{{Short description|Hong Kong government official (1945–2022)}} {{Use British English|date=June 2017}} {{Use dmy dates|date=June 2017}} {{Infobox officeholder | honorific_prefix = | name = Michael Sze Cho-cheung | native_name = {{nobold|施祖祥}} | native_name_lang = zh-hk | honorific_suffix = GBS, CBE, ISO, JP | image = | image_size = 180px | caption = | birth_name = | birth_date = {{birth date|df=yes|1945|6|23}} | birth_place = British Hong Kong | death_date = {{Death date and age|df=yes|2022|5|19|1945|6|23}} | death_place = Hong Kong, PR China | spouse = | children = | office = Secretary for Constitutional Affairs | term_start = 30 October 1991 | term_end = 27 January 1994 | governor = Sir David Wilson<br>Chris Patten | predecessor = Michael Suen | successor = Nicholas Ng | office1 = Secretary for the Civil Service | term_start1 = 28 January 1994 | term_end1 = 1996 | governor1 = Chris Patten | predecessor1 = Anson Chan | successor1 = Lam Woon-kwong | office2 = Executive Director of the Trade Development Council | term_start2 = 1996 | term_end2 = 2004 | predecessor2 = | successor2 = Fred Lam | alma_mater = La Salle College <br>University of Hong Kong | website = }} {{Infobox Chinese |title=Michael Sze Cho-cheung |c=施祖祥 |j=si1 zou2 coeng4 |p=Shī Zǔxiáng }}

'''Michael Sze Cho-cheung''', GBS, CBE, ISO, JP ({{lang-zh|施祖祥}}; 23 June 1945 – 19 May 2022)<ref>[https://gbcode.rthk.hk/TuniS/news.rthk.hk/rthk/ch/component/k2/1649256-20220519.htm 前宪制事务司施祖祥清晨离世 终年76岁] {{in lang|zh}}</ref> was a Hong Kong government official. He held various government positions including Secretary for Constitutional Affairs from 1991 to 1994 and Secretary for the Civil Service from 1994 to 1996. He was executive director of the Trade Development Council (DTC) from 1996 to 2004 and chairman of the Operations Review Committee of the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) until 2014.

==Government career== His ancestral home was in Dongguan, Guangdong. He moved to Hong Kong and was educated at La Salle College and the University of Hong Kong. He joined the Hong Kong government and served in various bureaux and departments, including Home Affairs Department, Chief Secretariat, Trade Department, Marine Department, and Constitutional Affairs Department. As District Officer of Kowloon in the late 1970s, he proposed giving compensation to shoppers affected by the construction of the Mass Transit Railway along Nathan Road.

He was appointed Secretary for Constitutional Affairs in 1991. During his service, he was responsible for promoting the constitutional reform package of the last Governor Chris Patten. Despite the fact Patten's constitutional reform package was strongly opposed by the Beijing government, Sze defended the package and therefore was criticised by the Beijing authorities. He was appointed Secretary for the Civil Service in 1994. At the time, expatriate civil servants' contracts were renewed automatically, which was deemed unfair to Chinese civil servants. He abolished the system and implemented the localisation of the civil service on the eve of the Handover.<ref name="poly"/> From 1992 to 1996, he was a member of the Executive Council of Hong Kong. He announced his retirement from the civil service in 1996, shortly before the handover.<ref>{{cite book|pages=76–7|title=香港評論, 1997|publisher=Chinese University Press|year=1997}}</ref>

==Later career== After retiring from government, Sze served as executive director of the Trade Development Council (TDC) from 1996 to 2004, the statutory organisation responsible for promoting and developing Hong Kong's external trade. During the SARS epidemic, he strengthened the sanitary measures in the July exhibition. He also abolished the pegging of TDC staff salaries with those of civil servants.<ref name="poly">{{cite book|title=施祖祥|work=Polytechnic University of Hong Kong|url=http://www.polyu.edu.hk/aado/mt33/ch1/sze-cc.pdf}}</ref>

He was also chairman of the Operations Review Committee of the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC). At the time many high officials were involved in corruption cases, including Chief Secretary for Administration Rafael Hui, Commissioner of the Independent Commission Against Corruption Timothy Tong and Chief Executives Donald Tsang and Leung Chun-ying. Sze assured the public that the ICAC would investigate all cases. Responding to Leung Chun-ying's comment on the ICAC not apologising to the members of Executive Council, Franklin Lam and Barry Cheung after it found no evidence in the allegations against them, Sze said that "even indiscriminate complaints are better than [the public] making no complaints." This brought criticism from another Leung ally, Executive Council member Cheung Chi-kong, who accused Sze of "encouraging" indiscriminate complaints to the ICAC and suggested that the agency would be overloaded with cases.<ref>{{cite news|title=The graft-buster and a string of headline grabbers|date=24 August 2013|newspaper=South China Morning Post|url=https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1299012/graft-buster-and-string-headline-grabbers}}</ref> He served on the committee until he retired in 2014, when he was replaced by Maria Tam – seen as a controversial pick by Leung Chun-ying.

Sze also held directorships of various companies, including Lee Kum Kee, Swire Pacific, Yangtzekiang Carment, and YGM Trading.

==Family and personal life==

Sze was married to May Mok, a teacher of English, geography and religious studies at Wah Yan College. Their daughter Karen is a psychiatrist. Sze's brother, Sze Cho-sing, owns a seafood trading company.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.scmp.com/article/141821/appeal-sze-be-left-alone|title=Appeal for Sze to be left alone|date=6 December 1995|newspaper=South China Morning Post}}</ref>

He died on 19 May 2022, after a battle with cancer.<ref name=SCMPdeath>[https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/3178355/hongkonger-who-rose-inner-circle-citys-last-british Hongkonger who rose to inner circle of city’s last British governor dies at age of 76], SCMP, 19 May 2022</ref>

==Honours== ===National honours=== *{{flag|Hong Kong}}: **Gold Bauhinia Star '''(GBS)'''

===Foreign honours=== *{{flag|United Kingdom}}: **70px Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire '''(CBE)''' (1995) **70px Companion of the Imperial Service Order '''(ISO)''' (1990) *{{flag|Japan}}: **70px Gold Rays with Neck Ribbon of the Order of the Rising Sun (2004)

===Other honorary appointments=== *Justice of the Peace

==See also== * 1994 Hong Kong electoral reform

==References== {{reflist|30em}}

{{s-start}} {{s-gov}} {{s-bef|before =Michael Suen}} {{s-ttl|title = Secretary for Constitutional Affairs |years = 1991–1994}} {{s-aft|after=Nicholas Ng}} {{s-bef|before =Anson Chan}} {{s-ttl|title = Secretary for the Civil Service |years = 1994–1996}} {{s-aft|after=Lam Woon-kwong}} {{s-end}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sze, Michael}} Category:1945 births Category:2022 deaths Category:Members of the Executive Council of Hong Kong Category:Alumni of the University of Hong Kong Category:Hong Kong businesspeople Category:Government officials of Hong Kong Category:Recipients of the Gold Bauhinia Star Category:Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Category:Recipients of the Order of the Rising Sun Category:Companions of the Imperial Service Order Category:Deaths from cancer in Hong Kong