February 1993
Ms Frances D'Souza
Director Article XIX
40 Borough Migh Street
London
SE1 14
Собаци
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Thank you for your letters of 20 January to Douglas Hurd and
me enclosing copies of the Article XIX report Urgent Business:
Hong Kong, Freedom of Expression and 1997. We were able to
discuss this when Emily Lau and colleagues from Legco called
on Douglas Hurd on 27 January.
We share your belief in the value to Hong Kong of a free
press. As the report indicates Hong Kong is fortunate in
enjoying a press which is surely the most free and vigourous of any in Asia. We also agree about the relationship between a free press and strengthening Hong Kong's democratic
institutions. Let me address the main recommendations of the
report in order.
The report claims that in several respects the Basic Law does
not reflect the spirit of the Joint Declaration. We made
clear at the time of the Basic Law's promulgation, that
although it does in many areas repeat word for word the
language of the Joint Declaration, there are points which we
would have wished to have seen drafted differently.
The report refers to Article 158 of the Basic Law and calls
for the "power of final interpretation of the Basic Law to be
restored to the Hong Kong Courts where the Joint Declaration
frn.good.FUT
SLM