Mia Farrow allowed into Hong Kong to give speech critical of China-Sudan ties
By MIN LEE | Associated Press | May 1, 08 2:20 AM CDT
Hollywood actress Mia Farrow was briefly questioned at Hong Kong's airport Thursday before officials allowed her to enter the Chinese territory to give a speech criticizing China's relations with Sudan.
Officials let Farrow enter Hong Kong after they asked her not to disrupt the Olympic torch relay on Friday, said Jill Savitt, an activist traveling with the actress.
"They told us what an honor it was for Hong Kong to have the torch relay, so we said we had never intended to and we would not" disrupt it, Savitt told The Associated Press.
Farrow's visit to Hong Kong was seen as a test of how free the city dared to be while hosting the torch. Officials were under great pressure to ensure a trouble-free relay, and they had deported several activists upon arrival in the past few days.
Hong Kong was a British colony until it was handed back to China in 1997. Although it is part of China now, the wealthy city is supposed to have a wide degree of autonomy under a "one country, two systems" formula.
Hong Kongers enjoy civil liberties _ like freedom of speech and the right to protest _ that people in the rest of China can only dream about. But the city's government has been known to restrict these freedoms during sensitive times.
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