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FRIDAY, JANUARY 24, 1986
MR RENTON : I KNOW MR BURKE OF OLD. HE'S A CONSTITUENT OF MINE AND HAS IN THE PAST BEEN A POLITICAL OPPONENT OF MINE. I WELCOME HIM HERE IN HK. ON HIS QUESTION OF THE SINO-BRITISH JOINT DECLARATION BEING AN UNEQUAL AGREEMENT, NO, SIR. I THINK FROM THE RECEPTION GIVEN TO THAT AGREEMENT WHEN IT WAS ANNOUNCED, FROM THE OVERWHELMING VIEWS OF THE ASSESSMENT OFFICE HERE IN HK. THIS AGREEMENT WAS WIDELY WELCOMED. IT WAS A UNIQUE ACHIEVEMENT AND OUR AIM NOW, AND I WISH TO STRESS THIS RIGHT AT THE BEGINNING OF THE QUESTIONS, IS TO SEE THAT THE PRINCIPLES OF THAT AGREEMENT ARE ENUNCIATED, ARE IMPLEMENTED IN FULL IN THE YEARS AHEAD, WE STAND FOUR SQUARE BEHIND THAT AGREEMENT. ON YOUR QUESTION OF RELIGIOUS FREEDOMS, THESE ARE GUARANTEED IN THE JOINT DECLARATION, AND WE WISH TO SEE, AS I'VE SAID, THAT THE JOINT DECLARATION IS IMPLEMENTED TO THE FULL.
Q.
EMILY LAU, FAR EASTERN ECONOMIC REVIEW: MR RENTON, IN PEKING YOU STATED THE IMPORTANCE OF CONVERGENCE BETWEEN POLITICAL DEVELOPMENT IN HK AND THE DRAFTING OF THE BASIC LAW WITHOUT SAYING HOW THAT CAN BE DONE. SOME PEOPLE IN HK ARE SUGGESTING THAT THE FIRST DRAFT OF THE BASIC LAW, DEALING WITH THE POLITICAL SYSTEM, SHOULD BE RELEASED IN 1987 TO COINCIDE WITH THE GOVERNMENT'S REVIEW, OR MAYBE EVEN TO PRE-EMPT IT AS A WAY OF HELPING CONVERGENCE. HOW DO YOU FEEL ON THIS?
MR RENTON THANK YOU VERY MUCH. THREE POINTS QUICKLY.
FIRST
I THINK FAR TOO MUCH PLAY, IF I MAY SAY SO, HAS BEEN MADE ABOUT THE WORD CONVERGENCE, IT IS A TECHNICAL TERM. WHAT IT MEANS IS A QUESTION OF TWO SIDES COMING TOGETHER, IF YOU LIKE, TWO RAILWAY TRACKS MEETING, AT A CROSSING AT A GIVEN POINT IN TIME AND SEEING THAT THE RAILWAY STATION ... THE RAILWAY TRAIN THEN GOES OVER SMOOTHLY FROM ONE SET OF TRACK TO THE OTHER. IT'S NOTHING MORE THAN THAT AND I DON'T THINK WE SHOULD SPEND TOO MUCH TIME ON THE SEMANTICS OF THE WORD CONVERGENCE. THE QUESTION OF HOW THIS COMING TOGETHER IS WORKED OUT IN THE YEARS AND MONTHS AHEAD BETWEEN THE REVIEW HERE IN 1987 FOR EXAMPLE AND THE ELECTIONS OF 1988 AND THE BASIC LAW, THAT OF COURSE IS OBVIOUSLY WHAT THE DISCUSSIONS AND THE DETAILED WORK IS GOING TO BE ABOUT IN THE MONTHS AHEAD, AND I DON'T WISH TO ANTICIPATE THE RESULTS OF THAT. IT IS OBVIOUSLY QUITE CLEAR TO ME THAT IF THERE IS TO BE THE SUCCESS THAT WE WANT TO SEE OF THE JOINT DECLARATION, THAT COMING TOGETHER HAS TO HAPPEN SO THAT THERE IS A SMOOTH TRANSITION AND CONTINUING STABILITY AND PROSPERITY THROUGHOUT THE 1990'S.
EMILY LAU : WHAT ABOUT THE QUESTION OF THE BASIC LAW BEING RELEASED IN 19877
MR RENTON: OH, YES. YOUR THIRD POINT. I'M SORRY. I HAVEN'T ANY PRE-VIEW ON THAT. IT IS OF COURSE UP TO THE CHINESE, THE QUESTION OF THE DRAFTING OF THE BASIC LAW. I UNDERSTAND THAT MEMBERS OF BOTH THE BASIC LAW DRAFTING COMMITTEE AND THE CONSULTATIVE COMMITTEE HAVE ALREADY BEEN APPOINTED, AND PRESUMABLY THERE ARE, I KNOW, MANY HONGKONGERS REPRESENTED ON BOTH OF THOSE COMMITTÉES. IF THEY THINK IT IS APPROPRIATE THAT A DRAFT SHOULD BE RELEASED EARLY ON, THEY WILL BE MAKING THAT POINT KNOWN TO THE CHINESE SIDE THROUGH THE COMMITTEES.
/Q. NICK
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