5.
On the modalities of our co-operation, a large measure of agreement was reached at the two Foreign Ministers' meeting in London last October, including the establishment of a Liaison Office within the Hong Kong Government as a focal point of contact for the Preparatory Committee Earlier this month, the Chinese Foreign Minister reaffirmed to the Secretary of State the Chinese Government's acceptance of our offer for co-operation with the Preparatory Committee The Liaison Office stands ready to assist the Preparatory Committee as it begins to carry out its immensely important tasks.
Finally, I should like to respond to Miss Lau's suggestion regarding the methods for selecting the first and subsequent CE of the HKSAR, and for forming the first and subsequent HKSAR Legislature. The relevant methods and procedures are already prescribed in the Basic Law and the Decision of the National People's Congress adopted on 4 April 1990. Implementation of these provisions, or amendments to these provisions, will be a matter for the Chinese Government and the future HKSAR Government. I would, therefore, only want to state two points of fact. First, that Article 45 of the Basic Law provides that "the ultimate aim is the selection of the Chief Executive by universal suffrage upon nomination by a broadly representative nominating committee in accordance with democratic procedures." Secondly, that Article 68 provides that "the ultimate aim is the election of all the members of the Legislative Council by universal suffrage."
The above said, the processes for selecting the Chief Executive, and forming the HKSAR legislature are self-evidently crucial to the credibility of the HKSAR Government. It is therefore perfectly natural that the Hong Kong community should take close interest in these processes. Equally, it is perfectly understandable that our community should expect these processes to be nothing less than open, transparent and fair, and to make their expectations known. The Hong Kong Government fully shares these expectations, and would urge those responsible for determining the selection and formation processes to take full account of them.
The 17 months ahead will be a critical period for the Hong Kong community. The Hong Kong Government is fully committed to working towards a successful transition through effective and accountable administration, and practical co-operation with the Preparatory Committee and the Chief Executive Designate. We hope that others will also contribute to this solemn task, and work together to put to fruition the high degree of autonomy promised to Hong Kong by the Joint Declaration.
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