XN000022-1995-10-19 — Page 5

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Governor: Well, do you want me to finish by the end of the afternoon or? Let me be very brief. A great political philosopher, a century ago, wrote about what it was that made another refugee community remarkably successful. He referred to people's hard work and thrift and energy and entrepreneurial skills, just like here in Hong Kong. But writing about the United States, De Toqueville(phonetic) thought that what had been so fundamental to the success of that great nation had been the rule of law. The fact that people were working within clear parameters which encouraged them to excel but which also gave them security and fairness in their commercial dealings and in their personal lives. And I think exactly the same is true about Hong Kong. And I just hope - I'll argue for it as passionately as I can - I just hope that everybody who agrees with that, everybody who believes that what has helped to make Hong Kong special, as well as the staggering energy and commitment and dedication of its Chinese citizens, I hope that everybody who believes in that fundamental importance of the rule of law will stand up for it.

I read a couple of interesting editorials in newspapers yesterday about the rule of law, and one which was very elegantly written ended up on a sort of note of elegiac despair. If there are those who are going to erode the rule of law here in Hong Kong, to dismantle it, then, the editorial writer opined, there's not very much we can do about it and there's not very much that anybody around the world will care about it. Well, I put that on one side. But I'm sure there's plenty people can do about it. People can make their views on the subject clear. And I hope that in between the decisions announced by advisers a couple of days ago and the 1st July 1997, I hope that rather more account will be taken of the interests and the ambitions and the concerns of the people of Hong Kong. And I hope that minds will be changed. It matters very much that they are.

Earlier this year we achieved an agreement on the judicial through-train, on a through-train for the administration of justice, which I think was a decent agreement. And I think one reason why we reached it was because so many of you made your views on the subject plain. I think that from time to time you may need to do so again.