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The Standard carried a report from its London correspondent which said the Labour Party had told voters that if returned to power it would begin talks with China with the aim of securing a peaceful and prosperous future for the people of HK. It would foster a closer understanding with China and hoped China could become more directly involved in international discussions on peace, disarmament and the world economy. Meanwhile, the Chinese community in Britain was reported to have welcomed the inclusion of a question on people's ethnic origins in the next census as it would put strong pressure on governments
to tackle racial bias.
Professor Hocking Wong, principal of International Affairs College, said there had been little news of the Sino-British talks because little, if anything, had been done. He believed the deadlock was one of the reasons why Mrs. Thatcher had called a general election on the basis that China would not negotiate with a Government which had an uncertain future. He said Britain had become concerned about the future of HK as the country had begun to view Southeast Asia as being more important, politically and economically. Mrs. Thatcher had been confident to begin with, but she had come to realise that China was taking a firm stand and negotiations were unlikely to proceed without the Chinese being sure they were dealing with the people in power. He predicted that if the Conservatives won the election the talks would proceed in less than a month; if Labour won the dialogue would start in September as the new government would need time to designate new officials and pave the way for negotiations.
Vandom
P
Observers' Forum: This column appeared in the SCMP on 12 May and said no one was leading HK at this time of uncertainty over our future. It asked why no leader had emerged to show the people the way, and replied that there was a congenital defect in our social system wealth rather than a commitment to serve the people was the only measure of success and often the only path to power. We had many millionaires in our society, but no political leaders since involvement in politics particularly at this crucial juncture of our development meant taking a clear stand on HK's future and this entailed risking one's business and social standing. Could this leadership void be filled? Yes, by having an elected administration and to begin with elections to the Legislative Council. If Unofficials already placed in influential positions felt unable to lead, let the people elect their own spokesmen. Someone had to speak for HK who could claim the right to do so. The appointed system must not be allowed to continue as it was too dangerous a style. Who would appoint our policy makers? Beijing? But hadn't Beijing been insisting HK would have self-administration after 1997? As the Observers saw it, self-administration must be an elected one. An elected form of government if allowed to evolve smoothly would help prevent the widening of the power gap in our society. Leaders would emerge through the elective system, and HK needed leaders. The administration should introduce an elected element into Legco and then proceed to help ensure HK's elected system did not fall victim to the inefficiencies and hypocrisies in western democracies. The appointed
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