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WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 30, 1994
TRANSCRIPT OF THE GOVERNOR'S MEDIA SESSION
THE FOLLOWING IS A TRANSCRIPT OF THE MEDIA SESSION BY THE GOVERNOR, THE RT HON CHRISTOPHER PATTEN AFTER VISITING KWUN TONG DISTRICT THIS (WEDNESDAY) AFTERNOON:
GOVERNOR: I AM PLEASED TO HAVE BEEN ABLE TO VISIT KWUN TONG AGAIN. I'VE BEEN HERE ON A NUMBER OF PREVIOUS VISITS. MY LAST OFFICIAL VISIT TO THE DISTRICT BOARD WAS IN THE SUMMER OF 1993 WHEN A NUMBER OF YOU, I THINK, CAME WITH ME TO A COUPLE OF TEMPORARY HOUSING AREAS. I AM PLEASED THAT BOTH THOSE TEMPORARY HOUSING AREAS WILL HAVE BEEN REMOVED BY NEXT SUMMER AND THE RESIDENTS REHOUSED. EIGHTY-FIVE PERCENT OF THOSE IN TEMPORARY HOUSING AREAS IN THE DISTRICT SHOULD HAVE BEEN REHOUSED BY NEXT SUMMER BUT THERE ARE STILL HOUSING PROBLEMS IN KWUN TONG. I WENT TO SEE ONE OF THE OLDER BLOCKS TODAY, ONE OF THOSE THAT WERE BUILT IN 1967 WHEN WE WERE JUST BEGINNING THE MASS PUBLIC HOUSING PROGRAMME IN HONG KONG, AND WHEN WE WERE BEGINNING THE SECOND STAGE, AND, I THINK, THAT'S A REMINDER OF HOW MUCH WE STILL HAVE TO DO. WE'VE GOT PROBLEMS IN RENOVATION AND MODERNISATION AND WE'VE GOT TO SOME OF OUR BLOCKS WITH COMPLETELY NEW BLOCKS. I WAS STRUCK BY SOME OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONS THAT RESIDENTS IN THAT PARTICULAR BLOCK REFERRED то ME. I THINK THIS IS THE VISIT WHICH HAS CONTAINED THE LARGEST NUMBER OF PETITIONS APART FROM THOSE THAT I RECEIVED IN THE RUN-UP TO THE DISTRICT BOARD ELECTIONS, WHICH IS A REMINDER OF HOW LIVELY DISCUSSION IS IN THE DISTRICT AND I'VE BEEN VERY PLEASED THAT THE CHAIRMAN OF THE DISTRICT BOARD HAS BROUGHT A NUMBER OF ISSUES то MY PERSONAL ATTENTION INCLUDING HER CONCERN AND THAT OF A NUMBER OF OTHER DISTRICT BOARD MEMBERS ABOUT THE TOO EASY AVAILABILITY OF PORNOGRAPHIC LITERATURE NOT ONLY IN THIS DISTRICT BUT THROUGHOUT HONG KONG. IT'S ACTUALLY A SUBJECT WHICH WE TALKED ABOUT BRIEFLY IN THE EXECUTIVE COUNCIL EARLIER THIS WEEK, A SUBJECT WHICH A NUMBER OF MEMBERS FEEL STRONGLY ABOUT, IT'S ONE THAT ROSANNA WONG HAS RAISED PUBLICLY AND PRIVATELY ON A NUMBER OF OCCASIONS AND I THINK IT'S A SUBJECT WHICH WE IN THE EXECUTIVE COUNCIL WILL HAVE TO LOOK AT IN THE NEXT FEW WEEKS. I THINK THERE IS CONCERN BOTH ABOUT PORNOGRAPHIC LITERATURE AND ABOUT LITERATURE AND VIDEOS AND FILMS CONTAINING EXCESSIVE VIOLENCE WHICH CAN HAVE SUCH A CORROSIVE IMPACT ON A COMMUNITY AS WE'VE SEEN IN NORTH AMERICA AND ELSEWHERE. WE DON'T WANT THAT SORT OF THING HERE.
QUESTION: SOME LEGCO MEMBERS HAVE JUST REQUESTED THE BRITISH GOVERNMENT TO RECEIVE ALL THE VIETNAMESE BOAT PEOPLE WHO REMAIN IN HONG KONG BY 1997. DO YOU THINK THE BRITISH GOVERNMENT SHOULD DO IT?
/GOVERNOR