XN000022-1993-03-05 — Page 8

FRIDAY, MARCH 5, 1993

AS

ANY

WITHOUT

ANY

DURING

THE

TO

HAVE

WILL

THE

THIS

THE

THE GOVERNOR:

THE HONOURABLE MEMBER KNOWS HOW DIPLOMATIC I AM IT IS FOR AND I WOULD NOT SEEK TO ANSWER QUESTIONS ON CHINA'S BEHALF. CHINESE OFFICIALS TO EXPLAIN THEIR OWN POSITION AND TO STATE THEIR OWN POSITION IN DUE COURSE AND I IMAGINE IT WILL BE DONE VERY PLAINLY,

BUT I

WITHOUT REPEAT THE IT HAS BEEN JN

LAST FEW DAYS. I EQUIVOCATION,

REPEAT

I WITHOUT

REPEAT ANY GLOSS, FOOTNOTES, WHAT I HAVE SAID BEFORE AND WHAT I HAVE SAID COURSE OF THE AFTERNOON. WE HAVE BEEN HAPPY AT EVERY STAGE

IF WE ENTER INTO TALKS, WE DISCUSSIONS WITHOUT PRE-CONDITIONS.

THE PROPOSALS MADE BY ENTER INTO TALKS WITHOUT PRE-CONDITIONS.

AND AGAIN BY GOVERNOR OF HONG KONG LAST OCTOBER, DEBATED AGAIN

BY THE ENDORSED

EXECUTIVE

AT COUNCIL,

COUNCIL LEGISLATIVE

TABLE.

AFTER HOW,

THAT BEGINNING OF

ARE STILL ON THE FEBRUARY,

IF THERE PROCESS, COULD THEY NOT BE? OTHERS WILL HAVE TO EXPLAIN, ARE TALKS, WHAT THEIR POSITION IS. CLEARLY, TO THE HONOURABLE MEMBER AND TO THIS HONOURABLE HOUSE EXACTLY WHAT MY POSITION IS, EXACTLY WHAT THE GOVERNMENT POSITION IS,

WHAT THE GOVERNMENT OF EXACTLY POSITION IS.

BUT I HAVE

SET OUT, I HOPE

OF HONG KONG'S THE UNITED KINGDOM'8

MR PRESIDENT.

MR

MR PANG CHUN-HO1 (THROUGH INTERPRETER): GOVERNOR, FROM PAST EXPERIENCE WE KNOW THAT SINO-BRITISH TALKS WILL HAVE TO BE CONFIDENTIAL. SO MY QUESTION IS, HOW COULD THIS COUNCIL AND THE PEOPLE OF HONG KONG LEARN ABOUT THE CONTENTS OF SUCH TALKS. THEN IN YOUR POLICY ADDRESS YOU HAVE STATED THAT WITH CONSTITUTIONAL DEVELOPMENT IT MUST BE OPEN, FAIR AND ACCEPTABLE TO THE PEOPLE OF HONG KONG. THESE ARE THE PRINCIPLES, WILL YOU BE ADHERING TO THESE PRINCIPLES AND HOW WOULD YOU MAKE SURE THAT THEY ARE KEPT TO?

PLACE.

GOVERNOR:

THE FIRST QUESTION, I THINK THAT I ANSWERED EARLIER WHEN I WAS ASKED ABOUT HOW WE COULD KEEP THE COMMUNITY INFORMED AND 1 EXPLAINED THE DIFFICULTY WHEN THE SOVEREIGN POWERS ARE INVOLVED IN DIFFICULT DIPLOMATIC NEGOTIATIONS AND I THINK THE COUNCIL, THOUGH IT WILL ALWAYS WANT US ΤΟ BE MORE TRANSPARENT RATHER THAN LESS TRANSPARENT UNDERSTANDS THE DIFFICULTIES OF BEHAVING IN THAT WAY WHEN NEGOTIATIONS ARE ACTUALLY TAKING AS FOR THE QUESTION OF OPENNESS, OF FAIRNESS AND OF ACCEPTABILITY, THOSE REMAIN OUR OBJECTIVES FOR TALKS, I VERY MUCH HOPE THAT WE CAN COME OFF WITH PROPOSALS AT THE END OF THE DAY WHICH ARE OPEN AND FAIR AND ACCEPTABLE. 1 WOULD VERY MUCH HOPE THAT WE CAN MEET THOSE OBJECTIVES AND GET AN AGREEMENT WITH CHINA AND THAT THE POLITICAL INSTITUTIONAL CHANGES THAT RESULTED FROM THAT WOULD LAST THROUGH 1997 AND RE THE BASIS FOR THE GOOD GOVERNMENT OF HONG KONG FOR THE FORESEEABLE FUTURE. THAT IS MY ASPIRATION. IF THERE ARE TALKS, AND I UNDERLINE THAT WORD 1F" AGAIN, I DON'T THINK THAT ANYBODY SHOULD UNDERESTIMATE THE DIFFICULTY OF ACHIEVING THOSE OBJECTIVES. I DON'T SAY THAT IN A DEFEATIST WAY, { DON'T SAY THAT BECAUSE IF THERE ARE TALKS

WILL

ENTER THEM IN OTHER THAN THE SPIRIT OF OPTIMISM AND CONSTRUCTIVENESS AS FAR AS ONE CAN, BUT TALKS WILL BE VERY DIFFICULT. ACHIEVING THE OBJECTIVES I'VE SET OUT WILL BE VERY DIFFICULT AND IT WOULD BE WRONG AND DISHONOURABLE OF ME NOT TO MAKE THAT POINT TO THE COMMUNITY ABOUT ANY TALKS WILLCH MAY TAKE PLACE. I DON'T WANT TO SOUND GLOOMY, I DON'T WANT TO SOUND PESSIMISTIC, BUT THESE ARE VERY DIFFICULT MATTERS, DIFFICULT FOR CHINA AS WELL AS DIFFICULT FOR THE UNITED KINGDOM AND HONG KONG AND I HOPE THAT WE CAN APPROACH THEM IN A SPIRIT OF REALISM AS WELL AS WITH SUCH HOPE AS IS APPROPRIATE IN THESE CIRCUMSTANCES.

+

/MR RONALD ARCULLI: