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LOCAL POLITICIANS TO ACHIEVE THIS UNQUOTE. ANOTHER WRITER IN THE SAME PAPER SAID QUOTE IF BRITAIN INTENDS TO CHANGE ITS POSITION ON THE 1995 ELECTIONS, CHINA COULD ALSO CHANGE ITS POSITION BY WITHDRAWING ITS PLEDGE TO ALLOW LEGCO MEMBERS TO RIDE THE THROUGH TRAIN BEYOND 1997 UNQUOTE.
4. MAINSTREAM LOCAL NEWSPAPERS AND THE ELECTRONIC MEDIA HAVE MAINTAINED A HIGH DEGREE OF INTEREST IN THE STORY. EDITORIAL AND COMMENTARY PAGES HAVE CONTINUED TO COUNSEL AGAINST SOURING THE RELATIONSHIP WITH CHINA OVER THE DEMOCRACY ISSUE. THE SING TAO EVENING POST, FOR EXAMPLE, HAS ARGUED THAT INCREASING THE NUMBER OF DIRECTLY ELECTED SEATS IN LEGCO IS NO GUARANTEE OF HONG KONG'S FUTURE STABILITY AND PROSPERITY. ON 30 MAY, ITS SISTER DAILY, SING PAO, REPEATED ITS EARLIER WARNING THAT QUOTE A DANGEROUS PRECEDENT WOULD BE SET IF HONG KONG WERE TO SEEK TO AMEND PROVISIONS IN THE BASIC LAW BEFORE 1997. IT WOULD GIVE CHINA AN EXCUSE TO DO THE SAME UNQUOTE. THE PAPER CARRIED ANOTHER EDITORIAL ON 1 JUNE QUESTIONING THE UDHK'S MOTIVES IN CALLING FOR MORE DIRECTLY ELECTED SEATS. THE WRITER ARGUED THAT QUOTE THE
MAJORITY OF HONG KONG PEOPLE WANTED THE PACE OF DEMOCRATIC TO BE
CONSISTENT WITH A SMOOTH TRANSITION IN 1997. UNQUOTE.
5. THE HONG KONG DAILY NEWS MAINTAINS THAT BRITAIN AND CHINA ARE HEADING FOR A POLITICAL ROW WHICH WILL ESCALATE ONCE THE NEW
GOVERNOR TAKES OVER IN JULY. THE PAPER ARGUED THAT MR. GOODLAD'S REMARKS WERE AN INDICATION THAT HARD BARGAINING BETWEEN BRITAIN AND CHINA COULD BE EXPECTED OVER THE 1995 LEGCO, THE ROLE OF EXCO AND THE NEW AIRPORT.
COMMENT
6. THE SUSTAINED ATTACK IN THE LEFT WING PRESS SUGGESTS THAT THE PRO-PEKING CAMP IN HONG KONG HAS, LIKE MANY OTHERS, READ FAR TOO MUCH INTO MR. GOODLAD'S REMARKS AS WELL AS MARTIN LEE'S MEETING WITH THE PRIME MINISTER. THE SCALE AND SPEED OF THE RESPONSE IN THE LEFT WING PRESS SUGGESTS THAT THE CHINESE WERE WAITING FOR A SUITABLE PLATFORM FROM WHICH TO LAUNCH AN OFFENSIVE AGAINST WHAT THEY PERCEIVED AS EVIDENCE OF SHIFTS IN BRITISH POLICY AND HAVE USED IT AS SOON AS A SUITABLE OPPORTUNITY APPEARED. THE CONCERN EXPRESSED IN MORE NEUTRAL SECTORS OF THE COMMUNITY IS THE REACTION WHICH NORMALLY TENDS TO FOLLOW ANY SIGNS OF WHAT SEEMS
LIKE TENSION IN SINO-BRITISH RELATIONS, ESPECIALLY WHEN THE ISSUES INVOLVED ARE OBSCURE.
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