The Battalion
Tuesday - July 1,199
Ti
Groups
Continued from Page 1
“People fear China because of 1989
Tiananmen Square,” Cheng said. “It was a
disaster because China is Communist.
Students wanted more freedom and more
right of speech. It was the government
and students against each other. After
that, we feared China.”
Cheng said that over the next few years
the world will see changes China will make
in Hong Kong.
“Only with time can we tell what effect
China will have on our people,” Cheng said.
“I hope there is no dramatic change.”
mk
Photograph: Shannon Castle
Xin Wu signs his name on a banner in
celebration of Hong Kong’s return to chi
na with his father, Chen Wu, looking over.
The Texas A&M Chinese club hosted a
celebration in the MSC Friday.
Economics are a major factor in the Hong
Kong transfer, because Hong Kong is better off
financially than China, Cheng said.
“There’s so much money going through
Hong Kong that I want to go back there to
work,” he said.
Of Hong Kong’s 6.3 million-person popu
lation, 98 percent are of Chinese descent, and
2 percent are of other ethnic groups. The is
land has few tariffs and a labor force of 2.8 mil
lion, making Hong Kong a favorable area of
trade and economic growth for China.
Annai Hwang, an international studies
graduate student from Hong Kong, said she
feels there will be no dramatic changes as
Hong Kong returns to Chinese rule.
“We do not fear at all when China takes
over Hong Kong,” Hwang said. “We have a
background with China. It is as much a part
of Hong Kong as Hong Kong is with China.”
At 11 a.m. CST yesterday, ceremonies in
China and Hong Kong recognizing the han
dover were broadcast worldwide on televi
sion. Hwang said watching the ceremonies
made her feel like she was witnessing history.
“The exchange should have been seen by
everyone around the world,” she said.
“Everyone should have stopped what they
are doing and watched the TV”
Hwang, who moved to the United States
last year, has studied religion in Asia, and said
religion in Hong Kong is as diverse as it is in
the United States and will not be changed by
the turnover.
“Religion is not a major factor in the
Hong Kong society,” she said. “I think Chi
na will respect that.”
Hong Kong has an eclectic mixture of
non-Christian religious groups representing
90 percent of the population.
The ceremonies Friday night included
speeches, a video on the “Opium War” and
performances of dancing and singing.
The China Club at A&M has more than
400 Chinese student members. Six hundred
people attended Friday’s ceremony, includ
ing China Club members, their families and
members of the Hong Kong Club, which has
close to 100 members.
Dwindling empire
Colonies that have gained independence from Britain since 1947:
Bahamas
amaica 1962,,
Mr
Belize
St. Vincent and
Grenadines 1979
Barbados
Trinidad and
Tobago 1962
St. Kitts and
Nevis 1981
Antigua and
Barbuda 1981
. h ; • Dominica 1978
" ‘ ^ Lucia 1979
Grenada 1974
'6&W§ierra Leone 1961
Nigeria 1960
Cameroon 1960
Malta 1964
Gambia 1965
Ghana 1957
Tanzania
Zambia 1964
Botswana 1966
Maldives!
Uganda 1962 'ft!*—i
Kenya 1963-
r Seychelles 1976
ladesh 1947
Kong 1997 Kiribati 19?‘
^ Malaysia 1957
Brunei 1984i Papua New Guinea
•1975
j, | Nauru 1968
Sri Lanka 1948,
Juvaly1978
Va ' awi1964 Mauritius iSa 9 ^ 1965 7soldmon IsWs
Vanuatu 1980
Tonga 197C
Lesotho 1966 ^ ^
Zimbabwe 1980
Swaziland 1968
Handover
Continued from Page 1
Britain had sharply protested the use of
armored vehicles, saying they would
frighten people. But they were met by
hundreds of people lining the road in pelt
ing rain, waving flags, banging cymbals
and applauding.
Some cars stopped, Chinese officers
got out beaming, and they were garland
ed with flowers.
Then 10 navy ships sailed in, some
carrying troops at attention on their
decks. They sailed under the Tsing Ma
road-and-rail suspension bridge, the
world’s longest and a symbol of the
wealth and knowhow that make Hong
Kong so valuable to China.
A protest rally by democrats, who op
pose moves to trim civil liberties and dis
mantle the elected legislature, proceed
ed peacefully after the new,
post-colonial government yielded to
their demands to deliver speeches from
the balcony of the legislature.
The handover started seconds before
midnight, when the Union Jack and the
colonial flag came down. Eight seconds
after midnight, the Chinese flag was in
place alongside that of the newly re
named Hong Kong Special Administra
tive Region of China.
