XN000022-1988-12-09 — Page 4

AN

3

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 9, 1988

"NOT THAT THE PEOPLE OF HONG KONG DO NOT WANT CHANGE. FAR IT," SIR DAVID SAID.

FROM

THE CHIEF SECRETARY SAID HONG KONG WAS A MATURE,

ANY DEPENDENT RELATIONSHIP WITH SOCIETY, WHICH HAD OUTGROWN BRITAIN.

SOPHISTICATED

GREAT

NOT "FORTUNATELY THE BRITISH ARE

EXACTLY IMMATURE IN THESE MATTERS EITHER, AND HAVE LONG ACCEPTED THE REALITY THAT HONG KONG CAN, FOR THE MOST PART, RUN ITS OWN AFFAIRS, HE ADDED.

SIR

DAVID SAID

THE

BRITISH

WERE

NOT

THE ONLY

ONES

TO

APPRECIATE WHAT HONG KONG REALLY WANTED.

IN THE SIMILAR A MORE WITHOUT TERRITORY'S

"THE AUTHORITIES IN PEKING HAVE TAKEN THEIR SOUNDINGS TERRITORY AND ARE, WE BELIEVE, COMING TO CONCLUSIONS THAT ARE TO MAKE ITS WAY TOWARDS TO OUR OWN: THAT HONG KONG WANTS DEMOCRATIC SYSTEM OF GOVERNMENT, BUT GRADUALLY, AND ABOVE ALL

STABILITY TIIAT

TO DISTURBING THE

IS ESSENTIAL PROSPERITY," HE SAID.

THE

SIR DAVID SAID: IS A PIECE OF CHINESE

TURNING TO THE FIRST DRAFT OF THE BASIC LAW, "WE MUST BE CLEAR ABOUT THIS: THE BASIC LAW LEGISLATION AND IS THEIR RESPONSIBILITY.

HAD CONE TO

THE CHIEF SECRETARY SAID THE CHINESE AUTHORITIES QUITE EXTRAORDINARY LENGTHS TO DEMONSTRATE THEIR DETERMINATION TO HEAR THE WISHES OF THE PEOPLE OF HONG KONG THROUGH A FIVE-MONTH EXERCISE TO GATHER OPINIONS ON THE FIRST DRAFT.

SIR DAVID SAID THAT THE SECOND DRAFT OF THE BASIC LAW, YEAR, WOULD BE BE PUBLISHED SOMETIME IN THE SPRING OF NEXT UTMOST IMPORTANCE FOR CONFIDENCE AMONG PEOPLE IN HONG KONG.

DUE то OF THE

"1F,

AS

WE

HAVE

REASON EVERY

ΤΟ

BELIEVE,

THE

WILL BE A

CHINESE

DEMONSTRATE CLEARLY THEIR WILLINGNESS TO TAKE LOCAL VIEWS INTO ACCOUNT

A NATIONAL LAW, THIS IS WHEN DRAFTING WHAT

POSITIVE

INFLUENCE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT KIND,

++

HE SAID.

BE SIR DAVID SAID THERE WOULD

ANOTHER CONSULTATION EXERCISE NEXT YEAR, BEFORE ENACTMENT BY THE NATIONAL PEOPLE'S CONGRESS IN 1990.

TIME

I

AM

WILL CHINESE

HAVE

"AND BY THAT

SURE THAT THE ADDRESSED MAJOR CRITICISMS IN THE REVISION," HE ADDED.

I THINK

TO

"ON THE BASIS OF THE INFORMATION AVAILABLE TO US NOW, I CAN SAY THAT THEY WILL BE SEEN TO HAVE MADE A SUBSTANTIAL EFFORT HAVE MET THE COMMENTS EXPRESSED IN HONG KONG.

T

THERE ARE A SMALL NUMBER OF ARTICLES IN THE DRAFT DRAWN CRITICISM, AND A LARGER NUMBER OF WHICH HAVE BEEN BY MORE PROFESSIONAL COMMENTATORS.

WHICH HAVE COMMENTED ON

"OUR IMPRESSION