PLA officers in HK conduct 9th routine rotation

HONG KONG, Dec. 23 (Xinhua) -- Officers of the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) garrison troops in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) on Sunday conducted its ninth rotation since the troops assumed Hong Kong's defense responsibility on July 1, 1997.

A farewell ceremony was held in an army barrack in the New Territory of Hong Kong in the afternoon, and at 14:00, a number of military vehicles carrying the officers passed through the Lok Ma Chau checkpoint into neighboring Shenzhen city of Guangdong Province.

"Over the past years, I've experienced the prosperity and stability of Hong Kong as well as its sustained vitality," said Wang Xiuhui, a colonel from the PLA headquarters.

"I'm leaving Hong Kong, but I will as always care about what is going on here," he said, wishing the people of Hong Kong a better life in the future.

The officers are from the army, navy and airforce, and most of them were assigned to Hong Kong three years ago. Their replacements arrived in Hong Kong on Thursday and have taken up their respective posts.

The annual rotation was conducted in accordance with the HKSAR Basic Law and the HKSAR Garrison Law of the People's Republic of China.

The size of the forces remained unchanged after the rotation, said a spokesman for the PLA garrison troops in Hong Kong.