Since the Sino-British Joint Declaration was signed in the middle of 1984, Hong Kong has gone from being the sparkling "pearl of the orient" --a model of free-market economy for East Asia--to being one of the focal points of world media attention with a future far from certain.
自一九八四年中（共）英聯合聲明簽訂以來，香港就從一顆耀眼的「東方之珠」﹘﹘自由經濟的東方典範，成為前途未卜的世界媒體聚光點之一，一點點的風吹草動，都會引起港人的不安、世人的關心。