will be more closely integrated. China's economic development will also depend more on its economic exchanges and cooperation with other countries and regions in the world, especially the Asia-Pacific region. An open China cannot do without the world. After its entry into the WTO, China will honor its commitments and more vigorously advance its all-directional, multi-tiered and wide-ranging opening-up. China will further open up its domestic market, increase open areas and localities, take well-measured steps to open wider in such service sectors as finance, insurance, telecom, trade and tourism and actively explore new approaches and ways to utilize foreign capital. China, which is at a new historic starting point, faces unprecedented opportunities for trade and investment. He sincerely welcomes enterprises from various economies to China to grasp business opportunity and seek even greater progress. In his speech, Mr. Yu Xiaosong says, "We are very glad to see that our delegates and speakers are of the best ones all over the world. Every one of them has his or her particular views on the economic development in the new century, and is confident in overcoming difficulties and in the progress of the human beings. It can be believed that the collision of their views will give birth to sparks of wisdom, which is our best expectation from the Summit. When the Summit concludes, we will say proudly that APEC CEO Summit 2001 will contribute a great deal to meeting challenges, reversing the slowdown tendency of the world economy, thus bringing it back into the right track in the APEC development process participated by the business community." Mr. Xu Kuangdi, Mayor of Shanghai Municipal People's Government, extends his warm welcome to the delegates and his cordial congratulations on the opening of the Summit on behalf of Shanghai Municipal People's Government and the 13 million Shanghai citizens. He says that the opening up of Shanghai is in great need of further exchange and cooperation with all countries and regions all over the world in the fields of economy, science and technology, culture, etc. The hosting of APEC meetings this year undoubtedly offers Shanghai an opportunity hard to come by. Shanghai will further improve its investment environment and market order, and more vigorously face the opportunities and challenges brought by the economic globalization. The main and auxiliary venues of the Summit are in the Pudong Shangri-La Hotel and the Grand Hyatt Shanghai respectively. The number of official delegates is over 500. The Summit will last from October 18 to October 20. During this period, leaders of some APEC member economies will address the Summit, including Mr. Jiang Zemin, President of China; Rt. Hon. Ms. Helen Clark, Prime Minister of New Zealand; H. E. Mr. Vladimir Putin, President of Russia ; H. E. Mr. Vicente Fox, President of Mexico; H. E. Mr. John Howard, Prime Minister of Australia ; H. E. Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, President of the Philippines; H. E. Dr. Mahathir Mohamad, Prime Minister of Malaysi; Mr. George W. Bush, President of the USA; and Mr. Tung Chee Hwa, Chief Executive of Hong Kong, China. A number of world-renowned economists and ministers from different APEC member economies will also deliver speeches at the Summit. Besides, the Organizing Committee of the Summit has also invited Mr. Edmund Ho Hau Wah, Chief Executive of Macao SAR, China, to attend the Summit and deliver a speech. There are more than 500 CEOs of world-renowned companies from the 21 APEC member economies. Among them are over 300 overseas ones, including FedEx, HSBC, Hewlett-Packard, General Motors, Microsoft, Citigroup, Unocal, Nationwide, Deloitte, AOL Time Warner, Amway, Applied Materials, Goldman Sachs, Mitsui, etc. The Summit also has delegates from over 80 Chinese companies in sectors such as finance, automobile manufacture, steel, worldwide shipping, oil, electricity, transportation, trade, high-tech, etc. The Opening Ceremony also witnesses the attendance of some Chinese ministers such as Mr. Zeng Peiyan, Minister, State Development Planning Commission, Mr. Li Rongrong, Minister, State Economic and Trade Commission, Mr. Xu Guanhua, Minister of Science & Technology, Mr. Zhang Zhongwei, Governor of Sichuan Province and Mr. Jiang Yiren, Vice Mayor of Shanghai Municipal People's Government, etc. The Opening Ceremony is chaired by Mr. Wan Jifei, Vice Chairman of the Organizing Committee of APEC CEO Summit 2001 and of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT). The Opening Ceremony is immediately followed by a special session on China. **** Chinese President Delivers Speech at APEC CEO Summit. Chinese President Jiang Zemin delivered a speech entitled "Striving for Development and Prosperity through Cooperation" in Shanghai Thursday at a welcoming dinner during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) CEO Summit 2001. Jiang extended warm welcome to the participants on behalf of the Chinese government and people as well as in his own name, noting that he has attended many sessions of APEC CEO Summit to discuss Asia-Pacific economic cooperation and development with business leaders in the region. _________________________________________________ KOMINFORM P.O. 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