XN000022-1992-10-09 — Page 19

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FRIDAY, OCTOBER 9, 1992

LIKE YOUR YOU

QUESTION:

MR PATTEN, MAY I ASK YOU ONE QUESTION. HOW ARE YOU GOING TO DEAL WITH THE SINO-HONG KONG RELATIONS? YOU ARE NOT YOUR PREDECESSOR, YOU HAVEN'T MENTIONED ANYTHING ABOUT THIS IN POLICY SPEECH. THERE ARE 4 YEARS 8 MONTHS AND 21 DAYS BEFORE LEAVE HONG KONG, MR PATTEN, IN YOUR POLICY SPEECH IN PARAGRAPH 36 AND PARAGRAPH 150 THERE ARE SOME CONTRADICTIONS. IN PARAGRAPH 36 YOU SAID IT'S NOT VERY IMPORTANT WHETHER WE HAVE A NEW AIRPORT OR NOT BUT IN PARAGRAPH 150 YOU SAID, IN 1997 WE'LL HAVE THE BEST AIRPORT IN HONG KONG. AND MOREOVER, IN PARAGRAPH 119, WHEN YOU QUOTE THE BASIC LAW YOU HAD THE WRONG PARAGRAPH NUMBER.

SO I THINK YOUR VERY APPROACHABLE IMAGE AND YOUR CONDUCT ARE NOT IN KEEPING WITH EACH OTHER. MAY I ASK YOU WHAT YOU WANT TO DO IN THE FUTURE: ARE YOU GOING TO LEAD THE PEOPLE OF HONG KONG TO FIGHT AGAINST CHINA? AND IF WE LOSE THE BATTLE WILL YOU TAKE ALL OF US ON THE 'LADY MAUREEN' TO GO BACK TO THE UK? AND ON THE 1ST OF JULY 1997, WHAT DO YOU WANT US TO BE LIKE

FRESHLY DYING SWANS OR FRIED PIGEONS?

-

GOVERNOR:

FIRST OF ALL, IF I MAY BAY SO, YOU SHOULD QUOTE MORE ACCURATELY AND GET YOUR FACTS RATHER NEARER ΤΟ THE TRUTH.

FOR EXAMPLE, YOU SAY THAT IN ARTICLE 119 I HAVE GOT THE ARTICLE OF THE BASIC LAW WHICH REFERS TO THE POWERS OF THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL, WRONG. YOU'RE WRONG, I'VE GOT IT RIGHT. IT IS ARTICLE 75 OF THE BASIC LAW WHICH REFERS TO THE ABILITY OF THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL TO RUN ITS PROCEDURES AS IT WANTS. IT'S ALSO ARTICLE 23 OF THE ROYAL INSTRUCTIONS, WHICH SAYS THE SAME THING. SO WHAT I SAID IN MY SPEECH IS ABSOLUTELY ACCURATE.

I

WHAT

I'D SAID

1997

SECONDLY, BY A LITTLE CAREFUL EDITING, YOU CHANGE SAID ABOUT THE AIRPORT IN THE LATTER PART OF MY SPEECH. EARLY ON THAT I VERY MUCH HOPED WE'D BE ABLE TO COMPLETE IT BY BUT IT WASN'T ENTIRELY IN MY HANDS. IN PARAGRAPH 150 I SAY, AND I QUOTE, AND YOU MAY NOTICE THE WORDS THAT YOU LEFT OUT:

"WE SHOULD, IF THE WILL IS ASIA'S MOST MODERN AIRPORT.

THERE, HAVE CONSTRUCTED

SO PERHAPS IT WAS AN OVERSIGHT THAT YOU LEFT OUT THE WORDS, "IF THE WILL IS THERE".

CELEBRATIONS,

ONE MORE THING, I SAID AT THE 43RD ANNIVERSARY HELD BY THE NCNA, OF THE FOUNDATION OF THE PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA, THAT I WANTED THE CLOSEST AND BEST RELATIONSHIP WITH

WHAT CHINA. I SAID THAT WHAT HURTS CHINA HURTS HONG KONG, AND IS GOOD FOR HONG KONG IS GOOD FOR CHINA. I THINK, TO GIVE THE PEOPLE OF HONG KONG A RATHER GREATER SAY IN SHAPING THEIR OWN DESTINY IS GOOD HONG FOR HONG KONG, AND I THINK THEREFORE, SINCE IT WOULD STRENGTHEN KONG IT WOULD ALSO, IN DUE COURSE, STRENGTHEN CHINA. AND ONE OF THE THINGS

I HAVE TO PERSUADE MY COLLEAGUES, OFFICIALS IN THE CHINESE GOVERNMENT, OF IS THAT THE PEOPLE OF HONG KONG ARE RESPONSIBLE AND MATURE AND SOPHISTICATED, AND CAN VERY SENSIBLY TAKE A RATHER LARGER SHARE IN DETERMINING THEIR OWN FUTURE, WITHOUT BEING A THREAT TO ANYONE.

WHICH

/QUESTION: MR