XN000022-1994-07-01 — Page 3

N

FRIDAY, JULY 1, 1994

"PROPOSALS ON SEX DISCRIMINATION, ACCESS TO INFORMATION AND HUMAN RIGHTS EDUCATION HAVE ALREADY BEEN ANNOUNCED.

"FURTHER INITIATIVES WILL FOLLOW, PARTICULARLY ON LEGAL AID, ACCESS ΤΟ THE COURTS AND MEASURES TO OUTLAW DISCRIMINATION ON THE GROUNDS OF DISABILITY.

CITIZENSHIP AND NATIONALITY

ON

CONCLUSIONS

AND

"THE HONG KONG GOVERNMENT SUPPORTS THE COMMITTEE'S BRITISH CITIZENSHIP FOR THE WIVES AND WIDOWS OF EX-SERVICEMEN NON-CHINESE-ETHNIC MINORITIES, AND WILL CONTINUE TO MAKE THE CASE FOR BOTH GROUPS.

TRANSCRIPT OF GOVERNOR'S MEDIA SESSION

BY THE

TO THE

THE FOLLOWING IS THE TRANSCRIPT OF THE MEDIA SESSION GOVERNOR, THE RT HON CHRISTOPHER PATTEN, AFTER HTS VISIT REGISTRATION AND ELECTORAL OFFICE THIS (FRIDAY) AFTERNOON:-

GOVERNOR: I'D JUST WANT TO SAY A FEW WORDS, THIS IS THE LAST DAY OF THIS YEAR'S VOTER REGISTRATION DRIVE. SO I'VE COME TODAY WITH MR JUSTICE WOO, THE CHAIRMAN OF THE BOUNDARY AND ELECTION COMMISSION, AND WITH MRS WILLIS WHO RUNS THE EXECUTIVE ARM OF THE COMMISSION, THE REGISTRATION AND ELECTORAL OFFICE, TO SEE THE COMPLETION OF THE WORK THAT'S BEEN UNDERTAKEN THIS YEAR, IT IS A TREMENDOUS ACHIEVEMENT FOR THE REGISTRATION AND ELECTORAL OFFICE AND FOR ALL THOSE WHO'VE BEEN WORKING SO HARD FOR THE LAST THREE MONTHS ON THIS REGISTRATION DRIVE BECAUSE WE HAVE ACHIEVED THIS YEAR RECORD FIGURES. WE'VE SEEN AN INCREASE OF MORE THAN 50 PERCENT ON THE NUMBER OF REGISTRATION FORMS RETURNED, WELL OVER 800 000 AND WE'VE GOT ABOUT 470 000 AND 480

000, THE FINAL FIGURE ISN'T YET AVAILABLE, BUT GETTING ON FOR HALF A MILLION NEW VOTERS AS A RESULT OF THIS DRIVE AND THAT IS WELL OVER 50 PERCENT MORE THAN WAS ACHIEVED LAST TIME. 50, THEY'RE EXTREMELY ENCOURAGING FIGURES. THEY WILL INCREASE VERY CONSIDERABLY, THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE IN HONG KONG REGISTERED TO VOTE IN THE COMING ELECTIONS AND J WANT TO THANK ALL THOSE CIVIL SERVANTS WHO WORK SO HARD AND FOR JUSTICE WOO AND MRS WILLIS IN THE LAST THREE MONTHS ΤΟ MAKE THESE RECORD FIGURES POSSIBLE.

/PERHAPS, I