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3. STORIES BASED ON AGENCY REPORTS OF THE REVIEW ARTICLE, TOGETHER WITH THE GOVERNMENT SPOKESMAN'S RESPONSE, ARE PROMINENTLY AND WIDELY FEATURES IN TODAY'S ENGLISH AND CHINESE LANGUAGE PRESS (THE REVIEW PUT OUT A PRE-PUBLICATION PRESS RELEASE GIVING DETAILS OF THE ARTICLE). THE TWO MAIN COMMUNIST NEWSPAPERS, THE TA KUNG PAO AND WEN WEI PO, ALSO REPORTED THE STORY ROUTINELY AND WITHOUT COMMENT, AS WELL AS THE GOVERNMENT SPOKESMAN'S RESPONSE.
4. THE ONLY SIGNIFICANT EDITORIAL COMMENT SO FAR IS IN THE INDEPENDANT (AND INFLUENTIAL) MING PAO, WHICH DOUBTED WHETHER THE PRIME MINISTER WOULD HAVE ACKNOWLEDGED CHINESE SOVEREIGNTY OVER HONG KONG. MING PAO SAID THAT ACCORDING TO ACCOUNTS THEY HAD HEARD, MRS. THATCHER HAD WRITTEN TO CHINESE LEADERS EXPRESSING HER UNDERSTANDING OF THE CHINESE GOVERNMENT'S POSITION ON SOVEREIGNTY OVER HONG KONG. IF THIS WAS CORRECT, THERE WAS A GREAT DIFFERENCE BETWEEN UNDERSTANDING AND ACKNOWLEDGING THE CHINESE POSITION ON SOVEREIGNTY.
YOUDE
FUTURE OF HONG KONG
SIR I SINCLAIR LEGAL ADVISER
LIMITED
COPIES TO:
HD/HKD
HD/FED
MR BURROWS
HD/PLANNING STAFF
MR MARTIN
HD/PUSD
PS
MR FLOWER
MR COLES
PS/LADY YOUNG
PS/MR LUCE
PS/PUS
SIR J BULLARD
MR GIFFARD
MR DONALD
MR WRIGHT
2
LEGAL ADVISERS
ASSESSMENTS STAFF CABINET OFFICE
PUSD
NO 10 DOWNING ST
SIR A PARSONS
MR WALKER,
體
RESEARCH DEPT
MR ROBERTS NEWS D HKGO.
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LONDON
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