56
HONG KONG LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL - 14 March 1984
Senior Unofficial Member of the Council, to introduce this motion on our behalf. It is hoped that this will encourage all the people in Hong Ko express their views and wishes regarding their future. The public opinion so collected will be representativeness in nature. We keep to the principle that we would do the right thing at the right time and feel that this is a duty which all the Unofficials can never evade.
The present prosperity of Hong Kong may be attributed to the nurturing of the Chinese and the British Governments and the people of Hong Kong. Therefore in order to maintain Hong Kong's stability and prosperity, the three sides must work together with a frank and positive attitude, to bring forth the beautiful fruits through mutual help and benefits. Chinese and British leaders have said repeatedly on different occasions that they would respect the wishes of the Hong Kong people in order to reach the common objective.
Chinese leaders have said time and again that the social system of Hong Kong and the ways of life of the people would remain unchanged for at least 50 years, and that they would enjoy freedoms of speech and assembly. People with different political affiliations could even participate in the future administration of Hong Kong. Hong Kong people are now seeking facts from various quarters in support of the generosity of the Chinese Government. The present debate in this Council will not cause any distraction to the talks in Beijing, but may achieve the same effect through a different route, because to ensure the prosperity and stability of Hong Kong's future, both China and Britain must clearly understand the wishes of the Hong Kong people.
Hong Kong's future political structure, legislative, executive and judicial powers, and the freedoms and rights of its people will all be based on the agreement to be reached between China and Britain. In the minds of the Hong Kong people, there may still be some doubts how the two different systems may be compatible within the same country. Just because of this, rather than asking the Hong Kong people to swallow their words and thus entertaining doubts in their minds, why can the worries of the Hong Kong people not be resolved through various channels of expression? For any reform of a political system, if it aims at reacting a highly enlightened state, it is better to make people believe than intimidating them; and it is even better to convince them to have faith in the reform than simply to make believe. I do hope that Chinese and British leaders would calmly listen to the aspirations of the Hong Kong people before the negotiations are concluded.
Hong Kong people, when confronted with the proposals regarding their future, must have confidence and be positive. A pessimistic view will not help. Persistent pessimism and a negative outlook will only bring harm to the Hong Kong community and people's lives. Hong Kong people should, before the final agreement is reached in the Sino-British negotiations, make use of every opportunity to express their views. Only when those Hong Kong people who were born and grew up here bring out what they think and what they want, will
No comments yet.
Private notes are available after approval.