TNAG-1243-FCO40-1557-Future-of-Hong-Kong-1983 — Page 148

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J

IK OPTIC, A

STRY

FM HONG KONG 0304352 DEC 83

TO IMMEDIATE FCO

TELEGRAM NUMBER 1868 OF 3 DECEMBER 1983

Taken

CM12|12

INFO IMMEDIATE PEKING AND ROUTINE HONG KONG GOVERNMENT OFFICE LONDON, HONG KONG GOVERNMENT REPS WASHINGTON, NEW YORK, BRUSSELS AND

GENEVA

FUTURE OF HONG KONG: REMARKS BY XU TIA TUN ON THE MINI

CONSTITUTION

1. THERE HAVE BEEN A NUMBER OF REFERENCES IN RECENT PRESS TELEGRAMS TO CHINESE PLANS FOR A QUOTE MINI CONSTITUTION UNQUOTE FOR HONG KONG, NOTICEABLY THE REPORTS OR REMARKS BY JI PENGFEI (HEAD OF THE HONG KONG AND MACAU OFFICE IN PEKING) TO A GROUP OF HONG KONG BUSINESSMEN (MY TELNO 1800) AND TO THE CHINESE

REFORM CLUB OF HONG KONG (MY TELNO 1862).

2. ON 3 DECEMBER, XU JIATUN (DIRECTOR OF NCNA IN HONG KONG) SPOKE IN SOME DETAIL ABOUT THE MINI CONSTITUTION TO JOURNALISTS

AFTER INAUGURATING AN EXHIBITION OF SHANGHAI ARTS AND CRAFTS.

HIS REMARKS WERE THE FRONT PAGE LEAD IN BOTH MAJOR COMMUNIST See Hiigel,

NEWSPAPERS, TA KUNG PAO AND WEN WEI PO ON 3 DECEMBER. THE PRINCIPAL POINTS MADE BY XU WERE:

(A) THE QUOTE RELEVANT DEPARTMENTS UNQUOTE OF THE STATE COUNCIL HAD ALREADY BEGUN WORK ON THE DRAFT OF A MINI-CONSTITUTION.

(B) PREPARATORY WORK HAD BEGUN BEFORE THE START OF THE SINO-

BRITISH TALKS.

(C) THE DRAFT WOULD (OR COULD IT IS NOT ENTIRELY CLEAR WHICH)

BE PUBLISHED NEXT YEAR.

(D) THE COMMENTS AND SUGGESTIONS OF HONG KONG PEOPLE WOULD BE SOUGHT. BUT THE DRAFT WOULD REFLECT THE MANY SUGGESTIONS FROM HONG KONG PEOPLE WHICH HAD ALREADY BEEN RECEIVED.

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