UNCLASSIFIED
164413
MDLIAN 0244
COMMENTS
12. LEADER WRITERS AND COMMENTATORS OF THE PEKING-BACKED PAPERS CALLED ON HK PEOPLE TO STUDY THE REVISED BL CALMLY AND RATIONALLY.
THEY STRESSED THAT MANY IMPROVEMENTS HAD BEEN MADE TO THE FINAL DRAFT OF THE DOCUMENT. SOME COMMENTATORS EVEN CLAIMED THAT THE
POLITICAL STRUCTURE IN THE REVISED DRAFT WAS VERY CLOSE TO THE OMELCO CONSENSUS. EDITORIALS AND COMMENTARIES IN THE INDEPENDENT PAPERS EXPRESSED MIXED VIEWS ON THE REVISED DRAFT BUT THE MAJORITY OF THE PAPERS FELT THAT IT WOULD BE BETTER TO HAVE A BL WHICH COULD PROVIDE SOME DIRECTION TO THE FUTURE DEVELOPMENT OF THE TERRITORY. ONLY THE EXPRESS (17.2) CRITICISED THE HK GOVERNMENT FOR BOWING TO PRESSURE FROM PEKING OVER THE TERRITORY'S FUTURE POLITICAL
ARRANGEMENTS.
P
13. THE SUNDAY MORNING POST (18.2) SAID THAT NOW WAS THE TIME TO MAKE BL WORK FOR HK. ALTHOUGH HK COULD DISMISS THE BL AS A ''SELL- OUT' ' THE PAPER CONTENDED THAT IT WOULD BE A MORE SENSIBLE COURSE OF ACTION TO TAKE IF HK ACCEPTED THE DOCUMENT AND ENSURED THAT IT SUCCEEDED. THE PAPER REJECTED THE FOREIGN SECRETARY'S SUGGESTION THAT BRITAIN COULD STILL NUDGE THE CHINESE GOVERNMENT TOWARDS FULL DEMOCRACY IN HK BY 2007 AS WISHFUL THINKING OR A FEEBLE APOLOGY. WRITING IN THE SUNDAY MORNING POST (18.2), A FORMER DEPUTY POLITICAL ADVISER TO THE HK GOVERNMENT, RICHARD MARGOLIS, SAID THAT ALTHOUGH THE BL DRAFTING PROCESS AND THE SINO-BRITISH NEGOTIATIONS WERE CLEARLY A DISAPPOINTMENT TO THOSE WHO WANTED A FASTER PACE OF DEMOCRATIC DEVELOPMENT, THE ARRANGEMENTS AGREED UPON WOULD TAKE HK FORWARD AND WAS THE BEST DEAL POSSIBLE. HOWEVER, JOURNALIST AND BROADCASTER ANTHONY LAWRENCE, WRITING IN THE SAME PAPER, TOOK A DIFFERENT VIEW AND ASKED WHETHER THE DRAFT BL WAS A BRITISH SELL-
OUT OF HK.
WILSON
YYYY
PAGE 4 UNCLASSIFIED