CODE 18-77
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Reference.......
CC5ACF
-Pamela
47
Mr Fraser
Policy Planning Staff
ARTICLE ON CHINA/HONG KONG
1.
HKB301
- 3 AUG 1990
1.
PA
Action Tat
Following are Hong Kong Department's comments on the draft article enclosed with your minutel of 31 July.
2. I think the Hong Kong section needs to be divided more clearly into the basic facts (Joint Declaration etc) and the post-Tiananmen situation (our confidence building initiatives and the Chinese attitude to them). The latter should bring out the point that, far from kow-towing to the Chinese over Hong Kong, we have introduced initiatives for Hong Kong's benefit despite Chinese reservations about them. It is precisely to discuss and resolve these reservations that we must keep contact with the Chinese over Hong Kong. I would suggest the following amendments:
PARA 4
A) Replace third sentence with: "But this does not mean that Hong Kong will be absorbed into socialist China. On the contrary, China clearly shares our desire to preserve the cultural, political and economic identity of the territory. Sino-British Joint Declaration
The
B) Fifth sentence: amend "largely autonomous administrative zone" to read "Special Administrative Region".
PARA 5
C) The first part of paragraph 6 would fit more naturally as the next paragraph "China also has a massive
for its economic
and political freedoms." Amend" indispensable" in this last line to read "valuable".
PARA 6 (old PARA 5)
D) Delete first sentence.
E) Amend second sentence to begin "The events in Tiananmen Square of June last year certainly damaged ..."
F) Delete last sentence.
NEW PARA 7
"In the past year, we have introduced a number of initiatives intended to build on the achievements of the Joint Declaration and underline our commitment to Hong Kong's future stability and prosperity. Hong Kong Government is proceeding with the programme of democratisation and the Bill of Rights and has embarked on a £10 billion infrastructure project to build a new airport and to expand the port facilities.
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