TNAG-0735-FCO40-939-Policy-objective-for-the-developing-of-Hong-Kong-in-the-1980-1978 — Page 57

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should be listened to and notice taken of the complaint. Of course it takes time and trouble but it must be done in the interests of good Government and in the interests of our community.

12.

ir.

Jong Lam has said that many members of the public believe that Government attaches only superficial importance to anything written in Chinese, particularly in the correspondence columns of newspapers. I hope he will be reassured to know that in order to keep Government officers abreast of the various news items in the Chinese press as well as on the television and radio stations, a daily two-page tabloid newspaper is produced, copies of which are circulated to all departments and within the Government Secretariat. There is also a weekly review of Chinese news media comment. Within the Government Secretariat, a daily summary of Chinese ross comment and editorisis is widely circulated and I know that it is common practice in departments to have translations made of items of particular interest.

13.

is to letters in the correspondence columns, some 23 Chinese newspapers are examined daily and the attention of the appropriate departments is drawn to letters. This procedure is also adopted in respect of the English press. Members will, I am sure, be interested to hear that over the past two years the answer-rate for letters in these Chinese newspapers has been about 85% and that for the English newspapers about 83%. of the unanswered remainder most referred to complaints that had already been dealt with or had been answered by a public

announcement.

14.

I have covered this point in some detail because I want to demonstrate that Government is well aware of the problem posed by Mr. Wong and also to show that Government goes to a great deal of trouble to minimise it. The importance of the media in Hong Kong, and especially the Chinese media, is well understood: it is, of course, vital to any endeavour to improve communications within the community and in the promotion

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