Many celebrities in Hong Kong, more than we know, have been appointed honorary consuls by foreign countries. The following excerpt from an article published in the September issue of Bauhinia Magazine tells us why:

Victor Li Tzar-kuoi, honorary consul of Barbados; Cheng Yu-tung, honorary consul of Bhutan; Gordon Wu Ying-sheung, honorary consul of Croatia; Tung Chee-chen, honorary consul of Monaco; David Tang, honorary consul of Cuba; Kennedy Wong Ying-ho, honorary consul of Albania; Johnny Hon Sei-hoe, honorary consul of Grenada ...

These prestigious business leaders, who have taken up posts as honorary consuls, are a bridge that promotes relations and business exchanges between Hong Kong and the rest of the world.

Until June of this year, 59 countries, most of which are small and located in Africa and Latin America, have established honorary consuls in Hong Kong.

There are more honorary consuls than the 56 consulate-generals in Hong Kong.

An honorary consul is a type of consul - an official representative of a state's government in another territory.

According to the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, there are two categories of consulate officers: career consulate officers and honorary consular officers.

Honorary consular officers rank below career consulate officers but enjoy the same consular rights.

The sending state can specifically recommend an honorary consul or ask the receiving state to select one. It is up to the states to decide whether they want to have an honorary consul.

The appointment of an honorary consul has to be recognized by the governments of both the sending state and receiving state.

Like the career consulates, the honorary consulates in Hong Kong provide services such as issuing travel documents, including visas and passports.

Receiving the heads of the sending states when they visit Hong Kong is also an important job of honorary consuls.

As the honorary consuls have to cover for part or all of the costs in receiving the heads of the sending states, most of the honorary consuls are wealthy people.

Apart from providing consular services, the honorary consuls in Hong Kong do many charity works for the mainland and their sending states.

Not long after the Sichuan earthquake, the honorary consuls of 10 states in Hong Kong donated HK$260,000 to help rebuild the province through the Office of the Commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the HKSAR.

Johnny Hon Sei-hoe, honorary consul of Grenada, donated 5,000 toys as Christmas gifts for the children of Grenada in 2006.

There are some advantages to being honorary consuls as well.

Being honorary consuls indicates that they are part of upper-class society. They can also enjoy diplomatic benefits and get good business relations with the sending states.

The Office of the Commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the HKSAR has always maintained close relations with the honorary consuls in Hong Kong, and the office holds receptions and liaison activities each year for them.

When he hosted a reception for 31 honorary consuls in Hong Kong in August 2007, Commissioner Lu Xinhua recognized the important roles of the honorary consuls in promoting exchanges between Hong Kong and the sending states.

He said he was eager to help enhance cultural and business exchanges between Hong Kong and the rest of the world.

China Daily

(HK Edition 09/04/2008 page1)