XN000022-1992-10-09 — Page 17

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FRIDAY, OCTOBER 9, 1992

ME,

GOVERNOR:

IT'S A VERY FAIR QUESTION TO ASK SOMEBODY LIKE BECAUSE ON THE WHOLE, AS YOU VERY WELL KNOW, PEOPLE LIKE CHIEF EXECUTIVES TEND TO GET FROM ONE PLACE TO ANOTHER RATHER MORE EASILY THAN AN AUDIENCE LIKE YOU. BUT WHEN I WAS A MINISTER IN ENGLAND, AND AFTER I WAS A MINISTER IN ENGLAND, I VERY OFTEN USED TO SURPRISE PEOPLE BY TRAVELLING ON BUSES AND TRAINS. THEY ALWAYS THOUGHT THAT THERE

THERE

WAS A MAN IN THE CARRIAGE WHO LOOKS LIKE CHRIS PATTEN. ARE, I THINK, TWO CRUCIAL ISSUES, AND I'M SORRY THAT I DIDN'T TALK ABOUT THEM IN MY SPEECH. TO BE HONEST, MY SPEECH TOOK TWO HOURS AS IT WAS, AND IF I'D PUT A LOT MORE IN, FOR EXAMPLE ABOUT TRANSPORT, I'D STILL BE SPEAKING.

THE TWO KEY ISSUES, I THINK, ARE FIRST OF ALL, THE QUESTION OF WHETHER OR NOT THERE SHOULD BE A NEW RAIL-LINK BETWEEN THE NEW TERRITORIES AND THE MAIN URBAN AREAS, AND THAT IS BEING LOOKED AT AS YOU KNOW, BỶ A STUDY GROUP AT THE MOMENT. AND SECONDLY, WHEN AND WHETHER WE SHOULD BUILD ROUTE 3. BUT EVEN WITH THOSE DEVELOPMENTS THERE ARE OTHER PROBLEMS, PARTICULARLY CROSSING THE HARBOUR, AND I DON'T THINK THAT WE WILL BE ABLE TO RESOLVE THOSE UNTIL WE HAVE BUILT THE NEW WESTERN HARBOUR CROSSING. IN THE MEANTIME, UNTIL WE'VE

COMPLETED THOSE PROJECTS, WE HAVE TO MAKE SURE, FIRST, THAT WR HAVE MORE FERRY-CROSSINGS, SECONDLY, THAT WE HAVE MORF BUS SERVICES. AND I WHOLLY AGREE WITH YOU THAT ALL THOSE TRANSPORT ISSUES HAVE то BE RESOLVED, PARTICULARLY AS WE FURTHER DEVELOP HOUSING IN THE NEW

TERRITORIES.

QUESTION:

ME

THIS TURN

MR GOVERNOR, THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR GIVING OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK TO YOU. FIRST OF ALL, MAY I ASK YOU TO AROUND AND LOOK AT THE PICTURE BEHIND YOU? THERE IS ONE BIG BOAT AND SEVERAL SMALL BOATS. IF YOU SEE, THE BIG BOAT IS HEADING TOWARDS HONG KONG HARBOUR, THEN I WILL HAVE NO DOUBT ABOUT YOUR POLITICAL ATTENTION IN COMING TO HONG KONG, BUT IF THE BOAT IS HEADING AWAY FROM HONG KONG, THEN THERE'S STILL FIVE MORE YEARS TO GO. IF YOU CARRY ON BEING SO APPROACHABLE TO THE PEOPLE LIKE THIS, I DON'T THINK YOU NEED THOSE SMALL BOATS ESCORTING YOU WHILE YOU GO AWAY, BECAUSE YOU WILL BE VERY SAFE, YOU CAN WALK WITH ME IN THE STREET. AND THE QUESTION I WANT ASK IS ON POLITICS. ACTUALLY, YOU CAN ASK THE QUESTION AND ANSWER THE QUESTION YOURSELF, BECAUSE YOU ARE THE GOVERNOR OF HONG KONG, YOU ARE NOT A GOVERNOR IN AFRICA. YOU ASKED US IF WE WANT FREEDOM. COURSE, WE DO. YOU ASKED US IF WE WANT DEMOCRACY. YOU ASK IF WE WANT MORE BENEFITS. OF COURSE WE DO.

ΤΟ

OF

OF COURSE, WE DO. SHALL I CONTINUE?

/GOVERNOR: DO

T