Hong Kong’s first leader feted by New York institute for fostering China-US ties

Hong Kong’s first chief executive Tung Chee-hwa has been honoured by the China-institute-of-america" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="136289" data-entity-type="organization">China Institute of America for his decades-long efforts to foster dialogue and understanding between the two countries.The China Institute Centennial Award was announced and presented at an event commemorating the non-profit institution’s first centennial in New York on Thursday.Tung, who served as Hong Kong’s first chief executive after Hong Kong returned to China’s sovereignty in 1997, was honoured alongside the families of former US presidents Richard Nixon and George H W Bush, as well as the Rockefeller family.Andy Tung (right) shows off the award he received on behalf of his father with James Chau, president of the China-united-states-exchange-foundation" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="136527" data-entity-type="organization">China-United States Exchange Foundation. Photo: CUSEFThe 88-year-old was represented at the ceremony by his son, Andy Tung Lieh-cheung, who accepted the award on his behalf and praised his father for consistently working to forge cooperation between the two nations despite their fundamental differences.