RESTRICTED
027 5
MDLIAN 6202
INTERNATIONAL COVENANT ON CIVIL AND POLITICAL RIGHTS REFERRED TO ''NATIONAL SECURITY' AND THAT SINCE HK WAS NOT A SOVEREIGN STATE, IT WAS INAPPROPRIATE TO APPLY THE COVENANT TO HK. CHINA FOUND IT
DIFFICULT TO INTERPRET SOME WORDS AND PHRASES PERTAINING TO BROAD PRINCIPLES ONLY AND DOUBTED WHETHER THIS COVENANT COULD BE APPLIED IN HK'S JUDICIAL PROCESS. SINCE HKG HAD GRANTED THE BILL SUPREMACY OVER OTHER LOCAL LAWS, THE CHINESE SIDE WONDERED WHETHER THE BILL WOULD BE SUPERIOR TO THE BL AFTER 1997.
14. MING PAO (24.4) IN A FEATURE ARTICLE SAID THAT THE AUSTRALIAN IMMIGRATION DEPARTMENT WAS STUDYING WAYS TO GRANT FLEXIBLE IMMIGRATION PLAN FOR KEY EMPLOYEES OF AUSTRALIAN FIRMS IN HK. DISCUSSION HAD BEEN HELD WITH TRADE UNIONS IN THE COUNTRY. IT WAS ESTIMATED THAT THE SCHEME WOULD BENEFIT SOME 200 TO 300 EMPLOYEES. THE AUSTRALIAN COMMISSION IN HK CLAIMED THE REPORTED BUT STRESSED THAT IT HAD NOTHING TO DO WITH BRITISH PERSUASION. THE HK ECONOMIC
JOURNAL (24.4) REPORTED THAT 17 355 PEOPLE HAD APPLIED FOR A CERTIFICATE OF NO CRIMINAL RECORDS IN THE FIRST QUARTER OF THIS YEAR, DOUBLING THE NUMBER OF APPLICATIONS FOR THE SAME PERIOD LAST YEAR.
15. LI PENG WOULD HEAD AN EXPERT GROUP OF HKMAO OFFICIALS TO
EXAMINE THE FEASIBILITY OF THE LARGE-SCALE INFRASTRUCTURAL PROJECTS PUT FORWARD BY HKG, THE EXPRESS (24.4) REPORTED IN ITS FRONT-PAGE LEAD. THE PAPER SAID THAT THE CHINESE GOVERNMENT HAD ALWAYS EXPRESSED CONCERN AND RESERVATIONS ABOUT THE AIRPORT AND PORT DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS PROPOSED BY THE GOVERNMENT. QUOTING AUTHORITATIVE SOURCES CLOSE TO CHINA, THE PAPER SAID THAT THE CHINESE GOVERNMENT WAS NOT OPPOSED TO THE NEED FOR A NEW AIRPORT IN HK BUT THAT IT WAS WORRIED WHETHER THE SUBSTANTIAL INVESTMENT IN
THE PROJECTS DURING THE TRANSITION WOULD AFFECT THE ECONOMY OF THE SAR.
WILSON
YYYY
4
PAGE RESTRICTED