CONFIDENTIAL
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AND BLCC WERE WIDELY DIVIDED. THE MAJORITY BELIEVED BOTH THAT THE SYSTEM MUST EVOLVE TO FULL DEMOCRACY AND THAT THIS SHOULD BE A GRADUAL PROCESS. THERE WAS STILL ROOM FOR REVISION AND THE AIM WOULD BE TO BRING THE RELEVANT PARTS OF THE BL AS CLOSE AS POSSIBLE TO THE JD. GENERALLY, THE SAR WOULD ENJOY NO LESS FREEDOM IN FUTURE THAN HK DID NOW. FINALLY, LI HOU MENTIONED ARTICLES 105/6, NOTING THAT THE NEW DRAFT WAS MORE FLEXIBLE THAN BEFORE BUT WAS STILL UNDER DISPUTE. HE REFERRED AGAIN TO THE POSSIBILITY OF CHANGE.
6. SHORE SAID HE THOUGHT THE MAJORITY IN HK WANTED FASTER DEMOCRATIC DEVELOPMENT THAN THE PRESENT BL AND ANNEXES ALLOWED. SOME WANTED 50 PERCENT DIRECT ELECTIONS TO LEGCO BEFORE 1997. SOME THOUGHT THE FIRST CE SHOULD BE ELECTED IN THE SAME WAY AS THE SECOND. COULD THE PEOPLE'S VIEWS SOMEHOW BE CONSULTED MORE DIRECTLY QUES. WELLS SUPPORTED THE IDEA OF SELECTING THE FIRST CE BY A POST-1997 METHOD, WHICH WOULD PARALLEL THE ARRANGEMENTS FOR LEGCO. SHAO WEIYUN SAID IT WOULD BE EASIER IF HONG KONG PEOPLE COULD DEVELOP A SINGLE VIEW ON THESE THINGS. THE PRC HAD NO WISH TO OVERRIDE THEM BUT MUST WAIT FOR THEM TO SETTLE THEIR DIFFERENCES. CHINA WOULD ACCEPT ANY PROPOSAL WHICH FITTED THE JD AND REALITY IN HK AND WAS ACCEPTABLE TO THE HK MAJORITY. THE PRESENT ROUND OF CONSULTATION OUGHT TO SETTLE WHAT HK REALLY WANTED ON LEGCO ELECTIONS, THE CE AND THE RELATED REFERENDUM. HE WOULD BE GOING TO HK WITH A BLDC GROUP IN JUNE AND HOPED A BETTER ALTERNATIVE TO THE PRESENT DRAFT WOULD EMERGE. THE ANSWER OUGHT TO COME FROM HK NOT FROM PEKING. BUT IT WOULD NEVER SATISFY 100 PERCENT OF PEOPLE. THIS PART OF THE BL (THIRD DRAFT) WOULD PROBABLY HAVE TO BE ADOPTED BY VOTE. HE WOULD BEAR THE
MP'S VIEWS IN MIND.
7. HOWELL AND WELCH PUT FORWARD THE IDEA OF A BILL OF RIGHTS IN HK BEFORE 1997. WANG SHUWEN NOTED THE IMPROVEMENTS ALREADY MADE ON HUMAN RIGHTS IN THE BL. SOME PEOPLE HAD SUGGESTED INCORPORATING THE 2 HUMAN RIGHTS COVENANTS IN THE BL. BUT ARTICLE 39 ALLOWED ANY EXISTING PROVISIONS IN HK LAW TO REMAIN IN FORCE AND BE AMPLIFIED BY SARG LEGISLATION. THE CHINESE WOULD TRY TO EXPLAIN TO HK PEOPLE HOW THIS SAFEGUARDED THEIR POSITION, BUT WERE ALSO OPEN TO NEW PROPOSALS. AS FOR A BILL OF RIGHTS, UP TO 1997 THAT WOULD BE THE UK'S BUSINESS.
8. ROWLANDS NOTED WORRIES ABOUT LOOSE DEFINITION OF THE AREAS OF FINAL INTERPRETATION LEFT TO THE NPC STANDING COMMITTEE (SC) UNDER ARTICLE 157. TEMPLE-MORRIS POINTED OUT THE UK WAY
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