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people during China HK contacts.
In handling Hong Kong affairs, the leftists must firmly uphold the Basic Law, balance and look after the interests of various sectors. Not only must they protect the immediate interests of Hong Kong, but have to take into account its long-term prospects as well. They should go about their activities realistically and moderately, always leaving some leeway for unforseen circumstances. In resolving conflicts they must exercise reason and control, depend on and have faith in the majority; and secure the co- operation of the middle-of-the-road forces.
The image of the leftists ought to be flexible, mild, moderate, multi-level and with a variety of roles to play, an image that is close to and yet different from the intermediate forces. The difference lies in the fact that the leftists are pro-China. History and tradition have given the leftists a well-established image, one which is indelible and hard to be forgotten. The path taken by NG Hon-man, CHENG Xiu-tong and TSUI Sze-man is known by all. Nevertheless, the image of the leftists today is a far cry from that of a decade ago. Now it has a progressive, enlightened image. There exists, however, a certain lack of mutual understanding between Hong Kong people and Communist China. In the course of implementing the "one country, two system" policy, conflicts, contradictions and misunderstandings are bound to arise. Taking advantage of their social connections, the leftists may serve as a bridge between Hong Kong and the mainland and assist in clearing up misunderstanding, mitigating contradictions and removing conflicts. This cannot possibly be achieved by any other groups. Certain conflicts are attributable to the mainland system. The leftists have the obligation to represent the Hong Kong people to demand the mainland authorities to remove those factors that give rise to conflicts. If the problem stems from the Hong Kong system, then mitigation should be conducted in Hong Kong. By easing the contradiction between the two systems the leftists will serve as a kind of buffer, and this is the best pro-China action that can be taken by the leftists.
For historical reasons, the leftists cannot and should not become Hong Kong's ruling party in future. There is no point for the leftists to pretend to be middle-of-the-roaders for the purpose of grabbing power. The leftists, being not in office, can act as a