TNAG-1237-FCO40-1550-Future-of-Hong-Kong-1983 — Page 138

PP HONG KONG

CONFIDENTIAL

GRS487

CONFIDENTIAL

FM FCO 121500Z APRIL 83

TO PRIORITY HONG KONG

TELEGRAM NUMBER 340 OF 12 APRIL

INFO PEKING

(233

FOR POLITICAL ADVISER FROM CLIFT

YOUR TELNO.489: CPPCC

1259

1

UKKOTO/1

KONO A SIS? a. 51 12 APR 1983

CHISK

1. A RESEARCH DEPARTMENT NOTE WAS PREPARED ON 21 MARCH IN

RESPONSE TO YOUR TELNO.381 BUT I REGRET THAT DUE TO AN OVERSIGHT

IT WAS NOT SENT. TEXT IS AS FOLLOWS:

'1.

THE CONSTITUTION OF THE PRC (IN ITS LATEST VERSION ADOPTED

ON 4 DECEMBER 1982) MAKES ONE MENTION OF THE CPPCC. THIS OCCURS

IN THE PREAMBLE AND READS:

''THE CPPCC IS A BROADLY REPRESENTATIVE ORGANISATION OF

THE UNITED FRONT, WHICH HAS PLAYED A SIGNFICANT HISTORICAL

ROLE AND WILL CONTINUE TO DO SO IN THE POLITICAL AND

SOCIAL LIFE OF THE COUNTRY, IN PROMOTING FRIENDSHIP WITH

THE PEOPLE OF OTHER COUNTRIES AND IN THE STRUGGLE FOR

SOCIALIST MODERNISATION AND FOR THE REUNIFICATION AND

UNITY OF THE COUNTRY.

'2. THE CPPCC ALSO HAS ITS OWN CONSTITUTION (ADOPTED ON

11 DECEMBER 1982). NEITHER OF THESE CONSTITUTIONS GIVES THE

CPPCC ANY POWERS, EXCEPT THOSE SPECIFIED IN THE CPPCC CONSTI-

TUTION WHICH ARE SOLELY CONCERNED WITH THE CONVENING OF MEETINGS

AND OTHER ACTIVITIES OF THE CPPCC ITSELF. THE CPPCC HAS IN FACT

NOT HAD ANY POWERS SINCE THE ADOPTION OF THE FIRST FORMAL CONSTITUTION OF THE PRC IN 1954.

IT ALSO

'3. .THE CPPCC CONSTITUTION CONTAINS A FORMULATION OF

REUNIFICATION SIMILAR TO THAT IN THE STATE CONSTITUTION.

CONTAINS SEVERAL REFERENCES TO HONG KONG, AS WELL AS TO MACAO

AND TAIWAN. ARTICLE 10 CONSISTS OF TWO SENTENCES: THE FIRST

CALLS FOR FOSTERING TIES WITH PEOPLE IN TAIWAN AND PROMOTING

REUNIFICATION: THE SECOND READS:

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CONFIDENTIAL

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