TNAG-1372-FCO40-1818-Ministerial-visits-from-the-UK-to-Hong-Kong-1985 — Page 145

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CONTENT WITH A FORMULA WHICH REFERS ONLY TO A HONG KONG IDENTITY

CARD. THE INDIAN COMMUNITY WILL CONTINUE TO EXPRESS CONCERN ABOUT

POSSIBLE STATELESSNESS FOR SUCCEEDING GENERATIONS.

8. ON VIETNAMESE REFUGEES, MR RENTON WILL PROBABLY BE ASKED TO

GIVE AN ACCOUNT OF THE STATE OF PLAY IN PERSUADING OTHER COUNTRIES

TO ACCEPT LARGER NUMBERS OF SUCH REFUGEES FROM HONG KONG IT MAY

WELL BE SUGGESTED THAT IF OTHER COUNTRIES DO NOT COME UP WITH

ENLARGED QUOTAS HMG SHOULD ITSELF INCREASE ITS INTAKE BEYOND THE

''FAMILY REUNION'' CASES ALREADY AGREED.

9. THE REDUCTION OF THE GARRISON BY ONE BATALLION HAS BEEN RECEIVED

CALMLY. THERE MAY BE REQUESTS FOR AN ASSURANCE WHICH MR RENTON CAN

GIVE THAT THERE WILL BE NO PRECIPITATE WITHDRAWAL OF THE

REMAINING GARRISON.

10. AMONG ECONOMIC ISSUES HONG KONG'S MAIN CONCERN AT THE PRESENT

TIME IS THE GROWTH OF PROTECTIONIST SENTIMENT IN THE UNITED

STATES AND PARTICULARLY THE THURMOND/JENKINS BILL. ALTHOUGH THERE

IS EVERY INDICATION THAT THE PRESIDENT WILL VETO THE BILL AND

THAT THERE WILL NOT BE SUFFICIENT VOTES TO OVER-RIDE HIS VETO,

THERE IS A FEAR THAT IN THE SUBSEQUENT POLITICAL BARGAINING SOME

MEASURES DETRIMENTAL TO THE ENTRY OF HONG KONG'S EXPORTS TO THE

UNITED STATES, PARTICULARLY OF GARMENTS, WILL STILL BE AGREED.

(THE REPRESENTATIONS TO BE MADE BY MR BRITTAIN IN WASHINGTON JUST

BEFOR MR RENTON'S VISIT WILL BE HELPFUL ON THIS.) MR RENTON MAY

BE ASKED ABOUT PROGRESS IN THE JOINT LIAISON GROUP ON THE

PRESERVATION OF HONG KONG'S GATT STATUS AFTER 1997.

11. MR RENTON WILL MEET MEMBERS OF THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY AND A

WIDE CROSS-SECTION OF COMMUNITY LEADERS. HE WILL HAVE LUNCH WITH

DISTRICT BOARD CHAIRMEN. DISTRICT BOARDS NOW PLAY A PROMINENT

ROLE IN HONG KONG AS VEHICLES FOR THE EXPRESSION OF LOCAL OPINION.

HONG KONG DOES NOT HAVE POLITICAL PARTIES OF ANY SIGNIFICANCE BUT

THERE ARE GROUPINGS OF ARTICULATE CITIZENS. SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS

(USUALLY CALLED PRESSURE GROUPS) ARE AN ESTABLISHED FEATURE OF

THE LOCAL POLITICAL SCENE. THEY ARE ARTICULATE AND VOCAL: BUT,

AS IN OTHER PLACES, THEY ARE NOT NECESSARILY AS REPRESENTATIVE

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