14-JUL-1993 14:35
Gallagher
TRANSCRI PT MR ALASTAIR GOODLAD
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9
0491 579838 P.09
SELECT COMMITTEE 14 JULY 93
and now in the eleventh minute of the eleventh hour you are
pursuing policies along those lines, how would I respond to that
charge?
MR GOODLAD:
I think that that is the chestnut that is occasionally brought
forward. The truth of the matter is that prior to 1984 there was
really very little demand for democracy in Hong Kong and had discussions about democracy taken place with the Chinese during
the course of the cultural revolution, even if there had been a
desire for democracy, I doubt whether they would have got very
far.
But during the years up to 1984 when the discussions leading
up to the Joint Declaration with the Chinese took place, it was
recognised that this was a unique process, a dependent territory
not being given its independence but coming under the sovereignty of the neighbouring power. When it was a dependent territory, as
it now is, there was democratic accountability through this House,
we are participating in it at this very moment, people in this
House take an enormous interest in Hong Kong because we are the
sovereign power, after 1997 we shall not be. So it was agreed
with the Chinese side in the Joint Declaration in 1984 that the
Legislative Council would in 1995 be constituted "by election".
If you use the word by election then you are by implication
importing the notion of democracy of some sort.