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རིག་ Gover
A.R.
(ཁའི་པོ{,ན་ན་ཆག(ངགླ་·འོ ༦{ ་ ོག་ནན་ t,t,
REPRESENTATIONS BY THE HEUNG YEE KUK (THE RURAL CONSULTATIVE COUNCIL
FOR THE NEW TERRITORIES OF HONG KONG)
PROBLEM
1.
When the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State was in Hong Kong in October, the Heung Yee Kuk handed him a letter concerning the representation of the New Territories on the Colony's Executive and Legislative Councils. They had addressed a similar letter to the Hong Kong Government shortly before Mr Royle's visit to the Colony. The Governor has now sent us a translation (together with the original) of the letter addressed to Mr Royle and the draft of a proposed reply to both letters.
RECOMMENDATION
2. I recommend that the Governor be authorised to reply to the Heung Yee Kuk in terms of the attached draft letter. Apart from certain minor amendments the draft is the same as that proposed by the Governor.
BACKGROUND
3. The Heung Yee Kuk (the Rural Consultative Council of the New Territories) is a statutory elected and wholly advisory body whose functions include the promotion of co-operation and understanding among the peoples of the New Territories and between the Hong Kong Government and the peoples of the New Territories. It also advises the Government on social and economic developments in the interests of the welfare and prosperity of the people of the area.
4. The Heung Yee Kuk's letter to the Parliamentary Under-Secretary asks:
5.
(i)
that certain (unspecified) Government officials in the New Territories Administration should be appointed as ex officio members of the Executive Council and
(ii) that some members of the Heung Yee Kuk itself should be appointed as unofficial members of both the Executive and Legislative Councils.
This is not the first time that the question of New Territories representation on the central councils of Government has been raised by the Heung Yee Kuk. They have raised it on two previous occasions
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