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WEI PO, IN AN EDITORIAL, CRITICISED THE GOVERNMENT FOR NOT CONSULTING HK PEOPLE'S VIEWS ON THE AIRPORT PROJECT. CHIN PO SAID THAT THE CHINESE HAD NEVER SAID THAT THE PROJECT MUST BE APPROVED BY CHINA AND THAT THE GOVERNOR'S REMARKS GAVE PEOPLE THE IMPRESSION THAT THE PROJECT HAD BEEN DELAYED BY THE FACT THAT APPROVAL FROM CHINA HAD NOT BEEN OBTAINED.
EMIGRATION
4. THE GOVERNMENT EXPECTED THAT A TOTAL OF 62,000 PEOPLE WOULD EMIGRATE THIS YEAR, THE MEDIA (4.9) REPORTED PROMINENTLY. THE REPORTS NOTED THAT THIS WAS AN INCREASE OF NEARLY 50 PERCENT COMPARED WITH THE 1989 FIGURE OF 42,000. THE REPORTS PLAYED UP REMARKS BY THE DEPUTY INFORMATION CO-ORDINATOR, MIKE ROWSE, THAT MOST OF THE EMIGRANTS WERE PROFESSIONALS AGED BETWEEN 25 AND 40. HE BELIEVED THAT THE BRITISH NATIONALITY PACKAGE AND SIMILAR INSURANCE SCHEMES OFFERED BY OTHER COUNTRIES MIGHT HELP REDUCE THE NUMBER OF HK PEOPLE LEAVING THE TERRITORY AT THE END OF THE YEAR. IT WAS EXPECTED THAT SOME 58,000 PEOPLE WOULD LEAVE HK NEXT YEAR.
5. THE VISITING AUSTRALIAN AND CANADIAN IMMIGRATION MINISTERS, YESTERDAY CALLED SEPARATELY ON THE GOVERNOR AND HELD TALKS ON MATTERS OF MUTUAL INTEREST, INCLUDING EMIGRATION AND THE VBP PROBLEM, THE MEDIA (4.9) REPORTED. THE ASSOCIATE PRESS QUOTED A HKG OFFICIAL AS SAYING THAT THE GOVERNOR HAD ASKED BOTH MINISTERS NOT TO TEMPT THE CREAM OF HK TALENTS TO LEAVE THE TERRITORY.
CHINA'S HK POLICY
6. A HIGH-LEVEL MEETING ON HK AND MACAU AFFAIRS COMMENCED ON SEPTEMBER 3 IN PEKING, THE EXPRESS (2. 3.9) AND THE HK STANDARD (3.9) REPORTED. THE MEETING, ORGANISED BY THE HK AND MACAU AFFAIRS OFFICE, THE FOREIGN MINISTRY AND THE HK AND MACAU WORK COMMITTEE, WOULD HAMMER OUT CHINA'S POLITICAL, ECONOMIC AND LEGAL POLICIES FOR THE TWO TERRITORIES. INFORMED CHINESE SOURCES SAID THAT LI PENG WAS EXPECTED TO ATTEND THE CLOSED-DOOR MEETING. FOREIGN MINISTER QIAN QICHEN WOULD ALSO BE THERE. IT WAS ALSO UNDERSTOOD THAT ZHOU NAN AND HIS DEPUTIES, ZHENG HUA, QIAO ZHONGHUI, PAN ZENGXI AND WANG PINGQING WOULD ALSO ATTEND THE MEETING.
7. THE PAPERS SAID THAT TOP CHINESE OFFICIALS ATTACHED MAJOR IMPORTANCE TO THE MEETING. A CHINESE SOURCE SAID THAT THE PREMIER WOULD ISSUE NEW GUIDELINES ON HANDLING HK AFFAIRS AT THE MEETING. THE MEETING, CHAIRED BY THE DIRECTOR OF THE HKMAO, JI PENGFEI,
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