Q:
17
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 1991
1.
THAT YOU SAID EARLIER. NUMBER
IMPORTANT то KEEP CONFIDENTIAL
YOU
THE
THINGS MENTIONED THAT IT IS VERY DISCUSSIONS BETWEEN HONG KONG GOVERNMENT AND THE CHINESE GOVERNMENT ON THE AIRPORT TALKS, THAT IS THE NEXT ROUND OF TALKS BEGINNING TOMORROW; AND NUMBER TWO IS YOU STRESS IT IS IMPORTANT FOR HONG KONG PEOPLE ΤΟ GET INVOLVED IN LOCAL POLITICS: TO TAKE PART IN DIRECT ELECTIONS. HOW CAN YOU CONVINCE HONG KONG PEOPLE TO TAKE PART IN LOCAL POLITICS WHEN THEY ARE BEING KEPT IN THE DARK ABOUT IMPORTANT DECISIONS AND DISCUSSIONS BETWEEN THE TWO GOVERNMENTS?
A:
GOVERNOR: I DON'T SEE THAT AS BEING A CONTRADICTION EITHER HERE OR AS IT WOULD APPLY ANYWHERE ELSE IN THE WORLD. ANYWHERE ELSE IN THE WORLD YOU WOULD GET PEOPLE ACTIVELY TAKING PART IN POLITICS, WANTING TO TAKE PART IN POLITICS. ANYWHERE ELSE IN THE WORLD YOU WOULD FIND CONFIDENTIAL DISCUSSIONS GOING ON THE WHOLE TIME BETWEEN GOVERNMENTS. THAT IS A PART OF THE NATURAL WAY. BOTH IN WHICH GOVERNMENTS WORK, AND IN WHICH POLITICAL PARTICIPATION WORKS. THE MORE PEOPLE GET INVOLVED IN POLITICS, THE MORE, FOR INSTANCE, YOU GET PEOPLE WHO TAKE PART IN THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL THEN THE CLOSER THEY GET TO THE DECISION TAKING PROCESS. I DON'T SEE ANY CONTRADICTION IN THE TWO THINGS I WAS SAYING.
HAVE TIME FOR A COUPLE MORE QUESTIONS. JOHN ELLIOT HERE AND THEN PETER SILETS.
WE
Q:
JOHN ELLIOT, FINANCIAL TIMES. TO DATE THERE SEEMS ΤΟ BE A CLASH BETWEEN YOUR WILLINGNESS TO INFORM PEKING AND THEIR DESIRE TO BE CONSULTED. PRESUMABLY IN THEIR TERMINOLOGY IT MEANS THAT THEY WANT TO INFLUENCE DECISIONS, HOW WILLING ARE YOU TO ALLOW PEKING TO INFLUENCE YOUR DECISIONS AS OPPOSED MERELY TO INFORM WHICH IS THE WORD YOU USED TODAY AND BEFORE? SECONDLY, YOU HAVE JUST MENTIONED THE POSSIBILITY OF PHASING ON THE AIRPORT, WHICH IS YOUR TERM, I THINK, FOR THE CURRENT PASSWORD OF SCALING DOWN. ARE YOU WILLING TO SCALE DOWN AIRPORT IN RESPONSE TO PEKING AND IF YOU DID HOW DO YOU THINK HAVE ANY FAITH AT ALL IN AUTONOMY AFTER 1997?
THE PEOPLE
/A: GOVERNOR:
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