alternative ideas have been put forward, and the Hong Kong Government have now published a compendium, and subsequently a supplement to it, for the benefit of members of the Legislative
Council, when they come to debate the issue.
18. We have also made plain from the outset that we are ready to
discuss these issues with the Chinese side. The Foreign and
Commonwealth Secretary and the Governor both briefed the Chinese
side on the Governor's proposals two weeks before the Governor
announced them to the Legislative Council in October 1992. But it
would not have been politically possible, given the degree of
speculation and uncertainty in Hong Kong, to engage in months of
protracted talks with the Chinese side about the proposals before the Governor explained his thinking to the people of Hong Kong.
19. The Governor went to Peking in October 1992, shortly after his inaugural address to the Legislative Council, to discuss his proposals with Chinese leaders. But the Chinese side refused to discuss them beyond saying they were unacceptable. They said publicly that the Governor would have to withdraw his proposals
before any discussion about electoral arrangements could take
place.
20. We continued to make it clear to the Chinese side that we
were ready to talk to them, at any time, without preconditions, in
order to reach an understanding with them on the 1994/95 electoral
arrangements. Intensive diplomatic contacts took place in
February and March 1993 in Peking to explore whether a productive basis for formal talks about these electoral arrangements can be
found. We made it plain that we were ready for the talks to
proceed on the basis of the Joint Declaration, the principle of
convergence with the Basic Law, and the relevant understandings
and agreements reached between China and Britain. We consider the
Governor's proposals are wholly compatible with these. We also
made it plain that in any talks, the British team would include
select.cttee.PR.JRB