TNAG-1356-FCO40-1797-Constitutional-development-in-Hong-Kong-1985 — Page 90

DECREASE THAT GOVERNMENT'S AUTHORITY? WE HAD FAILED TO THINK ABOUT THIS AND INSTEAD TOOK THE VIEW THAT EVERYTHING WAS ALL RIGHT AN

D

THE

WAS NO NEED FOR CONSULTATION.

(C) THE CHINESE SIDE UNDERSTOOD THAT IF IT WERE DISCLOSED THAT DISCUSSIONS HAD TAKEN PLACE IN THE JLG THERE MIGHT BE SOME ADVERSE REACTION. THE SUBJECT WAS SENSITIVE, BUT THIS ASPECT COULD BE DEALT WITH. FOR EXAMPLE, THE TWO SIDES COULD CONFINE DISCUSSIONS TO THE JLG AND STICK STRICTLY TO THE PRINCIPLE OF CONFIDENTIALITY: AND THERE NEED BE NO MENTION IN A JOINT PRESS STATEMENT OR IN PUBLIC STATEMENTS BY EITHER SIDE OF THE FACT THAT DISCUSSIONS HAD TAKEN PLACE.

(D) THE CHINESE SIDE BELIEVED A SOLUTION COULD BE FOUND TO THE QUESTION AS LONG AS BOTH SIDES ADOPTED A SPIRIT OF SINCERITY, SEEKING TRUTH FROM FACTS AND DID NOT SHIRK DIFFICULTIES. KE THEN REFERRED

TO REPORTS IN THE HONG KONG PRESS THAT THE CHINESE SIDE HAD PROPOSED DISCUSSION OF THE SUBJECT AND WE HAD REFUSED. THESE WERE JUST REPORTS, BUT BOTH SIDES SHOULD BE AWARE OF LEAKS OF THE INFORMAL DISCUSSIONS THAT HAD TAKEN PLACE BETWEEN US.

11 (A) SINCE THE BEGINNING OF THE YEAR MAJOR STEPS OF REFORM IN REPRESENTATIVE GOVERNMENT HAD BEEN TAKEN, INCLUDING:

(1)

(11)

2/3 OF DISTRICT BOARDS WERE NOW DIRECTLY ELECTED:

24 OUT OF 56 LEGCO MEMBERS WERE NOW INDIRECTLY ELECTED:

) THE LEGCO (POWERS AND PRIVILEGES ) ORDINANCE WHICH ENLARGED

LEGCO'S POWER HAD BEEN ENACTED.

DID THIS CONSTITUTE A MODERATE STEP? THE HONG KONG GOVERNMENT

WERE PREPARED TO DECIDE ON THE NEXT STEPS FOLLOWING THE 1987.

REVIEW. WE WERE NOT (NOT) MERELY LISTENING TO THE VIEWS OF HONG

KONG PEOPLE. HONG KONG OFFICIALS, SOME OF THEM SENIOR, HAD

ELABORATED IN PUBLIC STATEMENTS SOME OF THE AIMS OF THE REFORMS

AND HAD OUTLINED FURTHER REFORMS. ZHOU NAN HAD GIVEN SOME EXAMPLES

YESTERDAY. THERE WAS A LARGE FILE OF NEWSPAPER CUTTINGS IN KE'S

OFFICE WHICH GAVE MANY FURTHER EXAMPLES.

(B) IN THESE STATEMENTS IT HAD BEEN SAID THAT:

(1)

PRESENT REFORMS WOULD BE THE OUTLINE OF THE BASIC LAW,

IN OTHER WORDS THE REFORMS WOULD REPLACE THE BASIC LAW:

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