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THURSDAY, DECEMBER 2, 1993
2
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ON
BUT WE HAVE MADE CLEAR FROM THE OUTSET THAT THE TALKS CANNOT GO UNDER THE JOINT RESPONSIBILITIES INDEFINITELY. ONE OF OUR DECLARATION IS TO ENSURE THAT THE ARRANGEMENTS FOR THE ELECTIONS PUT IN PLACE ON TIME.
WE
ARE
HAVE AN
WOULD HAVE STARTED LATER THAN BECAUSE THE NEGOTIATIONS
THE PRESSURES OF THE LIKED, AND ARE TAKING AS LONG AS THEY ARE,
THAT IS WHY WE LEGISLATIVE TIMETABLE NOW BEAR DOWN UPON US. CONCENTRATED IN RECENT ROUNDS ON EXPLORING FULLY THE PROSPECTS FOR INTERIM AGREEMENT. WE HAD HOPED IT WOULD BE POSSIBLE TO DEAL WITH THE LESS CONTENTIOUS ISSUES THAT WAY.
ALL
POSSIBLE. THE DESPITE OUR BEST EFFORTS, THAT HAS NOT PROVED
WE THREE STRAIGHTFORWARD AND LARGELY UNCONTENTIOUS ISSUES ON WHICH WANTED EARLY AGREEMENT WERE: THE VOTING AGE FOR DISTRICT BOARDS, MUNICIPAL COUNCILS AND LEGCO ELECTIONS, THE VOTING METHOD FOR DISTRICT BOARDS, MUNICIPAL COUNCILS AND LEGCO ELECTIONS, AND THE ABOLITION APPOINTED MEMBERSHIP IN DISTRICT BOARDS AND MUNICIPAL COUNCILS,
MADE THREE ARE MATTERS ON WHICH THE VIEWS OF THIS COUNCIL HAVE BEEN
ISSUES WHICH THE VERY CLEAR. UNFORTUNATELY THE ONLY ONE OF THESE CHINESE SIDE WERE PREPARED TO AGREE IN ITS ENTIRETY, AS PART OF A PACKAGE AGREEMENT, WAS THAT THE VOTING AGE SHOULD BE REDUCED TO 18 FOR THE VOTING AGE LEGCO, DISTRICT BOARD AND MUNICIPAL COUNCIL ELECTIONS. IN CHINA IS, OF COURSE, 18.
TO AN INDEED THEY PROPOSED ONE LEGCO ELECTIONS. THEY CHANGING MEMBERS OF CHINESE
ORGANISATIONS.
CLEARLY THE CHINESE SIDE HAD NO OBJECTION IN PRINCIPLE INTERIM AGREEMENT ENCOMPASSING LEGCO ISSUES. IN WHICH THE NEW VOTING AGE WOULD APPLY TO THEMSELVES PROPOSED THAT WE SHOULD RECOMMEND TO THIS COUNCIL THE LAW TO PERMIT HONG KONG RESIDENTS WHO ARE PEOPLE'S CONGRESSES TO SERVE IN LEGCO AND IN DISTRICT WE WERE PREPARED TO AGREE TO THAT SUGGESTION.
SIDE
SO IT IS PARTICULARLY HARD TO UNDERSTAND WHY THE CHINESE REFUSED TO AGREE TO USE THE "SINGLE-SEAT, SINGLE-VOTE" VOTING SYSTEM FOR ALL THREE SETS OF ELECTIONS, KNOWING AS THEY DO THE TIME PRESSURES IN ALL MUNICIPAL WE FACE. THIS VOTING SYSTEM IS ALREADY IN USE
THE CHINESE COUNCIL AND TWO-THIRDS OF DISTRICT BOARD ELECTIONS, AND
IT TO THE SIDE HAVE SAID THAT THEY HAD NO OBJECTION TO EXTENDING
INSTEAD, THEY ARGUED REMAINING ONE-THIRD OF DISTRICT BOARD ELECTIONS.
ASIDE FOR THAT THE ISSUE OF THE LEGCO VOTING SYSTEM SHOULD BE LEFT
EVEN THOUGH THE ISSUE OF THE DISCUSSION WITH OTHER LEGCO' ISSUES LEGCO VOTING SYSTEM HAS ALREADY BEEN DISCUSSED AT SOME LENGTH IN TALKS, AND FROM QUITE AND EARLY STAGE.
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BE OF PRACTICAL VALUE, AN INTERIM AGREEMENT WOULD BOTH THE VOTING AGE AND VOTING METHOD FOR ALL THRER
COVER ELECTION.
THE
NEED TO TIERS OF
THE
LITTLE
THERE ARE STRONG PRACTICAL AND POLITICAL REASONS FOR THIS. VALUE OF AN INTERIM AGREEMENT WOULD BE THAT IT WOULD BUY US A MORE LEGISLATIVE TIME TO NEGOTIATE ON THE MORE DIFFICULT ISSUES. DOES THE LEGISLATION ON THE LEGCO VOTING METHOD NEED TO BE PASSED AN
EARLY DATE? OF COURSE, THE LEGCO VOTING METHOD DETERMINES NUMBER OF CONSTITUENCIES WHICH WILL NEED TO BE DRAWN UP. HAD TO LEGISLATE TWICE ON VOTING SYSTEMS THAT WOULD TAKE NOT LESS, AT A TIME WHEN THE LEGISLATIVE CALENDAR UNDER SEVERE PRESSURE DEALING WITH THE OTHER ELECTORAL ISSUES.
WHY
AT
THE
AND IF WE MORE TIME, WILL ALREADY BE
THERE ARE