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INFO PRIORITY HONG KONG GOVERNMENT OFFICE LONDON, PEKING.
MIPT HONG KONG AGREEMENT: NATIONALITY ORDER IN COUNCIL
HKK 040/4
TEXT OF THE SUMMARY OF MEDIA COVERAGE AND COMMENTS ON THE WHITE PAPER ON 18 OCTOBER IS AS FOLLOWS
BEGINS.
MEDIA COVERAGE AND COMMENTS ON
6.
h
WHITE PAPER ON THE DRAFT HK (BRITISH NATIONALITY) ORDER 1926.
MEDIA COVERAGE.
1705
THE MEDIA GAVE EXTENSIVE COVERAGE TO THE PROPOSALS FOR THE FUTURE NATIONALITY STATUS FOR BDTCS IN HK CONTINED IN THE WHITE PAPER ON THE DRAFT HK (BRITISH NATIONALITY) ORDER 1986 RELEASED YESTERDAY AND
TO THE PRESS CONFERENCE HELD BY SECRETARY FOR SECURITY DAVID
JEAFFRESON AND OTHER OFFICIALS. MANY PAPERS, INCLUDING MING PAO, WAH KIU YAT PO, SING PAO, SING TAO JIH PAO AND THE FINANCIAL DAILY, CARRIED THE FULL TEXT OF THE WHITE PAPER. MOST PAPERS CARRIED
VERY DETAILED SUMMARY OF THE PROPOSALS. THE LEFT-WING PRESS GAVE THE
STORY A GOOD RUN. WEN WEI PO CARRIED THE STORY ON ITS BACK
PAGE LEAD AND HAD A QUESTION-AND-ANSWER ACCOUNT. OF THE REMARKS
BY MR JEAFFRESON. CHING PO AND THE HK COMMERCIAL DAILY USED THE
STORY AS FRONT PAGE LEAD. TA KUNG PAO, HOWEVER, CARRIED THE STOPY AS
AN INSIDE PAGE LEAD ON PAGE 5.
A NUMBER OF PAPERS REPORTED ON THE SHARP EXCHANGES BETWEEN SEVERAL
FOREIGN JOURNALISTS AND THE OFFICIALS GIVING THE PRESS CONFERENCE
YESTERDAY. ONE FOREIGN CORRESPONDENT ACCUSED THE HK GOVERNMENT OF FAILING TO CONVINCE PEOPLE THAT THE NEW PASSPORT WOULD BE ACCEPTED
BY THIRD COUNTRIES. HE DECLARED: ! I AM ASHAMED OF BEING A
BRITISH.' SEVERAL OTHER FOREIGN JOURNALISTS APPLAUDED. ANOTHER
JOURNALIST REPRESENTING AN AMERICAN NEWS ORGANISATION ACCUSED THE
BRITISH GOVERNMENT OF FAILING TO MEET ITS COMMITMENTS. A WOMAN JOURNALIST FORCED PAS AT THE SECURITY BRANCH REGINA IP AND
ASSISTANT DIRECTOR OF IMMIGRATION K.C. KUO TO REVEAL THE TYPE OF
PASSPORT THEY WERE HOLDING. BOTH SAID THEY WERE HOLDING BDTC
PASSPORTS AND THEY WOULD LET THEIR CHILDREN DECIDE WHAT PASSPORT
THEY WOULD HAVE. THEY SAID THEY WOULD APPLY FOR A EN(O) PASSPORT.
THE EXCHANGES LASTED FOR MORE THAN TEN MINUTES.
A GOVERNMENT SPOKESMAN CAID A COPY OF THE WHITE PAPER HAT
BEEN SENT TO THE CHINESE GOVERNMENT VIA THE CHINESE EMPASSY IN
LONDON AS A MATTER OF COURTESY.
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