BAHAMIANS IN THE FORBIDDEN CITY

August 20, 2004 

Amid the hours of hard diplomatic work involved in the State Visit of Prime Minister Perry Christie and The Bahamas delegation to the People's Republic of China, the group found time to visit one of the fascinating sites of China's capital Beijing, the Forbidden City, home of the Imperial Palace of the ancient Chinese Emperors of the Ming and Qing Dynasties.  The delegation consisted of Superintendent Stephen Seymour, Freddie Tucker, Bahamas Consul General in Hong Kong; Ronald Thompson, Permanent Secretary in the Office of the Prime Minister; Philip Miller Under Secretary, Ministry of Foreign Affairs; the Honourable Fred Mitchell, Minister of Foreign Affairs & The Public Service; Prime Minister Christie, Miss Alexandra Christie, Mrs. Bernadette Christie, the Honourable Allyson Maynard Gibson, Minister of Financial Services & Investment; the Honourable James Smith, Minister of State for Finance; His Excellency Dongcun Giao, Ambassador of China to The Bahamas and Andrew McKinney, Chief of Protocol [Acting].  Pictured in the Forbidden City are the Prime Minister and Mrs. Christie.

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