A year ago the last British governor of Hong Kong, Mr Chris Patten, brought 156 years of British rule to an end with a curt telegram to London saying: "I have relinquished the administration of this government. God Save the Queen!"
The resumption of Chinese sovereignty over the territory was an occasion for jubilation in Hong Kong and Beijing. Fireworks lit up Hong Kong harbour for two nights in succession, skyscrapers illuminated the waters below with drapes of neon lighting, and everyone partied as if there was no tomorrow.
President Jiang Zemin of China personally came to take possession of Hong Kong from the British Crown on that occasion. But a year on, as Mr Jiang returns for a first-anniversary celebration, the mood has changed.
Battered by the Asian financial crisis and heading into recession, most of Hong Kong is in no humour for celebrations. A fireworks display scheduled for Tuesday night was cancelled and sellers of Hong Kong and Chinese flags did little business.
No neon lights outlining the territory's bauhinia flower were put up this year, just a couple of limp banners saying "Happy Birthday". The only excitement on the waterfront yesterday evening was a spurt of flames and black smoke from an empty wooden coffin (representing democracy), set alight in the middle of a road by a group calling itself the China Free Democratic Party.
The small demonstration was staged near the Convention Centre where Mr Jiang was attending a banquet, but was kept out of earshot by about 100 police in olive green shirts. The fact that it took place without any arrests is testimony, however, to the fact that Hong Kong people by and large still enjoy the freedoms they had 12 months ago, despite fears expressed by many about an erosion of civil liberties, rampant corruption, the jailing of dissidents and the muzzling of the press.
The official commemoration ceremony began at dawn when Mr Tung and his wife, Betty, attended a flag-raising along with senior Chinese officials, including the garrison chief for the People's Liberation Army, Maj Gen Liu Zhenwu.
Mr Jiang and Mr Tung then together attended an hour-long variety show in the Hong Kong Coliseum, featuring singing and dancing with patriotic themes.
Last night Mr Jiang and his wife, Wang Yeping, travelling in a black Mercedes, arrived at the Convention Centre without incident for the official banquet, and today the Chinese leader will officially open Hong Kong's new $20 billion international airport at Chek Lap Kok, although it doesn't begin commercial operations until Monday.
Just hours after Mr Jiang leaves for Beijing this afternoon, President Clinton will arrive at the new airport on the last stop of his nine-day China tour.
In his speech last night Mr Jiang conveyed the essential message he came to deliver. This was that the past year showed Hong Kong had been able to run its own internal affairs with a high degree of autonomy and that Taiwan should take note.
"There is every reason to believe that the successful implementation of the policy of `one country, two systems' will serve as an example for Macau's smooth return to the motherland and for the final settlement of the Taiwan question," he said. Taiwan is regarded by Beijing as a breakaway province, and China hopes one day to bring about union using the Hong Kong model.
Portuguese-run Macau reverts to China in December 1999.
Mr Jiang also reiterated Beijing's promise not to devalue the Chinese yuan, and pledged his government's full backing for Hong Kong's efforts to get through its present economic problems.
"China enjoys a surplus in its international balance of payments and will not devalue its currency," he said.
"When the Asian financial turmoil hit Hong Kong, the central government went all out in supporting the Hong Kong government's countermeasures, particularly its efforts to maintain the currency peg and the overall stability in Hong Kong.
"The economic strength and sound development of the mainland can provide Hong Kong's economy with strong support," he said. "The central government will continue to vigorously support the Hong Kong government in its measures to maintain financial and economic stability."
Mr Tung, whose popularity has declined sharply as unemployment reached 15 per cent and home-owners were hit by a property slump, admitted to the audience that Asia's crisis came "out of the blue". Hong Kong had been dealt a severe blow and people had suffered a lot, but the administration would do its best to "help them tide over difficulties and lead them on the road to happiness".