“This is both a festival for the Chinese
nation and a victory for the universal
cause of peace and justice,” President
Jiang declared to the global array of for
eign and Chinese VIPs assembled for the
change of flags in the Hong Kong Conven
tion and Exhibition Center.
"July 1,1997, will go down in the annals
of history as a day that merits eternal
memory,” the stocky, bespectacled presi
dent said. “From now on, the Hong Kong
compatriots have become true mastersof
this Chinese land.”
Charles, heir to the British throne, said
Britain was “proud and privileged to have
had responsibility for the people of Hong
Kong ... to have been part of the success
which the Hong Kong people have made
of their opportunities.”
The prince’s presence lent added his
torical resonance to the ceremony. It was
his great-uncle, Lord Mountbatten,whom
he strikingly resembles, who presided over
the decolonization of the Indian subcon
tinent 50 years ago — the beginning of the
end of empire.
Harassment
Continued from Page 1
Tarlow said the attending students felt
the police were not helping to protect
them from harassment.
“I asked the students if any felt they
had been discriminated against in
.. TiGi Oil VIJ ■ l,J J 11. I 11 a JOij
Housing
Continued from Page 1
Evertt Spaeth, director of architecture at Halff As
sociates, said his firm worked with Vanderweil to
study the 2.6 million square feet of A&M’s 106 resi
dence hall buildings. He said the study took five
months to complete.
Spaeth said the study found it would cost the
University $308 million to rebuild the residence
halls. He said this figure puts the $26 million ren
ovation cost, less than 10 percent of the $308 mil
lion it would take to rebuild, in perspective.
Mizer said the department does not plan to build
any new residence halls at the present, but the de
partment is studying what kind of residence hall
rooms should be built eventually.
Mizer said the department is looking into apart
ment-style residence halls.
He said work to combine three modular resi
dence hall rooms on the first floor of McFadden
into one suite-style apartment should be com
pleted this summer. He said four students will be
able to try out this new type of residence hall room
this fall semester.
The layout of the apartment will allow the resi
dents to share a kitchen and living room. The two
bedrooms each will be equipped with a bathroom.
Northgate. They all raised their hands,”
he said. “I asked who felt they were
helped by the police. No one raised
their hand.”
Before the meetings started, interna
tional students were not reporting
crimes and incidents that occurred,
Neralla said.
Many international students are grad
uate students and do not have the time
to fully complete and follow up a crime
report, Neralla said, and many students
also were wary of police.
“Because of cultural backgrounds,
some foreign students do not feel com
fortable with coming to the police,” Ner
alla said.
In some international students’ home
countries, police forces are militant or
work differently than those in the Unit
ed States, Todd said.
A “community-oriented” police offi
cer, Lt. Paul Price, has been assigned to
keep in contact with the Northgate stu
dents about any concerns they have.
A meeting will be held in July for all
citizens to discuss sidewalk and light
ing improvements.
“It is our goal as a department to pro
vide services to all citizens,” Todd said.
Neralla said increased police paDo
around the Northgate area has givenabei
ter sense of security to residents, andin-
ternational students are pleased with there
sponse the police department has given.
“The College Station Police Depart
ment is being very helpful in thisstoa
tion,” Tarlow said. “I am very proud!
them. This is a problem that has been:
nored for some time.”
IM
byh
it c
The two bedrooms each will be shared by two peo
ple and will be separate from the living room area.
Eric Williams, Residence Hall Association presi
dent and a senior biomedical science major, said al
lowing students to try out this new style of residence
hall is one of the many ways the Department of Res
idence Life is seeking student input.
“I think the common resident in the next year is
really going to see it,” Williams said.
Ron Sasse, director of the Department of Resi
dence Life, said he will give a long-range housing re
port to the Board of Regents in September detailing
the department’s work over the past three years, in
cluding salaries, staffing, organization, renovations
and the results of the Halff Associates and Vander
weil Facility Advisors study.
Sasse said the Department of Residence Life does
not receive any funding from the state. Funding
comes from the money students pay to live in the
residence halls, interest on deposits and bonds sold
for new housing.
But the department must have the Regents’ ap
proval on how it spends its money.
“Any large amount of spending has to be ap
proved by the Board of Regents,” Sasse said.
Mizer said the department spends $1 million on
improvements to facilities each year, but next year
it hopes the Board of Regents will allow it to increase
that amount to over $1.5 million next year and $2
million the next two years.
Weather Outlook
"cm
THURSDAY
FRIDAY
SATURDAY
Partly Cloudy
High: 100°
Low: 75°
| N
Partly Cloudy
High: 101°
Low: 75°
Partly Cloudy
High: 101 °
Low: 75°
:cior
iieseJ
ScDol
Iren
Iptely,
Sk©feh
By Quatrc
0*a\&aw?!1
i /
50, WR£N ARE YOU GOlNO TO TEuT’
' H£ WEI6RS SAME ON ONE
LE6 AS HE PQ€S ON TWO?
