TNAG-0327-FCO40-363-History-of-constitution-of-Legislative-Council-of-Hong-Kong-1972 — Page 19

2.

Tuar thore

is no legal

Aliyeti

maintain

jord

ate

5. On 7 August 1883, Derby informed the Governor

that he would agree to the number of unofficials being

increased to 5, one of them Chinese; with this smaller

increase, the Chamber of Commerce was to nominate only

one member. The JPS would also nominate one member.

On 2 November 1883, the Governor proposed this change

to the Legislative Council, stating that "as a

general rule" 2 of the 5 unofficials would be nominated

by the Chamber of Commerce and JPS. At the beginning

Murra

of the following year, the system went into effect.

There is one problem in this connection, ¤¤¤¤±ƒxthai

**x¤¤¤¤¤¤ The letter from the Colonial Secretary to

1883

the Senior Police Magistrate of 20 December, enclosed

with your letter of 2 June, mentions an Order in Council

for the reconstitution of the Legislative Council.

We have been unable to find any trace of one. However,

Additional Instructions were issued on 8 December 1883

authorising the appointment of 5 unofficials and it is

possible that these Instructions were in fact the "Order"

referred to by the Colonial Secretary. They make no

mention of nomination by JPs or the Chamber of Commerce.

6. The general conclusion is thus that the practice was hever enshrined in the consitution of Hong Kong and was

simply a convention. The term "privilege" which is being sed by the interested parties is rather a loose one and

has no technical significance.

Thexaxxex^£xtke

NOTHING TO BE WRITTEN IN THIS MARGIN

to

it

misleading description as a prívilaga seems, indeed,

dobe Vor be the lettere exchanged in Hong Kong in December

1885

/I am