Confidential
CLEARLY NOT YET REACHED A POSITION WHERE ACCEPTABLE COMMON GROUND
IS EASILY PERCEIVED. IF THERE IS A COMMON VIEW, IT IS: BE CAREFUL, BE GRADUAL AND FOR THE SAKE OF HONG KONG, GET IT RIGHT EXCLAM NOW IS THE TIME FOR CAREFUL THOUGHT, FOR OPINIONS TO BE
EXPRESSED AND ANALYSED AND FOR PROPOSALS THEREAFTER TO BE DEVELOPED.
MEMBERS' SPEECHES ARE PART OF THIS PROCESS AND THEMSELVES FORM PART OF THE MATERIAL AND BACKGROUND FOR THE DRAFTING OF THE GREEN PAPER FOR THE REVIEW TO BE PUBLISHED IN APRIL OR MAY NEXT YEAR. BUT I
CANNOT STRESS STRONGLY ENOUGH THE IMPORTANCE AT THIS TIME, OF REASONED, CONSIDERED ANALYSIS, NOT MERELY OF THE SINGLE ISSUE OF DIRECT ELECTIONS BUT OF THE OBJECTIVES, THE MECHANISMS, THE IMPLICATIONS, OF ANY PARTICULAR.COURSE OF ACTION.
3. THE BROAD AIMS OF THE PROPOSALS SET OUT IN BOTH THE GREEN PAPER AND THE WHITE PAPER OF 1984 ARE NO DIFFERENT FROM OUR AIMS TODAY. SHOULD LIKE TO REMIND MEMBERS OF THOSE AIMS.
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4. FIRST, TO DEVELOP A SYSTEM OF GOVERNMENT TO REPRESENT THE VIEWS OF THE PEOPLE AND TO BE MORE DIRECTLY ACCOUNTABLE TO THEM: SECOND, TO BUILD THIS SYSTEM ON EXISTING INSTITUTIONS, PRESERVING THE BEST FEATURES, INCLUDING, AMONG OTHER THINGS, THE CONCEPT OF GOVERNMENT BY CONSENSUS, WHICH EMBODIES OUR WELL-TRIED SYSTEM OF CONSULTATION, DISCUSSION AND DEBATE AND THE SEARCH FOR CONSTRUCTIVE SOLUTIONS AND THE COMMON GROUND: THIRD, THAT THE SYSTEM SHOULD NOT BE SET IN CONCRETE BUT SHOULD ALLOW FOR ORGANIC AND CREATIVE CHANGE.
YOUDE
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HMLNAN 4839
LIMITED
HKD
MR WILSON
COPIES TO:
HKGO LONDON
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