FAXED 2/12/92
CONFIDENTIAL
Mais 017/1
이디
P Ricketts Esq Hong Kong Department FCO
Dear Peter,
HONG KONG: POLITICAL SITUATION
71
Office of the
British Senior Representative
Sino-British Joint Liaison Group
1 December 1992
See
i
fax
1.
It is some time since we attempted an assessment of the current political scene. The period since the arrival of Mr Patten has been one of unusually rapid evolution - of ideas, attitudes and relationships, both within Hong Kong and between Hong Kong and China. That situation is continuing to evolve, and a snapshot of the political scene is therefore going to have even more blurred edges than usual. But as the new Governor enters the sixth month of his term of office, now seems as good a time as any to take stock and to pick out the main trends and characteristics.
2. The first and most obvious feature of the past five months has been the impact on Hong Kong of a political Governor. People were overwhelmed and, I think, deeply impressed in the early months of the new governorship by Mr Patten's political style, his openness and accessibility and his ability to communicate ideas directly and honestly. Much of that early impact remains even now that the honeymoon period is over. His LegCo address and the public relations tour de force which followed it probably marked the peak of his popularity. Predictably, the Chinese onslaught that followed the LegCo address has tarnished his image, but not his authority nor, I think, the respect in which he is held by most people in the Territory. One lasting effect of the "Patten phenomenon" is, I suspect, going to be its impact on Hong Kong's political culture: he has set standards of communication and openness which Hong Kong's politicians, and the future Chief Executive in particular, will be expected to try to emulate.
CONFIDENTIAL