TNAG-1332-FCO40-1762-Future-of-Hong-Kong-White-Paper-on-the-Joint-Declaration-1984 — Page 86

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CONSULTATION WITH THE PEOPLE OF HONG KONG

15. From the beginning of the negotiations Her Majesty's Government

have been conscious that the negotiations concerned the interests

and future of the five and a half million people of Hong Kong. I t

has been Her Majesty's Government's consistent position that any

agreement with the Chinese Government on the future of the territory

should be acceptable to the people of Hong Kong as well as

British Parliament and the Chinese Government.

to the

16.

The negotiations had to be conducted on a basis of

confidentiality. This was crucial to their success, but the

maintenance of confidentiality also caused much concern and anxiety among the people of Hong Kong who were understandably anxious to know what was being negotiated for their future. All members of the Executive Council, as

as the Governor's closest advisers, were kept fully informed on the negotiations and consulted on a continuing

basis throughout the period. The Unofficial members of the

Executive and Legislative Councils (UMELCO) provided invaluable

advice to the Governor and to Ministers on the course of the

negotiations and on the attitude of the people of Hong Kong.

17.

At a number of crucial points in the negotiations the Governor

and Unofficial members of the Executive Council visited London for

consultations with the Prime Minister and other Ministers. British

Ministers also paid a series of visits to Hong Kong, to consult the

Governor, the Executive Council and the Unofficial members of the

Executive and Legislative Councils and to keep in touch with opinion

in the territory. The Secretary of State for Foreign and

Commonwealth Affairs was able to describe the approach of Her

Majesty's Government to the negotiations in his statement in Hong

Kong on 20 April 1984, and to fill in more details of the content of

the agreement in a further statement in the territory on 1 August

1984. In the course of the negotiations, and in particular since the statement of 20 April, numerous individuals and groups in Hong Kong have made specific proposals on what should be included in an

eventual agreement. The Legislative Council of Hong Kong has

debated the future of the territory on a number of occasions. Her

Majesty's Government has paid close attention to these expressions

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