A
Sir J Coles
PS/Mr Patten
RESTRICTED
FROM: P F Ricketts
Hong Kong Department
DATE: 22 June 1992
cc: Mr Bickham,
Special Advisers
MR PATTEN'S ARRIVAL SPEECH IN HONG KONG: FIRST DRAFT
(274)
1.
I submit a first draft of this speech. Mr Patten asked
that Mr Llewelyn should see it en route to him. Could Mr Morris please arrange this?
2. As Mr Patten suggested, I have avoided the familiar Hong Kong political vocabulary. The speech contains no references to continuity, convergence, prosperity, stability, freedom or the pace of democratisation. I do not think that it should be taken as provocative by the Chinese. But I suggest that we show the next version of the speech to Sir Robin McLaren and Mr Galsworthy for their assessment of the impact on the Chinese, as well as to the Governor for advice on whether the speech touches the right chords for
Hong Kong.
3. I attach a copy of Lord Wilson's equivalent speech in 1987, as a guide to length. I have asked Hong Kong to let me have early copies of the speeches by Sir D Ford and Baroness Dunn, which will precede that by Mr Patten.
HKD 190/1
Za Vachett
PF Ricketts
BE3ABL/1
RESTRICTED
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