AS SOON AS HE STOPS MAKlIft
US SAMPtE HIS T0EU PISHES.
Your
§ Engagement Ring
Custom Jewdry Headquarters
2205 Longmire Suite F • 695-1328
Financing Available
If You Have Something To Sell, Remember:
The Battalion
Classifieds Can Do It
Call 845-0569
BRAfcOSTRADER
♦ANTIQUES & COLLECTBles.
Browse in our store for a
different shopping experience!
Bargains Galore!
• M - F 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.
• Sat 9 a.m. - 5 p.m.
• Sundays by chance
210 West 26th St., Bryan (409) 775-2984
Now Open!
Sihor
Mexican Restaurant
Frogs
>» 0
located at the Preference Inn Hotel
Specializing in Beef, Chicken,
or Shrimp Fajitas and Grilled Quail.
FREE ORDER OF NACHOS
(with the purchase of an entree). *
1601S. Texas Ave., Bryan o
775-4684 <
Must present coupon.
Expires 7-31-97. CZ>
That’s 34c*
aday &
includes all
the benefits
of Cable TV
TCA CABLE TV VIEWERS EN10Y:
• Top cable channels; local news, weather and sports
• Additional outlets at no extra monthly charge
• One monthly bill; no long-term contracts to sign
• No expensive equipment to purchase
• Local installation; guaranteed on-time service calls -
• Upgrade to optional channel packages at any time
The Best Entertainment
Value In Town!
Call today!
846-2229
• Does not include applicable taxes.
CABLE TV
4114 E. 29th St. • Bryan, TX
Stew Milne, Editor in Chief
Helen Clancy, Managing Editor
John LeBas, City Editor
April Towery, Lifestyles Editor
Kristina Buffin, Sports Editor
Janies Francis, Opinion Editor
Staff
Jody Holley, Night News Editor
Tim Moog, Photo Editor
Brad Graeber, Graphics Editor
Jacqueline Salinas, Radio Editor
David Friesenhahn, Web Editor
Members
teaso:
vei
Laj
face-
ingly
Hesti
|ynu(
itssei
'his s
irs, st
andv
most
Me
•he b]
Weki
Wese
Chy- Assistant Editors: Erica Roy & Matt Weber;
Reporters: Michelle Newman, Joey Schlueter &
Jenara Kocks; Copy Editor: Jennifer Jones
Lifestyles- Rhonda Reinhart, Keith McPhail
& Jenny Vrnak
Sports- Matt Mitchell & Jeremy Furtick
Opinion- John Lemons, Stephen Uano, Robby Ray,
Mandy Cater, Leonard Callaway, Chris Brooks,
Dan Cone, Jack Harvey & General Franklin
Night News- Assistant Editor: Joshua Miller
Photo- Derek Demere, Robert McKay, Rory
Angkriwan & Pat James
Graphics- Quatro Oakley, Chad Mallam S
Ed Goodwin
Radio- Tiffany Moore, Will Hodges, Missy Kemp.
Amy Montgomery, Sunny Pemberton, Joey
Schlueter, Michelle Snyder & Karina Trevino
Web- Craig Pauli
Office Staff- Stacy Labay, Christy Clowdus &
Mandy Cater
News: The Battalion news department is managed by students at Texas A&M University in the Division of Stud^
Publications, a unit of the Department of Journalism. News offices are in 013 Reed McDonald Building. News#
phone: 845-3313; Fax: 845-2647; E-mail: Batt@tamvml.tamu.edu; Website: http://bat-web.tamu.edu
Advertising: Publication of advertising does not imply sponsorship or endorsement by The Battalion. For cai"-
pus, local, and national display advertising, call 845-2696. For classified advertising, call 845-0569.Adverts
offices are in 015 Reed McDonald, and office hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. Fax: 845-26^
Subscriptions: A part of the Student Services Fee entitles each Texas A&M student to pick up a single copy 1.
The Battalion. Mail subscriptions are $20 per semester, $40 per school year and $50 per full year. To ctregf t 1
Visa, MasterCard, Discover, or American Express, call 845-2611.
The Battalion (ISSN #1055-4726) is published daily, Monday through Friday during the fall spring semesters 11 ’
Monday through Thursday during the summer session (except University holidays and exam periods) at!® 35
A&M University. Second class postage paid at College Station,TY 77840. Postmaster: Send address criai#
The Battalion, 015 Reed McDonald Building, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843-1111