CONFIDENTIAL
FM HONG KONG
TO DESKBY 19120OZ FCO
TELNO 269
OF 19100OZ JANUARY 88
INFO IMMEDIATE PEKING
HKB
CONFIDENTIAL
040
2 0 JAN 1988
Di
OFFICE
161347
MDHIAN 4108
TOP COPY Q DIST ?
FOLLOWING PERSONAL FOR HUM HKD FROM GOVERNOR
YOUR TELNOS 144 AND 145 : DEBATE ON HONG KONG : REPRESENTATIVE
GOVERNMENT
YOUR DRAFT READS WELL. PACE PARA 3 OF FIRST TUR COMPRESSION IS A VIRTUE IN ITS OWN RIGHT. THE FOLLOWING ARE COMMENTS ON POINTS
OF DETAIL.
(A) PARA 15, FIRST SENTENCE. THE TITLE OF THE 1987 GREEN PAPER REFERS OF COURSE TO A ''REVIEW OF DEVELOPMENTS IN REPRESENTATIVE GOVERNMENT'': BUT I SEE NO OBJECTION TO THE FORMULATION YOU HAVE USED WHICH SOUNDS BETTER IN PARLIAMENTARY TERMS.
(B) PARA 23, FIRST SENTENCE: WORTH ADDING ''SOME' BEFORE ''DIRECTLY ELECTED MEMBERS''
(C) PARA 24, THIRD SENTENCE : NO OBJECTION TO THE TYOE OF OPAQUE UNVEILING SUGGESTED. BUT THE WORDING NEEDS SOME MINOR ALTERATION. IT WOULD BE WRONG TO SUGGEST THAT ALL THOSE WHO ARE OPPOSED TO DIRECT ELECTIONS IN 1988 HAVE ACTUALLY SPECIFIED 1991 AS THEIR PREFERRED DATE. THIS COULD BE CURED BY 'SUCH AS
IN 1991' AND REPLACING IT WITH ''WITH SOME SUGGESTING THAT THE SUBSEQUENT ROUND OF ELECTIONS IN 1991 WOULD PROVIDE THE MOST APPROPRIATE OPPORTUNITY''
(D) PARA 25, THIRD SENTENCE
THE REFERENCES TO THE ''FIRST DRAFT''
'PUBLISHED IN HONG KONG'' MIGHT
OF THE BASIC LAW AND TO ITS BEING
BE MISLEADING. WE SUGGEST DELETING 'FIRST' AND REPLACING ''PUBLISHED IN HONG KONG'' WITH ''RELEASED BY THE BASIC LAW DRAFTING COMMITTEE''.
WILSON
YYYY
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