ON THE NATIONALITY ISSUE, THE PAPER SAID THE DRAFT NATIONALITY ORDER WOULD NOT POSE SERIOUS PROBLEMS BECAUSE THE BN (0) PASSPORT WAS, AFTER ALL, ONLY A TRAVEL DOCUMENT THE USEFULNESS OF WHICH WOULD DEPEND ON THE IMAGE OF THE FUTURE HK SAR IN THE EYES OF THIRD COUNTRIES RATHER THAN WHETHER ITS HOLDER HAD THE RIGHT OF FREE ENTRY INTO THE UK. THE PAPER HOWEVER CONCEDED THAT IT WOULD BE DIFFICULT FOR THIRD COUNTRIES TO ACCEPT THE BN (0) PASSPORT IF HT WAS DISCRIMINATED AGAINST BY ITS ISSUING COUNTRY. IT WOULD DEAL A HEAVY BLOW TO THE CREDIBILITY OF THE HK GOVERNMENT IF THE DRAFT ORDER WAS PASSED WITHOUT AMENDMENT, REDUCING IT TO SOMETHING WORSE THAN A LAME DUCK ADMINISTRATION.
IN A SEPARATE COMMENTARY, THE PAPER CALLED ON UMELCO AND THE PUBLIC TO CONTINUE TO FIGHT FOR HK PEOPLE'S INTERESTS IN THE NATIONALITY ISSUE SINCE MR RENTON HAD SAID THAT THE BRITISH GOVERNMENT'S MIND WAS NOT CLOSED ON THE SUBJECT. IT ADDED HOWEVER
THAT ONE SHOULD NOT BE OVER-OPTIMISTIC.
THE FINANCIAL DAILY SAID THAT JUDGING FROM THE ANSWERS GIVEN BY MR RENTON AT THE PRESS CONFERENCE, IT WAS OBVIOUS THAT POLITICAL REFORMS HERE WOULD BE BOUND BY THE BASIC LAW. THE QUESTION THAT REMANDED WAS HOW THE HK GOVERNMENT COULD FULFIL THE OBJECTIVES SET OUT IN THE WHITE PAPER ON REPRESENTATIVE GOVERNMENT DURING THE 1987 REVIEW. THE PAPER SAID MR RENTON'S CONVERGENCE THEORY WAS BUT ANOTHER WAY OF SAYING THAT THE RIGHT OF ADMINISTERING HK WOULD BE RETURNED TO CHINA. T ADDED THAT THE 1987 REVIEW WOULD DEFINITELY NOT RECOMMEND THE INTRODUCTION OF DIRECT ELECTIONS.
IT WAS NOT OPTIMISTIC THAT A POWER STRUCTURE FIRMLY ROOTED IN HK AND ACCOUNTABLE TO LOCAL PEOPLE COULD BE DEVELOPED IF CONSERVATIVE FORCES DOMINATED THE BASIC LAW CONSULTATIVE PROCESS.
THE NATIONALIST HK TIMES SAID DURING HIS LAT VISIT TO HK, MR RENTON HAD SAID THAT POLITICAL REFORMS HWERE SHOULD BE BASED ON PUBLIC OPINION. IT WAS DISAPPOINTED THAT HE SHOULD HAVE CHANGED HIS STAND AND SAID THAT THERE WAS A NEED FOR CONVERGENCE BETWEEN REFORMS AND THE BASIC LAW. THE PAPER SAID HK PEOPLE WERE MOST DISSATISFIED WITH THE MR RENTON'S REMARK THAT BRITAIN'S MORAL RESPONSIBILITY TOWARDS THE TERRITORY WAS TO ADHERE TO AND FULLY IMPLEMENT THE JOINT DECLARATION. THE PAPER SAID THE SIGNING OF THE JOINT DECLARATION AGAINST THE WISHES OF HK PEOPLE WAS "IN
ITSELF A SELL-OUT.
COMMUNIST PAPERS
TA KUNG PAO AGREED WITH MR RENTON THAT IT WOULD BE ALL GOOD AND NO HARM TO THE FUTURE OF HK IF CHINA AND BRITAIN COULD ENHANCE THEIR RELATIONS AND MUTUAL UNDERSTANDING. HK PEOPLE WOULD BELIEVE THAT THE MAINTENANCE OF CONSTANT CONTACTS AND LIAISON BETWEEN THE TWO COUNTRIES WOULD BENEFIT HK'S FUTURE DEVELOPMENT.
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