6. THE MEDIA GAVE GOOD COVERAGE TO THE SIGNING OF AGPEEMENT ON 15 SEPTEMBER BETWEEN THE CHINA LIGHT AND THE GUANGDONG ELECTRICITY COMPANY ON THE BUILDING OF AN INTERCONNECTION POWER SUPPLY NETWORK
LINKING DAYA BAY AND HONG KONG. IN AN INTERVIEW WITH THE HONG KONG ECONOMIC JOURNAL, MR. STEVEN POON, HKNIC DIRECTOR, SAID THAT HIS. COMPANY'S INVESTMENT IN DAYA BAY WAS FIXED. IF THE INVESTMENT HAD TO BE INCREASED DUE TO THE INCORPORATION OF ADDITIONAL SAFETY FEATURES, SUCH INVESTMENT WOULD BE RAISED THROUGH LOANS. TURNING TO THE CONTRACT SIGNING, SOME PAPERS QUOTED MR. WANG GUẢNGUO, MANAGING DIRECTOR OF GNPJVC, AS SAYING THAT THE MAIN CONTRACTS AND LOAN AGREEMENTS WOULD BE SIGNED ON 23 SEPTEMBER. IT WAS GENERALLY BELIEVED THAT THE VICE PREMIER, MR. LH PENG, WOULD ATTEND THE SIGNING CEREMONY AT THE GREAT HALL OF THE PEOPLE.
1.
WITH THE SIGNING OF CONTRACTS SCHEDULED FOP 23 SEPTEMBER,
MANY PEOPLE BEGAN TO ACCEPT THE DAYA BAY NUCLEAR POWER PLANT WAS A FAIT ACCOMPL# AND CONCEDED THAT THERE WAS NO USE IN PURSUING THE CAMPAIGN FOR SHELVING OR RELOCATING THE PROJECT. THE ANTI-DAYA BAY LOBBY HOWEVER CONTINUED TO FIGHT THEIR BATTLE. THE JOINT CONFERENCE FOR SHELVING THE DAYA BAY PLANT' TOOK THE LEAD BY SAYING THAT HONG KONG PEOPLE WAS FAR FROM REASSURED BY THE STATEMENT ISSUED BY THE PRIME MINISTER'S OFFICE AFTER A MEETING BETWEEN THE PRIME MINISTER AND THE EXCO DELEGATION IN LONDON. THEY MAINTAINED THAT THE PLANT SHOULD BE EITHER SHELVED OR RELOCATED. AS PART OF THE ANTH-DAYA BAY CAMPAIGN, ABOUT 500 REPRESENTATIVES FROM THE JOINT CONFERENCE (INCLUDING SOME 20 DISTRICT BOARD MEMBERS AND HON. SZERO WAH) MARCHED TO THE GOVERNMENT SECRETARHAT TO LODGE A BLANK LETTER TO THE GOVERNOR ON 14 SEPTEMBER. THEY SAND THAT THE PUBLIC OPINION
ON THE DAYA BAY ISSUE HAD ALREADY BEEN MADE KNOWN TO THE
GOVERNMENT AND THEY THEREFORE CHOSE TO SUBMIT A BLANK PETITION.
THE JOINT CONFERENCE NEVERTHELESS TOOK THE OPPORTUNITY TO MAKE A
PUBLIC STATEMENT RENTERATING THEIR CALL TO THE GOVERNMENT TO
WITHDRAW FROM THE PROJECT. THEY ALSO SAID THAT THE REPORT COMPILED
BY THE LEGCO FACT-FINDING DELEGATIONS WAS NOT COMPREHENSIVE ENOUGH
AND COULD NOT REPRESENT THE WISHES OF HONG KONG PEOPLE. THE JOINT
CONFERENCE BELIEVED THAT THE DAYA BAY CONTRACTS WOULD BE SIGNED ON 23 SEPTEMBER AND THEY HAD INFORMED THE GOVERNMENT THAT THEY WOULD
LODGE A FURTHER PETITION TO THE GOVERNOR ON THAT DAY. THEY
ANNOUNCED THAT THERE WOULD BE A MASS RALLY AT MORSE PART ON 5 OCTOBER AND THAT 2,000 PEOPLE WERE EXPECTED TO JOIN THE MASS RALLY.
8. THE GROUP CALLING FOR A ''SCIENTIFIC APPROACH TO THE DAYA BAY
ISSUE STOLE SOME ATTENTION FROM THE ANTH-DAYA BAY LOBBY BY PUBLICLY ANNOUNCING THAT THEY FOUND THE RECENT STATEMENT ISSUED BY
THE PRIME MINISTER'S OFFICE VERY REASSURING AND THAT THEY WERE CONVINCED THAT THE BRITISH GOVERNMENT WAS FULLY AWARE OF THE LOCAL CONCERN OVER THE DAYA BAY PROJECT AND WOULD MAKE EVERY EFFORT TO ENSURE THAT THE CONSTRUCTION, OPERATION AND MANAGEMENT OF THE PLANT WOULD BE CARRIED OUT TO THE HIGHEST POSSIBLE SAFETY STANDARDS.
DURING A SUBSEQUENT PRESS CONFERENCE UPON RETURN FROM A NUCLEAR FACT-FINDING TRIP TO KOREA, THE GROUP ALSO ANNOUNCED THAT THEY
CONFIDENTIAL
I WOULD