XN000022-1990-09-20 — Page 24

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IT IS

IF

FANNY FUNG, ATV: CAN I FOLLOW UP ON THAT QUESTION, YOU SAY

SUCCESSFUL YOU WILL GO BACK TO CHINA AND ASK FOR MORE SEATS. BUT HOW LIKELY OR HOW OPTIMISTIC DO YOU THINK CHINA WILL AGREE TO SUCH NEGOTIATIONS WHEN CHINA IS ALREADY SAYING THE PACE OF DEMOCRACY HONG KONG IS ALREADY TOO FAST?

-

IN

DONE

AND

THAT

LORD CAITHNESS: WELL AN ENORMOUS AMOUNT OF HARD WORK WAS ON THE BASIC LAW FIVE YEARS OF VERY CONSIDERABLE DETAILED WORK THERE WERE SUBSTANTIAL IMPROVEMENTS THAT WERE NEGOTIATED DURING TIME. I BELIEVE THAT WITH SUCCESSFUL 1991 ELECTIONS, WHICH ARE VERY CRUCIAL TO THE FUTURE OF HONG KONG, WHICH THE WORLD WILL BE LOOKING AT. WHEN THAT PROCESS HAS HAPPENED AND AT A PROPITIOUS TIME AFTER THAT, ONE WILL GO BACK TO CHINA AND SAY: THIS DOES WORK, YOU CAN SEE IT. HERE ARE THE TANGIBLE BENEFITS, HERE ARE THE TANGIBLE RESULTS. NOW I CAN'T PREDICT WHETHER THAT IS GOING TO BE SUCCESSFUL OR NOT, BUT IT IS SOMETHING THAT AS I WILL REPEAT THAT IT IS SOMETHING THAT WE AS THE BRITISH GOVERNMENT WILL TAKE UP.

=

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FOO CHOY PENG, THE STRAITS TIMES: BUT THAT WOULD PRESUME THAT DEFINITION OF SUCCESS IS THE SAME AS CHINA'S DEFINITION OF

YOUR SUCCESS.

LORD CAITHNESS: NO, WHAT IT MEANS IS THAT AFTER THE 1991 ELECTIONS WE WILL LOOK AT THE SITUATION AGAIN, AND IF IT IS SUCCESSFUL AND EVERYBODY CONSIDERS IT TO BE SUCCESSFUL, WE WILL TALK TO THE CHINESE, IMPRESS UPON THEM WHY WE THINK IT IS SUCCESSFUL THEY MIGHT HAVE A DIFFERENT VIEW BUT WE CAN DISCUSS THAT IN OUR NEGOTIATIONS.

JOHN ANDREWS, THE ECONOMIST: I REALISE THAT YOU SAY THAT THERE IS NOT A PARALLEL WITH SUCCESS IN THE UNITED KINGDOM, BUT YOU KEEP USING THE WORD "SUCCESS" OR "SUCCESSFUL" FOR THE 1991 ELECTION, 30 PRESUMABLY YOU DO HAVE A DEFINITION IN YOUR OWN MIND OF WHAT THIS WORD MEANS. COULD YOU SHARE IT WITH US?

LORD CAITHNESS: I DON'T HAVE A PRECISE DEFINITION AT THE MOMENT AND IT WOULD BE WRONG FOR ME TO DO SO. I'VE TALKED TO THE NEW POLITICAL PARTIES, OR SOME OF THEM; I'VE TALKED TO SOME PEOPLE WHO SAY THEY ARE GOING TO STAND AND SOME WHO MIGHT BE INTERESTED. I THINK AT THIS STAGE IT WOULD BE PREMATURE TO GIVE YOU A DEFINITION OF SUCCESS OF WHAT I MEAN BY SUCCESS BUT OBVIOUSLY IT IS GOING TO BE A VERY IMPORTANT TIME AND THE MORE PEOPLE THAT TAKE PART, THE MORE PEOPLE THAT GO ON THE REGISTER, THE MORE PEOPLE THAT VOTE, THE BETTER THOSE CHANCES ARE.

MOST STAND?

JOHN ANDREWS: SO IT WOULD BE THE TURNOUT THEN, THAT WOULD BE IMPORTANT, DO YOU THINK, OR THE NUMBER OF CANDIDATES WHO MIGHT

LORD CAITHNESS: NO, NO, IT'S A COMBINATION OF THAT AND THEN THE ON-GOING SITUATION AS WELL.

/SIMON MACKLIN, SCMP: