CODE 18-77
SECRET
PA 011/3
Reference..
Mc Hoare
7/13/4
R D Clift
HKD
c.c.
HONG KONG:
Dr Wilson
Sir P Cradock Planning Staff
156
CONSTITUTIONAL DEVELOPMENT AND GOVERNMENT STRUCTURE
146
167
1. I have just seen your submission of 8 June and Dr Wilson's comments on it.
2. I share Dr Wilson's view that considerable attention will focus on the proposals about the Governor; and also that the Chinese are determined to see HMG as the only valid inter- locuteur on Hong Kong matters. They would therefore find unacceptable any arrangements which removed the power of HMG pre-1997 and the Chinese Government post-1997 to give Instructions to the Governor.
3.
I therefore agree that we need a Chinese view on how they see the Chief Executive being selected. When this should be done is a matter of tactics. Since the subject has potential for considerable disagreement I suggest waiting until we have a clearer view of the progress on the overall agreement and its annexes. When the time comes, we can point out to the Chinese that it will be hard for them to maintain confidence post-1997 if one of their first moves is to change the method by which the Chief Executive is chosen; and that the authority of a pre-1997 Governor would be undermined if it was known that personally he was unacceptable to China. Thus any change in the method of selection should be made before 1997 and agreed by both sides.
4.
A
I suspect that the only procedure on which we could get Chinese agreement would be some form of appointment. possible compromise would be to give the legislative council from 1991 the power to reject a nominee for Chief Executive. The nomination would be made by HMG pre-1997 and by Peking post-1997, in each case the nomination being made through the existing Governor/Chief Executive. If the Governor were given a term of 6 years with the possibility of re-appointment once, this would give China the right to change the Governor in 1997 but also the possibility of emphasising continuity by re-appointing the existing Governor.
Нікк
01113
WED IN POGISTRY 13 JUN 1984
De- *
12 June
1984 KEB13/6
Iain c.Im
I C Orr
Far Eastern Department K258
233 5963
SECRET