SECURITY CLASSIFICATION
Top Secret
DSR 11C (Revised 5/87)
public opinion took many forms and did not rely solely on
the results of individual polls or surveys, though a
number were held and their results taken into account.
Care was taken to obtain a representative overall
picture.
Secret
Confidential
Restricted
33.
Unclassified
PRIVACY MARKING
In Confidence
The Review and the findings of the Survey Office
showed that public opinion was in favour of introducing a
directly elected element into the Legislative Council
before 1997, but was sharply divided on the timing of
this change. Some people favoured the introduction of
directly elected members in 1988, arguing that direct
elections would promote the development of more open,
accountable and representative government, and should
therefore be introduced as early as possible. Others
argued that it was too soon to take such a step in 1988,
only three years after the last major constitutional
change, when indirect elections to the Legislative
Council were introduced, or because the system of
elections to be used after 1997 had not yet been
established in the Basic Law due to be promulgated in
1990. The fact that it was widely believed that the
Chinese Government did not favour the introduction of
direct elections before the Basic Law was finalised may
have had considerable influence on public opinion. In
view of the division of views on the question of timing,
and having taken into account all the arguments put
forward, the British and Hong Kong Governments concluded
that on balance it would be right to make the next major
constitutional change in 1991. The Hong Kong
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