SECRET 高度機密
8
art
doubled during the past ten years,
elected members of the Urban Council have been appointed to the Legislative Council for many years, and more recently two elected members of the District Boards have been appointed to the Legislative Council.
25.
It is proposed to build on
on these geographical and functional constituencies by developing the present system whereby all Unofficial members of the Legislative Council are selected and appointed by the Governor from these constituencies into a system which will provide for a substantial number of Unofficial members to be elected from within these constituencies to the Legislative Council.
be
26.
In the case of the geographical constituencies, it is proposed that an electoral college should established consisting of all the elected and appointed unofficial members of the Urban Council, the Regional Council and the District Boards, which would elect a specified number of members of the Legislative Council. In the case of the functional constituencies it will be necessary
to define clearly those constituencies which should be invited to elect representatives to the Legislative Council and to devise appropriate means of conducting those elections.
27.
elections
to
some
Suggestions have been made that direct the Legislative Council, on a universal franchise, based on either constituencies or a single list, should be
should be introduced now. Direct elections have emerged or been introduced as a standard feature of the governmental system in many countries where they have proved well suited to the society they serve. They have not, however, been universally successful as a means of ensuring stable
In government. representative cases the political preparation for direct elections has been inadequate; in others their form did not allow them to take root in the customs of the host society; and in
they have not consequence
endured or have failed to receive adequate support from the population at large. In the case of Hong Kong it is clearly essential that the stability and relative harmony of the community, which has been built up over a long period, should be preserved, particularly at this time; that the special political circumstances of Hong Kong should be taken into account; and that full weight should be given to representation of the economic and professional sectors of Hong Kong society which are essential
future confidence and prosperity. Direct elections would run the risk of a swift introduction of adversarial politics, and would introduce an element of instability at a crucial time. Hong Kong has had no experience of
to
SECRET 高度機密