CONFIDENTIAL
026066
MDAD 7783
AIRPORT. THERE WOULD COME A POINT WHEN IT WOULD SURELY BE WHOLLY
WRONG FOR US TO OVERLOOK CONTINUING CHINESE ATTEMPTS AT
INTIMIDATION.'
ΤΟ
3. MORE GENERALLY, WE WILL CONTINUE HERE, AS WITH THE CHINESE, ENCOURAGE COUNTER PROPOSALS FROM THOSE WHO DO NOT LIKE MY PACKAGE, NO GROUP HAS YET COME UP WITH A BETTER WAY OF MEETING MY CRITERIA, BUT SOME ARE BEGINNING TO FORMULATE IDEAS (ADPL AND THE CIVIC ASSOCIATION SO FAR). IF ALTERNATIVES EMERGE WHICH MEET MY CRITERIA, AND COMMAND MAJORITY SUPPORT IN LEGCO, I WOULD CERTAINLY BE PREPARED TO CONSIDER EMBRACING THEM. THE KEY POINT
IS THAT THE EVENTUAL PACKAGE WHICH LEGCO PASSES MUST BE
DETERMINED BY AND IN HONG KONG.
4. AS YOUR PAPER MAKES CLEAR, THE NEXT FEW MONTHS ARE LIKELY TO BE ROUGH. IF THE CHINESE TRY TO OPPOSE OUR LETTING THE AIRPORT PLATFORM CONTRACT, LIFE MAY BECOME ROUGHER CALTHOUGH SO FAR AT
LEAST THERE SEEMS TO BE A GOOD MEASURE OF SUPPORT IN FINANCE COMMITTEE - EVEN FROM THE CRC). PUBLIC SUPPORT HAS SO FAR HELD UP REMARKABLY WELL. IN THE WEEKS AND MONTHS AHEAD WE WILL BE CONCENTRATING ON TWO GROUPS: INDIVIDUAL LEGCO MEMBERS AND THE
BUSINESS COMMUNITY.
S
5. I WILL WANT TO TALK TO THE SECRETARY OF STATE ABOUT THE
MEETING BETWEEN HIM AND QIAN QICHEN. THE AIM WOULD BE LESS TO REACH AN ACCOMMODATION THAN TO PREVENT THE CONSULTATION PROCESS DRAGGING ON ENDLESSLY AND TO SHOW HONG KONG OPINION THAT WE HAVE
BEEN THROUGH ALL THE CONSULTATIVE HOOPS. WE DO NOT SUGGEST APPROACHING THE CHINESE UNTIL NEARER THE TIME, BUT IT WOULD BE
HELPFUL IF THE SECRETARY OF STATE COULD BLOCK OFF SOME DATES IN
THE FIRST HALF OF JANUARY.
PATTEN
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ADVANCE
.HK POLICY
MR HUM HKD//HD
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DISTRIBUTION
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CONFIDENTIAL