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a supportive line. However the general picture remains
surprisingly good. Nonetheless we need to work at bolstering HKG's authority. The Prime Minister may
therefore wish to show public appreciation of, and
confidence in, the work of the Governor and senior
members of the Hong Kong Civil Service. (See also the
defensive line below on Civil Service concerns.)
LegCo Elections
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The campaign is underway for the elections to LegCo
on 12 and 15 September, when for the first time 18 (out
of 60) seats will be directly elected. The United
Democrats, under the lawyer Martin Lee, look likely to
win 15 20 of the total 39 directly-elected and
indirectly-elected seats. They are critical of many
aspects of Hong Kong Government policy (eg they favour
full democracy immediately) and highly critical of China on human rights issues. Peking is suspicious of and hostile to them. There is also some anxiety, both in
Hong Kong and business circles, that the new LegCo will
make life more difficult for the Government and that, if
not managed responsibly, it could undermine confidence
more generally.
We remain committed to trying to persuade the Chinese to accept a faster pace of democratisation than
currently provided for under the Basic Law, (ie 20 seats
in 1995/97, 24 in 1999, 30 in 2003 and the possibility of full direct elections in 2007). But it would be
counter-productive to press for change before the 1991 elections and before the new LegCo has settled in.
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