Overseas Chinese, Foreigners Awarded Honorary Citizen TitlesA total of 133 overseas Chinese compatriots and foreign friends Sunday were granted the title of "honorary citizen" Sunday by the government of Jiangmen City, in south China's Guangdong Province, for their continuous support for the construction of the city.Among those so honored were Gary Locke, governor of Washington State in the U.S., and Hong Kong pop singer Andy Lau. Statistics show that more than 3.6 million Jiangmen natives have emigrated to over 100 countries and overseas regions so far. Chinese compatriots have donated capital and all kinds of materials worth 4.5 billion HK dollars to help develop the local economy. Overseas investment in the city over the past 20 years has amounted to 6 billion U.S. dollars. The local government of Jiangmen has granted the title " honorary citizen" to nearly 300 overseas Chinese and foreigners, to show its gratitude for their contributions to the local economic and social construction drive since 1993. |
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