XN000022-1985-04-10 — Page 3

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WEDNESDAY, APRIL 10, 1985

+ I THINK THE IMPORTANT THING TO KEEP YOUR EYE ON IS THE OBJECTIVES OF THESE GROUPS AND THE WAY THEY INTEND TO OPERATE AND I THINK THE OBJECTIVES OF THE GROUPS WHICH ARE NOW BEING DISCUSSED ARE VERY MUCH HOW THEY CAN ASSIST IN MAINTAINING THE STABILITY AND PROSPERITY IN DEVELOPMENT OF HONG KONG. SO I THINK MY ADVICE IS, DON'T GET TOO STUCK ON THE LABELS. LOOK TO THE OBJECTIVES.+

QUESTIONED WHETHER THE GOVERNMENT WOULD INTERFERE IF THE OBJECTIVES WERE NOT IN THE INTEREST OF HONG KONG, SIR EDWARD REPLIED: +1 DON'T THINK THERE IS ANYTHING TO INTERFERE WITH. IF PEOPLE, AS I SAY, OF SIMILAR INTERESTS FORM ASSOCIATIONS WITH PERFECTLY NORMÁL AND RESPECTABLE OBJECTIVES THERE IS NOTHING FOR THE GOVERNMENT TO INTERFERE IN.+

ON THE REMARKS YESTERDAY BY A SENIOR CHINESE OFFICIAL MR HU YAOBANG, THAT THERE WOULD BE CHANGES IN HONG KONG AFTER 1997, SIR EDWARD WAS ASKED IF HE SAW IT AS A CONTRADICTION OF THE JOINT DECLARATION.

+NO, I DON'T SEE ANY CONTRADICTION WITH THE JOINT DECLARATION, THE JOINT DECLARATION MAINTAINS THE ESSENTIALS OF THE SYSTEM IN. HONG KONG AND THAT IS QUITE CLEARLY LAID DOWN. BUT HONG KONG IS CHANGING ALL THE TIME. WE LIVE IN A DEVELOPING WORLD. I DON'T THINK ANYBODY EXPECTS HONG KONG TO REMAIN STATIC.+

BUT

ASKED TO COMMENT ON MR HU'S REMARKS THAT CHINA WANTED MORE YOUNG PEOPLE FROM HONG KONG TO JOIN THE COMMUNIST PARTY, SIR EDWARD SAID IT WAS NOT FOR HIM TO MAKE COMMENTS ON THESE MATTERS WHICH WERE FOR INDIVIDUALS IN HONG KONG.

SPEAKING ABOUT HIS VISIT TO YAU MA TEI AND MONG KOK, THE GOVERNOR SAID HE HAD FOUND IT VERY USEFUL AS IT HAD ENABLED HIM TO SEE A NEW CENTRE AND AT THE SAME TIME AN AREA WITH AN OLD BUILDING SO THAT HE COULD SEE WHAT NEEDED TO BE DONE.

+AND AS YOU KNOW, WE DO ATTACH GREAT IMPORTANCE NOT ONLY TO BUILDING NEW TOWNS BUT TO TRYING TO IMPROVE THE ENVIRONMENT IN SOME OF THE OLDER AND MORE DENSELY POPULATED PARTS OF HONG KONG.+

HE SAID WHAT IMPRESSED HIM WHEN HE WENT TO DISTRICTS LIKE THIS WAS THE ENTHUSIASM OF THE MEMBERS OF THE DISTRICT BOARDS TO TRY TO IMPROVE THINGS FOR THE DISTRICT WHICH THEY SERVED.

+OF COURSE THIS AFTERNOON I HAVE BEEN ABLE TO TALK TO SOME OF THE ELECTED MEMBERS AS WELL AS SOME OF THE APPOINTED MEMBERS AND INDEED TO MEET SOME MEMBERS WHOM I HAVE KNOWN FOR SOME TIME BECAUSE MONG KOK WAS ONE OF THE FIRST AREAS I CAME TO, YOU MAY REMEMBER TWO OR THREE YEARS AGO. I HAVE FOUND IT IMPRESSIVE, THE AMOUNT OF TIME AND THE AMOUNT OF EFFORT THE DISTRICT BOARD MEMBERS ARE PREPARED TO PUT INTO THEIR DISTRICT BOARDS,+ SIR EDWARD SAID.

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