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communication channel.
Q:
Would it be adequate to depend only on these members to reflect the views of Umelco?
A: I think it is adequate to have these members serving as the direct channel because Basic Law drafting is not a matter which is conducted in secret. The draft will be made public before it is adopted, and Umelco can then openly express views on it.
Q: Isn't it that Umelco has set up a Basic Law panel? Why is it that no meetings have been held?
It is
A: The original intention of forming this panel was to show the importance Umelco members attached to the Basic Law. But we did not intend to express our views before China set up the Basic Law committee, in particular immature views. The Basic Law is a very important matter, but it is not something which is very urgent. generally assumed that it would not be passed before the early 1990s'. On the other hand, we knew beforehand that the make-up of Legco Unofficials would undergo great changes in October. We'd rather start work after a decision has been made on the membership of the next Legco instead of reorganising the panel a few months after work has been commenced. The panel will meet after October. Old and new Legco Unofficials who are all BLDC members will be invited to join the panel. But it is, of course, up to these members to decide whether to join the working group or not.
Sub-headlines:
Basic Law drafting is no easy task Not everybody can take up the job
Q: After the announcement of the HK membership of the BLDC, quite a number of people felt that the membership put too much emphasis on the commercial and industrial sectors and capitalists and that the people at grassroots level were not adequately represented.
What do you
think?
A: This is a question of finding a right balance between democracy and efficiency. Basic Law drafting is by no means an easy task and it is not a job which anybody can take up. Those taking part in it must have adequate knowledge and experience in order to be qualified for the job. It seems that China feels that efficiency is more important than democracy. Another possible reason is that the plan includes another consultative committee and China might think that the views of various sectors can be more adequately reflected in the BLCC.
Q: But BLDC members who are capitalists and in commercial and industrial circles might not necessarily be experienced in Basic Law drafting! Does a high proportion of them in the BLDC in fact reflect the special importance China attaches to the interests of the industrial and commercial sectors, and that it would adopt a more