HONG KONG, Feb. 19 (UPI) -- Military wharves are to be built along the Central District waterfront of Hong Kong Island by the People's Liberation Army.
According to the Information Services Department of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, permission for the wharves was issued late last week through a resolution of Hong Kong's Town Planning Board.
Thomas Chow, chairman of the Town Planning Board, was quoted as saying the conversion of places at the Central waterfront to military wharfs is made pursuant to the "Military Lands Agreement" signed by China and the United Kingdom in 1994.
After that date, the government of the Hong Kong SAR began to delineate the locations of the military wharves and in 2002 submitted the application to the Legislative Council.
The drawing of the borderlines of the wharves entered the last phase last year while the Town Planning Board also revised the draft of the outline zoning plans by taking related historical background into consideration so as to reflect the finalized borderlines and usage of the military wharves, the information service said.
Hong Kong, a former British colony and then territory, reverted to Chinese rule in 1997.
According to the information service, the Hong Kong Garrison of the PLA agreed to open the related military wharves to the general public as part of the Waterfront Promenade when they are not used for military purposes.
