CO537-1651 — Page 62

adult electorate, for which there will be no property

or literacy qualification. You will recall that at the

time when this matter was discussed with you in the early

months of this year, it was thought that constitutional

Premarife advance in Hong Kong would probably take the form of the

creation of a Municipal Council. There was then in mind

probable

was expected

the precedent of Singapore, where "it had been suggested

initial

constit

لم

that the constitutional advance should take the form of

broadening the representative basis of the Municipality,

and transferring to it some of the functions of the

Central Government. I need not trouble you with the

reasons leading up to the recommendation, which is

now under consideration, that the principal changes

should be made in the Legislative Council, and not the Вит

tundoubted, have sous bearing o they do, I think, weaken

Puoicipality of Singapore,

the ease, from the point of

List

they

so far as

view of the Singapore precedent,

Thes

the creation of a Municipality in Hong Kong as the

main line of constitutional advance.

The second factor is the decided lack of

enthusiasm on the part of the inhabitants of Hong Kong

}

your

for any constitutional changes, reported in your

ponfidential despatch of the 22nd October.

In view of

this, it might be represented that a façade of local

Government is being created, for which there is no demand,

in order to avoid the liberalisation of the Central

Government. Having regard to the fact that the population in Singapore is also largely Chinese, an

announcement of the decision regarding constitutional

might

made

changes in that Colony, which may be expected shortly, may cause the general public in Hong Kong to think that

there is some substance in this view, and their apathy

and apprehension to become still more pronounced, with

a corresponding diminution in whatever prospects there

may be of the population co-operating in carrying out the scheme for an elected Municipal Council.

5. I recognise