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THE CHINESE MANUFACTURERS' ASSOCIATION announced its
opposition to the proposal on June 17. Vice President Mr. E.U. Lyen said that
workers and students who had to rise at 6 a.m. would have to wait two hours
for sun-up, thereby causing them great inconvenience and affecting their health
and recreational activities.
THE NT GENERAL CHAMBER OF COMMERCE at the same time
urged the authorities to use Standard Time for any one-time system.
THE HANG SENG BANK'S Vice Chairman, Mr. Q.W. Lee, said people
in the financial sector would have to stay behind after office hours to await
information on Europe's stock and money markets.
THE CHARTERED BANK'S Mr. W.S.L. Brown said the proposal would
cause problems in gold and banking transactions.
THE EXPRESS said that the whole idea was based on a public opinion
survey which had not been properly conducted.
Evening papers of June 18 gave moderate coverage to the Jones-Peacock
Press Conference, with the communist NEW EVENING POST saying in its headline
that Mr. Jones defended the proposal but adding in an accompanying feature article
that officers of the Home Affairs Department did not know that a survey had been
held before the proposal was announced.
A CIVIC ASSOCIATION spokesman, quoted by WAH KIU MAN PO, said
the Association was not against a unitary time system but favoured the adoption
of Standard Time. Summer Time, he said, would affect Hong Kong's position as
a financial centre.
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