CONFIDENTIAL
C
Background and Argument
3.
Zhou Nan's call on Mr Renton will be our first
Ministerial contact with the Chinese since the Secretary of
State's meeting with Wu Xueqian on 23 May, when our papers on the structure of government in Hong Kong were handed to
the Chinese. The call will give us an opportunity to outline again the main element of our thinking. Zhou Nan
may or may not be briefed
Chinese to give the initial
not he does, he may
*he Sund that we hand No obeckon in Nisciple to discussion in the Fas
Sensitive. We
also sucd There could be no such thing as a permament lagenda
to our ideas.
or Whether
response propose that discussion should be taken forward at the next meeting of the Joint Liaison Group in London in July.
4.
the meeting
later on 23
was not the
This suggestion has already been made at
between Dr Wilson and Ke Zaishuo in Brussels
May. Dr Wilson's response was that the JLG
only possibility: in some ways it was better to discuss this detailed matter through other channels (FCO telno 973
to Hong Kong, para 9). If however the Chinese insist on
discussion at JLG IV we are
it not well placed to resist: was agreed after the tense exchanges on the subject at JLG II that it should remain on the JLG agenda.
5.
that
subject
But there are both practical and political arguments although the against using this channel. The complex subject matter forum
could better be handled in a more informal context, in
discussion between those with the closest understanding of
Hong Kong's administration.
And the Governor feels
strongly
if discussion of the
in JLG IV
becomes know in Hong Kong this could "lead to suspicion that the Chinese are being given an oportunity
an oportunity to nullify
the 1987 review" (Hong Kong telno 1696). He may be
over-stating
argument (the Ambassador feels that it might be possible to restrict JLG discussion to an informal meeting in the JLG margins). Nevertheless it would certainly be preferable in terms of Hong
of Hong Kong opinion if
such discussion could be diverted into less formal and
public channels.
dem. D
E
the
CONFIDENTIAL