Beverly Byron: “Let me say that we were able to pull together a delegation of 10 former Members, of 4 spouses, 2 daughters, no animals…”

“Let me say that we were able to pull together a delegation of 10 former Members, of 4 spouses, 2 daughters, no animals, to meet in Beijing in September of last year, and we began a 10-day study tour of China at the invitation of their Foreign Affairs Committee. This group of former Members, many of whom had been in China before, were able to gain a great deal of comparison with the previous visits. Prior to the trip, we held briefings with the State Department, the Foreign Affairs Committee staff of the House, and received many, many pages of background material. While we were in Beijing, we held meetings with the chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee, our host, Zhu Liang, and since he stated that since launching a reform campaign, economic development is China's first priority. The United States position is still one China. That was discussed on numerous occasions. That has not changed. We will see the magical date of July 1, 1997, approaching, and the world will be looking at the transfer of Hong Kong and how China handles the current vibrant, economically stable city that is presently there.”