TNAG-1249-FCO40-1563-Press-reports-on-the-future-of-Hong-Kong-1983 — Page 7

3. BOTH THE COMMUNIST AND NDEPENDENT PRESS REPORTED PROM-

INENTLY MR. ROBERT ADLEY'S SPEECH AT A SYMPOSIUM ON 26 NOVEMBER ORGANISED BY LEFT WING ORGANISATIONS AND CHAIRED BY

LAM CHUN, GENERAL MANAGER OF THREE COMMUNIST PUBLISHING FIRMS (COMMERCIAL PRESS, CHUNG HWA AND SAM LUEN). MR. ADLEY REITERATED

HIS BELIEF THAT CHINA LOOKED TO HONG KONG PEOPLE TO ESTABLISH

THEIR OWN SELF-RULE STRUCTURE BEFORE 1997 SO THAT THE

REVERSHON OF SOVEREIGNTY WOULD ENTAHL NO DRASTIC CHANGE AND NO

DIRECT INTERVENTION FROM PEKING. HE INTERPRETED THE PROME

MINISTER'S REFERENCE TO THE QUOTE BRITISH LINK UNQUOTE NOT AS

AN MANTENTION TO CLING TO SOVEREIGNTY AND ADMINISTRATION AFTER 1997, BUT A REFERENCE TO THE FACT THAT SOME PEOPLE MN HONG KONG WANTED THE PRESENT SYSTEM TO CONTINUE.

4. AMONG THE FEW FUTURE-RELATED EDITORIALS IN THE MINDEPENDENT PRESS, THE HONG KONG ECONOMIC JOURNAL WAS UNUSUALLY PESSIMISTIC. IT SAID THAT NOT ONLY DID HONG KONG RESIDENTS NOT TRUST PEKING,

BUT NETHER COULD THEY DEPEND ON LONDON. IT WAS ARGUED THAT THE PRIME MINISTER'S REFERENCE TO BRITAIN'S HOLDING HONG KONG UNDER LEASE MEANT THAT SHE WOULD GIVE UP HONG KONG WHEN THE LEASE EXPIRED. IT ALSO ATTRIBUTED TO YOU REMARKS THAT BRITAN WAS TRYING TO PRESERVE HONG KONG'S FREE WESTERN-STYLE ECONOMY AGAINST A BACKGROUND OF COMMUNISM. THE EDITORIAL INTERPRETED THIS AS A SIGN OF AGREEMENT WITH CHINA'S THEORY OF QUOTE ONE STATE, TWO SYSTEMS. UNQUOTE THE EDITORIAL CONCLUDED THAT THE QUOTE MAM*NSTREAM OF THOUGHT UNQUOTE WAS TO ABANDON HONG KONG.

5. THE JOIN SERVICES PRESS RELATIONS STATEMENT ON SATURDAY THAT HMS HIN VINCH BLE WOULD NOT (NOT) LEAD A ROYAL NAVY TASK FORCE TO HONG KONG NEXT SPRING HAS ATTRACTED VORY LITTLE INTEREST FROM ANY SECTION OF THE CHINESE-LANGUAGE PRESS.

YOUDE

FUTURE OF HONG KONG

LIMITED

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COPIES TO: (VIA DISTR. ROOM)

SIR PHILIP MOORE BUCKINGHAM PALACE PS/LORD PRESIDENT OF THE COUNCIL PS/HOME SECRETARY

PS/CHANCELLOR OF THE EXCHEQUER

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MR ROBERTS

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