GRS 500
RESTRICTED
DESK BY 09080OZ FCO
FM HONG KONG 090700Z DEC
TO IMMEDIATE F C O
RESTRICTED
MIKKOA 2 TOP COPY
BEARED IN KEGISTRY
1983
34
aken
TELEGRAM NUMBER 1906 OF 9 DECEMBER
29
AAB 2 Crisli
INFO IMMEDIATE HONG KONG GOVERNMENT OFFICE LONDON, PEKING. ROUTINE HONG KONG GOVERNMENT REPRESENTATIVES WASHINGTON, NEW YORK, BRUSSELS AND GENEVA.
FUTURE OF HONG KONG: PRESS COVERAGE.
PRACTICALLY ALL PAPERS TODAY USED THE JOINT STATEMENT
ISSUED AT THE CONCLUSION OF YESTERDAY'S TALKS IN PEKING AS THEIR FRONT OR BACK PAGE LEAD. HEADLINES IN BOTH THE INDEPENDENT AND COMMUNIST PRESS DREW ON THE TWIN THEMES THAT THE TALKS HAD BEEN USEFUL AND CONSTRUCTIVE AND HAD REVIEWED PROGRESS SO FAR.
2. THE COMMUNIST PRESS PUBLISHED NO (NO) EDITORIALS OR COMMENTARIES ON THE SEVENTH ROUND OF THE TALKS. THE CENTRE DAILY NEWS AND TIN TIN DAILY NEWS (BOTH PRO-CHINA), HOWEVER, EXPRESSED THE HOPE THAT AGREEMENT WOULD BE REACHED BEFORE SEPTEMBER 1984. THE FORMER SAID THAT IT WAS OUT OF THE QUESTION FOR BRITAIN TO CONTINUE TO PARTIC- IPATE IN THE FUTURE ADMINISTRATION OF HONG KONG. BRITISH INDIVIDUALS COULD REMAIN IN HONG KONG IN THEIR PRIVATE CAPACITY TO WORK FOR THE GOVERNMENT OF HONG KONG PEOPLE BUT WOULD NOT BE APPOINTED BY
LONDON.
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3. REACTION BY THE INDEPENDENT PRESS AND THE OBSERVERS THEY QUOTED TO THE JOINT STATEMENT WAS GENERALLY FAVOURABLE. THE NEWS WAS REPORTED AS AN ENCOURAGING SIGN THAT PROGRESS HAD BEEN MADE AND THAT THE TWO SIDES HAD AGREED TO ACCELERATE THE PACE OF THE TALKS. A NUMBER OF INDEPENDENT NEWSPAPERS HOWEVER WERE MORE CAUTIOUSLY OPTIMISTIC. THE EDITORIALS AND COMMENTARIES MADE THE FOLLOWING POINTS: THE REFERENCE TO PROGRESS' WOULD STABILIZE PUBLIC CONFIDENCE (WAH KIU YAT PO): THE SOVEREIGNTY ISSUE HAD APPARENTLY BEEN RESOLVED AND THERE HAD FOLLOWED MORE DETAILED DISCUSSION ON MATTERS SUCH AS A CONTINUED BRITISH LINK AFTER 1997 (FINANCIAL DAILY): SINCE THE SOVEREIGNTY ISSUE 'NO LONGER EXISTED'', HONG KONG PEOPLE SHOULD MAKE KNOWN THEIR VIEWS ON SELF-RULE AND PAY NO ATTENTION TO HARMFUL SPECULATION (HONG DAILY NEWS): THE CONTINUATION OF HONG KONG'S PRESENT SYSTEMS FOR 50 YEARS AFTER 1997 HAD BEEN DISCUSSED AT THE TALKS (MING PAO): WHILST IT WAS RELATIVELY EASY TO MAINTAIN HONG KONG'S STABILITY, EXPERIENCE HAD SHOWN THAT PROSPERITY WAS MORE FRAGILE (ECONOMIC JOURNAL).
,
4. A COLUMNIST IN THE ORIENTAL DAILY (LARGEST CIRCULATION INDEPENDENT) ARGUED THAT TWO POINTS WOULD AROUSE THE MOST INTENSE PUBLIC INTEREST. WHAT CONCRETE GUARANTEES COULD PEKING GIVE FOR THE PRESERVATION OF FREEDOM OF SPEECH, THE PRESS AND ASSEMBLY.
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