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9. Two aspects of the present legislature which would be worth
exploring further in the future would be the extent of cooperation between Legislature and Executive (though, to have meaning in terms of the Basic Law arrangements, this would need to await the disappearance of official members in ? 1995) and the relationship of
the Legislature and ExCo. Both, however, are of limited effect and
neither affects public order issues.
(iii) Human rights
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10. The other issues on which there is Hong Kong interest in taking early action is human rights. There would seem to be no Chinese
objections to enacting a Bill of Rights giving effect to the UN Covenants and there would be public advantage in doing so. However, the limitations of such a step need to be recognised. The extent of entrenchment would be a problem (provision for procedural safeguards on amendments eg a requirement for a two thirds majority and express exceptions could be made, but, even so, it would be a step
below a "constitutional" provision); the extent to which the "Bill
of Rights" would be binding on, and effective against, the Central
Authorities and their personnel would be a difficult issue which
could not be resolved unilaterally, (we have not been able to get
the Chinese to understand this issue as it applies to the law
generally); and the problems of translating the Covenants into
speaking law would be increased by its specific human rights
provisions in Articles 25 to 37 of the Basic Law. It must also be
recognised that the safeguards which the Covenants provide are subject (as is common in international human rights codes) to the
right to derogate "in time of public emergency which threatens the
life of the nation"); although there are prohibitions on the extent
of permissible derogation, which excludes the articles on the right
to life and torture, the extent to which that would constitute any practical safeguard for the population once the PLA or the Central
Authority security agencies were committed to an active role in Hong Kong is another matter. Notwithstanding these reservations and
difficulties, a "Bill of Rights" would be a step in the right direction and (subject to examining the proto Chief Executive
suggestion) it is probably the only substantive step that can be
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