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expedient for regulating the admittance of persons (other than
members or officers of the Council) to, and the conduct of such
persons within, the Chamber and the precincts of the Chamber.
With due respect to the legal profession, I invite them to
study the Standing Orders of the Council and the Letters Patent
and Royal Instructions to the Governor of Hong Kong, in particular with regard to your power, Sir, if you should ever wish to exercise in full and which you have the legal right to do so, the Hong Kong Government will be a dictatorial
government. Therefore, there is no need to make changes to Clause 8(3) and I am sure discretion will be used in any event.
Secondly, on Monday, 24th June 1985, a newspaper article appeared on the front page of the South China Morning
Fost entitled, "Luce to Hear of Power Fears." I was shocked to
read that a well-known member of the legal profession had sent a telex message to London asking for the British Government to
intervene. It was reported that the telex was sent with the
backing and support of the Bar Association and the Law Society
of Hong Kong. On the same date, the Chairman of the Bar
Association and the President of the Law Society issued a
separate statement. It states that they made it clear that they are not looking to London for support but they are happy to consider all helpful suggestions from the MPs or froin anyone else. However, they both feel that the issue is one which can be perfectly adequately dealt with in Hong Kong and Hong Kong
must learn to stand on its own feet. The reporting by the press and the statement issued by the Chairman of the Bar Association and President of the Law Society seems to me ambiguous. Nevertheless, the point that I wish to make is that
the legal profession is the very profession that during the 1997 crisis of the past few years, made it clear to the public that the independence of the judiciary of Hong Kong must be maintained and the law-making process should be within Hong Kong without the interference from Beijing. Now, a message was sent to London to ask the British Government to intervene,
hope this message was only from an individual of this
I