PASSPORTS IT ISSUED. THIS WOULD SET A VERY BAD EXAMPLE TO THIRD COUNTRIES. THE PAPER ACCUSED THE BRITISH GOVERNMENT OF HAVING NO
SHAME.''
THE HK DAILY NEWS SAID THE BRITISH GOVERNMENT SHOULD NOT REJECT HK'S REQUEST FOR THE RIGHT OF ENTRY TO THE COUNTRY, WHICH, THE PAPER DESCRIBED AS HK'S ''LAST REQUEST'' BEFORE 1997. THE PAPER SAID THE QUESTION OF A FOREIGN NATIONALITY WOULD NO LONGER EXIST AFTER THE CHANGEOVER IF THE CONCEPT OF ONE COUNTRY, TWO SYSTEMS'' WAS IMPLEMENTED SUCCESSFULLY. IT CALLED ON UMELCO TO FIGHT TO THE END.
SING PAO SAID THE PROBLEM COULD BE SATISFACTORILY RESOLVED IF ONLY THE CONSERVATIVE GOVERNMENT WOULD FACE UP TO ITS MORAL RESPONSIBILITY. THE PAPER SAW THE TWO DEBATES IN PARLIAMENT AS A ''VICTORY FOR HK'' AS THEY HAD ALREADY FORCED THE BRITISH GOVERNMENT TO MODIFY ITS POSITION.
EXPRESSING DISGUST OVER THE BRITISH GOVERNMENT'S ATTITUDE, THE ORIENTAL DAILY NEWS URGED THE PEOPLE OF HK TO MAKE USE OF EVERY OPPORTUNITY TO EXPRESS THEIR STRONG VIEWS TO BRITAIN.
COMMUNIST PAPERS
T-IN THN DAILY NEWS SAND IT WAS ALMOST CERTAIN NOW HK PEOPLE WOULD NOT BE GIVEN THE RIGHT OF ABODE IN BRITAIN. HOWEVER, THE PAPER SAID THIS WOULD BE CONDUCIVE TO THE TERRITORY'S STABILITY AND PROSPERITY BECAUSE PEOPLE WHO MIGHT HOPE TO SETTLE IN THE UK WOULD NOW REALISE THAT THEY WOULD HAVE TO STAY HERE. THESE PEOPLE WOULD ALSO REALISE THAT PEKING, WHICH HAD NEVER LET HK PEOPLE DOWN, WAS MORE TRUSWORTHY THAN THE AUTHORITIES IN OTHER COUNTRIES. THEY WOULD BE MORE READY TO CONCILIATE WITH PEKING AND WOULD NO LONGER THREATEN TO EMIGRATE IF THEIR MANY REQUIREMENTS WERE NOT MET. IT WOULD MAKE IT EASHER TO UNITE THE PEOPLE OF THE TERRITORY.
TONG YUEK-HON OF TA KUNG PAO (22.1) FELT THAT THE ETHNIC MINORITY GROUPS HAD SENT REPRESENTATIVES TO LONDON BECAUSE THEY WERE CONCERNED THAT THEY WOULD BECOME STATELESS. THE COLUMNIST SAID THE BRITISH OVERSEAS CITIZENSHIP THEY WOULD ACQUIRE AFTER 1997 COULD HARDLY BE CONSIDERED AS A FORM OF NATIONALITY.
ENGLISH-LANGUAGE PAPERS
THE POST SAID THERE WAS A MOOD OF SERIOUS CONCERN IN HK WHICH, IF IGNORED, COULD HAVE SERIOUS CONSEQUENCES FOR HK'S RELATIONS WITH CHINA AND BRITAIN. IF BRITAIN THOUGHT IT COULD FORCE HK INTO A POSTURE OF ITS OWN CHOOSING IT WAS LIKELY TO PRECIPITATE A LOSS OF CONFIDENCE THAT COULD IMPERIL THE JOINT DECLARATION AND HK'S FUTURE. WHAT WAS NEEDED, THE PAPER SAID, WAS A FAR MORE SYMPATHETIC APPROACH TO THE CONCERNS AND FEARS OF HK AND AN INTELLIGENT ATTEMPT TO GIVE THE MINORITIES A RIGHT TO SETTLE IN
THE UK:
-3-
THE
--་སྟའབསབ བསམ་%*་ག་