With support from Beijing, the headquarters of the International Mediation Institute will be established in Hong Kong. The convention for establishing the institute is scheduled to be signed on the 30th in Hong Kong, with Wang Yi, member of the Politburo of the CPC Central Committee and Chinese Foreign Minister, attending.
Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu informed the media on the morning of the 27th that Wang Yi will be attending the signing ceremony of the "Convention on the Establishment of the International Mediation Institute" in Hong Kong, and mentioned that once the convention is ratified by the governments of various countries, the headquarters of the mediation institute will be officially established in Hong Kong, becoming a high-level international organization.
He stated that the status of the International Mediation Institute is equivalent to that of the International Court of Justice and the Permanent Court of Arbitration located in The Hague, and it is an international organization that resolves disputes through mediation in accordance with the United Nations Charter.
The Hong Kong headquarters of the International Mediation Institute is located in Wan Chai. During the British colonial rule of Hong Kong, it was an old building originally serving as a police station and has been vacant for some time. The Hong Kong government has been refurbishing this old building in recent years in preparation for the establishment of the mediation institute headquarters.
Deputy Secretary for Justice Cheung Kwok-kwan stated last week that the refurbishment work is ongoing and is expected to be completed by the end of this year or early 2026 at the latest.
He said that the International Mediation Institute is the first intergovernmental international organization to set up its headquarters in Hong Kong, which will enhance Hong Kong's status as a global 'capital of mediation' and increase Hong Kong's economic, political, cultural, and international influence.