CONFIDENTIAL
types of view should be classified. The figures as they stand include quite a large number of submissions on pre-printed forms, a large majority of which were opposed to direct elections in 1988. On the other hand, the result of signature campaigns (which showed overwhelming support for direct elections in 1988) is separately discussed in paragraphs 13.41 to 13.43 on page 57. These categories of figures can be aggregated or sub-divided in ways which will prove almost anything. It is safer to stick to the line that the views expressed by individuals and groups, just like the views expressed in official terms, were sharply divided on the question of timing.
5.
DATE?
There was a further debate in LegCo after the Survey Office report came out. A clear majority of members accepted the Survey Office report as being an accurate and impartial record of public opinion. The debate was widely interpreted at the time in Hong Kong as coming to the conclusion (although no votes were taken) that the Survey Office report did not support the case for the introduction of direct elections in 1988.
6.
ฟงาว
We have now received the full text of the new paper distributed by Mr Martin Lee. It contains no major new points which were not brought out in the summary which we prepared for the Secretary of
State yesterday, together with a rebuttal of the various assertions
which it contained. It should be noted however that the document quotes selectively from statements not only by government Ministers but also by a variety of Members of Parliament in order to support the contention that the British Government was committed in 1984 to
a rapid move towards more representative government, and that this commitment was supported by a wide spectrum of Parliamentary opinion.
Colten
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CO Hum