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157767 MDLIAN 2089
THE BL SO THAT THEY COULD SERVE THROUGH 1997. MEDIA REPORTS (1.12) NOTED THAT SIR DAVID SAID THAT THE DECISIONS WHICH THE HK GOVERNMENT WAS TAKING WERE WITHIN ITS OWN AUTONOMY AND THAT THE PEOPLE WHO WERE MAKING THESE DECISIONS WERE THE PEOPLE WHO WOULD FORM THE BACKBONE OF THE ADMINISTRATION AFTER 1997.
8. LEADER OF A DELEGATION OF THE HK AND MACAU ·AFFAIRS OFFICE CHEN ZUO'ER WAS QUOTED AS SAYING THAT IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE JD AND THE BL, CHINA AND BRITAIN HAD TO HAVE FRIENDLY CO-OPERATION TO ACHIEVE A STEADY TRANSITION AND A SMOOTH TRANSFER, THAT THE HK GOVERNMENT DID NOT HAVE THE RIGHT TO MAKE UNILATERAL DECISIONS, AND THAT IF MORE CIVIL SERVANTS REMAINED IN HK, THE BETTER IT WOULD BE FOR THE TRANSFER IN 1997. HE SAID THAT THE CHINESE WOULD FOLLOW CLAUSE 4 OF THE JD TO TAKE CORRESPONDING MEASURES TO COPE WITH MATTERS ON THE CIVIL SERVICE IN FUTURE.
9. A FORMER US CONSUL-GENERAL IN HK DONALD ANDERSON, SAID THAT CHINA WOULD BECOME MORE AND MORE INCLINED TO INTERFERE WITH HK AFFAIRS AS 1997 WAS APPROACHING, AND THAT FOR THE SAKE OF HK'S FUTURE STABILITY, IT WAS IMPERATIVE THAT PEKING MADE IT CLEAR THAT IT WOULD CONTINUE TO RESPECT HK'S FREEDOMS.
10. THE GENERAL SECRETARY OF THE CHINESE COMMUNIST PARTY, JIANG ZEMIN, TOLD A FORMER BRITISH PRIME MINISTER, EDWARD HEATH, THAT CHINA HAD BEEN AND WOULD CONTINUE TO ATTACH IMPORTANCE TO ITS RELATIONS WITH BRITAIN BECAUSE BOTH SIDES HAD COMMON INTERESTS IN THE QUESTION OF HK AND BECAUSE GOOD SINO-BRITISH RELATIONS WERE IN LINE WITH THE INTERESTS OF THE PEOPLE OF BOTH COUNTRIES.
NATIONALITY
11. QUOTING SOURCES, TVB AND MANY PAPERS REPORTED THAT THE GOVERNMENT HAD INVITED DIRECTORATE AND ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICERS TO APPLY FOR BRITISH PASSPORTS UNDER THE NATIONALITY PACKAGE IN A BID TO STABILISE THE CIVIL SERVICE. MING PAO QUOTED SOME SENIOR CHINESE OFFICERS IN THE GOVERNMENT AS SAYING THAT THEY WERE NOT INTERESTED IN APPLYING FOR THE SCHEME BUT THAT THEY WOULD CONSIDER DOING SO IF THEIR REFUSAL WOULD CAUSE EMBARRASSMENT TO CERTAIN PARTIES AND AFFECT THEIR PROMOTION PROSPECTS.
12. QUOTING SOURCES, ATV AND MANY PAPERS REPORTED THAT NCNA HK BRANCH OFFICIALS WERE GREATLY CONCERNED ABOUT WHETHER LOCAL SENIOR CIVIL SERVANTS WOULD APPLY FOR BRITISH NATIONALITY AND THAT THEY HAD PRIVATELY CONTACTED A NUMBER OF LOCAL CIVIL SERVANTS TO GAUGE THEIR VIEWS. ATV, QUOTING SOURCES, SAID NCNA
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