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SECRETARY OF STATE'S MEETING WITH THE INTERNATIONAL COMMITTEE OF THE TUC: HONG KONG
1. At his meeting with the Governor of Hong Kong on 4 December, the Secretary of State mentioned that he would be meeting the International Committee of the TUC on 8 December. I understand the International Committee have asked that "ong Kong be included on the agenda.
2.
Under this agenda item the International Committee may well raise the questions of the social composition of the Legislative Council; the need to simplify trade union law in Hong Kong; the adherence of Hong Kong to ILO Conventions; and the proposed enquiry into labour relations in the Colony.
Legislative Council
3. As paragraph 4 of the record of the Secretary of State's talk with Sir Murray MacLehose indicates, plans are now in hand to select new people for the Legislative Council next year and to enlarge the Council to accommodate them. The Governor has not yet made his final choice but I think the International Committee can be reassured that
they will come from a rather different background than the Members at present serving. The Committee may also suggest that one or more should come from the independent trade unions. The Governor has promised to bear this possibility in mind but considers that appointees should, at this stage, be judged on their value to the community as a whole rather than on their role as trade unionists as such. The Governor's thinking is obviously based upon the knowledge that the independent trade unions are very small and unrepresentative (consisting, indeed, mainly of civil servants).
4.
If this matter arises, the Secretary of State might draw attention, once again, to the difficulty of proceeding to representative government due to the opposition of the Chinese and the impossibility of finding ways to exclude candidates with KIT
/affiliations.
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