TNAG-1396-FCO40-1868-Future-of-Hong-Kong-Basic-Law-1985 — Page 51

4. CONSULTATIVE COMMITTEE: FINANCIAL DAILY (INDEPENDENT) ON 28 JUNE SAID THAT SOME HK MEMBERS OF THE DRAFTING COMMITTEE WHO WERE NEITHER NPC OR CPPCC DELEGATES PLANNED TO JOIN OTHER PROMINENT COMMUNITY FIGURES TO FORM A PREPARATORY GROUP FOR THE SETTING UP OF A BL CONSULTATIVE COMMITTEE. QUOTING A CHINESE SOURCE, THE PAPER ADDED THAT CHINA HAD PREPARED AN INITIAL DRAFT OF THE MEMBERSHIP LIST FOR THE CONSULTATIVE COMMITTEE. FIVE TO TEN MEMBERS OF THE DRAFTING COMMITTEE MIGHT ALSO BE APPOINTED TO THE CONSULTATIVE GROUP, WHICH

WOULD HAVE ABOUT 60 MEMBERS.

5. LAND COMMISSION: THERE WAS ROUTINE COVERAGE OF THE ANNOUNCEMENT OF THE DATE FOR THE FIRST MEETING. A MEMBER OF THE CHINESE TEAM WAS QUOTED AS SAYING THAT THE FIRST MEETING WOULD LARGELY DEAL

WITH PROCEDURAL MATTERS.

6. PRIVILEGES AND IMMUNITIES: THE GAZETTING OF THE BILL TO EXTEND PRIVILEGES TO CHINESE MEMBERS OF THE LAND COMMISSION, EXPERTS ON THE JLG AND SUPPORTING STAFF RECEIVED WIDESPREAD COVERAGE. THE GOVERNOR WAS QUOTED AS SAYING THAT IT WAS PERFECTLY NORMAL TO GRANT SUCH PRIVILEGES AND IMMUNITIES SO THAT THOSE INVOLVED COULD CARRY OUT THEIR WORK EFFICIENTLY. QUESTIONED ABOUT THE PRESENCE

OF A HK RESIDENT ON THE CHINESE SIDE OF THE LAND COMMISSION AND WHETHER HE WOULD ENJOY PRIVILEGES, THE GOVERNOR SAID THAT SUCH MATTERS DEPENDED ON THE KIND OF PASSPORT PEOPLE HELD.

7. JLG: IN A SPEECH TO THE HK FEDERATION OF INDUSTRIES, THE GOVERNOR SAID THAT THE NEED TO SECURE QUICKLY HK'S FUTURE POSITION IN SUCH BODIES AS THE GATT AND THE MFA WOULD BE ONE OF THE JLG'S FIRST TASKS. THERE WAS MILD SPECULATION IN THE PRESS ABOUT THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THE PRESENCE OF THE GOVERNOR AND SIR R. EVANS IN THE UK ON LEAVE AT THE TIME OF THE FIRST JLG SESSION.

COMMENTARIES:

8. BASIC LAW: FINANCIAL DAILY TODAY SAW JI PENGFEI'S ADDRESS AS

AN HISTORIC SPEECH AND AN IMPORTANT BREAKTHROUGH IN CHINA'S

CONSTITUTIONAL HISTORY. THIS WOULD BOOST CONFIDENCE, BECAUSE IT WAS UNPRECEDENTED FOR THE LAW OF AN AUTONOMOUS REGION TO BE DRAWN

UP ON THE BASIS OF AN AGREEMENT REACHED WITH A FOREIGN COUNTRY.

THE PAPER BELIEVED THAT THIS INDICATED THAT THE TWO SYSTEMS IN

HK AND CHINA WOULD RELY ON EACH OTHER AND THAT THE BL WOULD BE

''PRAGMATIC'. THE PAPER REITERATED THAT THE DRAFTING PROCESS

SHOUDL BE DEMOCRATIC AND THAT THE CONSULTATIVE COMMITTEE SHOUD

INCLUDE ALL SECTORS OF THE COMMUNITY, INCLUDING PRO-TAIWAN

PEOPLE. HK DAILY NEWS (INDEPENDENT) SAW THE TIMETABLE FOR THE

DRAFTING AS CAUTIOUS AND WELL-PLANNED. THE PAPER NONETHELESS

HOPED FOR MEMBERSHIP OF THE DRAFTING COMMITTEE TO BE VARIED TO

INCLUDE MORE HK PEOPLE, AND CALLED ON NCNA TO CONSIDER SETTING

UP AN ADVISORY GROUP TO INCLUDE EXPATRIATES. SING TAO WAN PAO (INDEPENDENT) SAID THAT ATTENTION SHOULD BE PAID TO THE QUESTION OF HOW HK WOULD BECOME HIGHLY AUTONOMOUS SO AS TO ACHIEVE THE GOAL

OF HK PEOPLE RULING HK''.

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