TNAG-0337-FCO40-373-Visit-of-the-Chancellor-of-the-Duchy-of-Lancaster--Sir-Geoff-1972 — Page 80

CONFIDENTIA L

of devising a suitable electoral system for a Colony in which

much of the population at that time was not ordinarily resi-

dent and many residents were not British subjects. In contrast

to the general post-war desire for representative and responsi-

ble Government in other Colonial territories, there is no gene-

ral demand for constitutional change in Hong Kong. The Chinese

who constitute 98% of the population, are not particularly

interested in constitutional reform: their desire is to live

and work under a well-established system of law and order and

to pursue their own private affairs with a minimum of inter-

ference by Government. Informed opinion in the Colony is also

aware of the danger either that the introduction of elections

would lead to open political strife between Communist and KMT

supporters, which would be intolerable to Peking and might

start reactions which would lead to the end of the Colony's

separate existence; or that public political apathy could lead

to complete Communist control of the Colony's institutions,

which would make our position impossible.

The lease of the New Territories expires in 1997 and whether

or not it will be renewed is most uncertain. Without the leased

area the Colony would not remain viable. There is a school of

thought (eg in the Hong Kong Reform Club and the United Nations

Association for Hong Kong) which considers that the development

of representative and responsible Government in Hong Kong is

possible.

2

CONFIDENTIAL

/However