7
FRIDAY, JUNE 16, 1989
GOVERNOR:
QUESTION:
GOVERNOR:
QUESTION:
GOVERNOR:
QUESTION:
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I'VE BEEN TRAVELLING FOR THE LAST TEN DAYS, SO I DON'T KNOW THE ANSWER TO THAT. I CAN ONLY GIVE YOU A PERSONAL ANSWER SINCE YOU ASK ME A PERSONAL QUESTION AND THAT IS: ON A PERSONAL BASIS I'VE NOW BEEN HERE AS GOVERNOR FOR JUST OVER TWO YEARS, } SUPPOSE I HAVE NOT IN ANY WAY CHANGED FROM THE MOMENT I CAME, MY CONCERN HAS BEEN TO LOOK AFTER HONG KONG'S INTERESTS AND TO PUT THOSE FORWARD AS STRONGLY AS I POSSIBLY CAN, IN THE WAY THAT I THINK IS THE BEST WAY OF GETTING THEM HEARD. SOMETIMES THAT REQUIRES WORKING BEHIND THE SCENES; SOMETIMES THAT REQUIRES SPEAKING OUT OPENLY. CHANGED.
I HAVEN'T
SIR GEOFFREY HOWE, OF COURSE, ARRIVES IN HONG KONG NEXT MONTH. AFTER ALL THE FURIOUSNESS, 1 WOULD SUGGEST, WITH THE BRITISH POSITION OVER NATIONALITY, WHAT KIND OF RECEPTION DO YOU THINK HE IS LIKELY TO GET FROM THE MAN IN THE STREET WHO IS CLEARLY WORRIED ABOUT THE FUTURE HERE?
IN
THAT
COME
THE
MAN
WELL, YOU'VE BEEN HERE LISTENING TO WHAT THE MAN THE STREET SAYS, YOU COULD PROBABLY GUESS BETTER THAN I CAN. WHAT I HOPE HE WILL DO IS HERE AND LISTEN TO THOSE VIEWS FROM THE MAN IN STREET
FROM THE MAN IN THE STREET AND THE WHEREVER HE MAY BE ALL SECTORS OF SOCIETY,
INDEED I'M SURE HE WILL. HE IS SOMEBODY WHO IS VERY SYMPATHETIC TO HONG KONG AND SOMEBODY VERY READY ΤΟ LISTEN.
—
AND
YET LOOKING AT THE SCALE OF THE ANXIETY, WOULD YOU EXPECT HIM TO GET SOMETHING OF A ROUGH RIDE, THOUGH?
THAT, I DON'T KNOW.
IN THE LIGHT OF THE EVENTS IN SHANGHAI RECENTLY, WITH THE DEATH PENALTY BEING GIVEN TO THREE PEOPLE, WE DO IN HONG KONG STILL HAVE THE DEATH PENALTY ON THE STATUTE BOOKS. DO YOU THINK THIS IS SOMETHING THAT WE SHOULD BE LOOKING AT WHEN WE THINK ABOUT 1997?
GOVERNOR:
WE DO HAVE VERY STRONG VIEWS IN THE COMMUNITY
HERE, ON THE QUESTION OF THE DEATH PENALTY, AND THERE ARE A LARGE NUMBER OF PEOPLE IN THE COMMUNITY WHO WOULD WISH TO KEEP THE DEATH PENALTY. AS YOU PROBABLY KNOW, IT IS ALWAYS AT THE MOMENT, COMMUTED. BUT THERE IS A STRONG FEELING IN THE COMMUNITY THAT THAT SHOULD NOT BE THE CASE. IT IS THE CASE AT THE MOMENT AND IT'S LIKELY TO GO ON BEING THE CASE. BUT I WOULD EXPECT QUITE STRONG OPPOSITION TO REMOVING IT FROM THE STATUTE BOOKS.
/QUESTION: