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POSITION IN LEGCO QUITE RIGHT. I SUGGEST YOU MIGHT REPLACE IT WITH THE FOLLOWING QUOTE SO FAR IN LEGCO THERE HAS BEEN A COMFORTABLE MAJORITY IN SUPPORT OF MY PROPOSALS, WITH ROUGHLY 30 IN FAVOUR, 20 AGAINST AND 10 SITTING ON THE FENCE. BUT IT SEEMS THAT THE LATTER CATEGORY IS GROWING, WITH AN INCREASING NUMBER OF THE MIDDLE GROUND LOOKING FOR A COMPROMISE. ANY COMPROMISE HOWEVER, WOULD BE DENOUNCED BY THE UD (HK), WHO ARE ANXIOUSLY WATCHING FOR SIGNS OF BACKSLIDING BY ME OR HMG. SOME LEGCO MEMBERS
SEVERAL MONTHS UNQUOTE.
PARAGRAPH 9. CO-OPTING LOCAL WORTHIES AS NON-VOTING ADVISERS WOULD NOT BE PARTICULARLY POPULAR IN THE COMMUNITY, BUT IT WOULD DEMONSTRATE THE GOVERNMENT'S READINESS TO RESPOND TO INTELLIGENT PROPOSALS. I SUGGEST REPLACING QUOTE THIS WOULD BE POPULAR IN THE COMMUNITY UNQUOTE WITH QUOTE THIS COULD BE USED TO DEMONSTRATE THAT WE WERE LISTENING TO REASONABLE CRITICISM UNQUOTE.
G
PARAGRAPH 11 AT A TIME WHEN THE CHINESE ARE CLEARLY CONSIDERING THEIR OPTIONS, AND WHEN WE ARE ABOUT TO PUT OUR PROPOSALS TO LEGCO, I THINK IT COULD BE VERY VALUABLE IF THE SECRETARY OF STATE WERE ABLE TO GIVE AMBASSADOR MA A MEAL TO REINFORCE THE MESSAGE WHICH HE PLANS TO SEND TO QIAN QICHEN. WE NEED TO GET ACROSS, AT WHAT COULD BE A TURNING POINT, THAT WE ARE NOT TRYING TO POSE A CHALLENGE TO CO-OPERATION WITH CHINA.
PARAGRAPH 12. IN THE FIFTH SENTENCE YOU MIGHT EXPAND THE POINT AS FOLLOWS: QUOTE THE BEST OUTCOME WOULD BE THE EMERGENCE OF A COMPROMISE PACKAGE WITH WHICH NO FACTION IN LEGCO WAS ENTIRELY CONTENT BUT WHICH MET OUR OBJECTIVES OF FREE AND FAIR ELECTIONS AND ALSO DEALT WITH THE POINTS ETC. UNQUOTE.
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