TNAG-1397-FCO40-1869-Future-of-Hong-Kong-Basic-Law-1985 — Page 232

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moderate and it would adopt a more flexible and enterprising spirit. These adjustments include a further dependence on Hong Kong professionals, a breakthrough in the concept of how Hong Kong works and a new idea on the ways and art of handling things.

How the Consultative Committee will be set up

The first session of the convened in Beijing in early July. Committee's own working programme, committee should be formed and who should be conveners to launch extensive consultations will naturally be among the items of the agenda of the first session. After serious deliberations and repeated consultations, it will not be in the indefinite future that the consultative committee will be

set up.

The consultative committee should be solemnly declared open roughly three to six months later. Only in this way will it live up to the wishes of the Hong Kong people.

Basic Law Drafting Committee will be

Apart from discussion on the Drafting discussion on how the consultative

On the consultative committee, political groups would definitely strive to send representatives to sit on it so as to reflect the opinions of its group and of people of its stratum, and to show its existence in the political arena. For this reason, the membership list of the consultative committee should be more representative and include people from various levels of a wide spectrum. As the future task of the consultative committee is to collect public opinions, it has to set up a standing office and there fore Should it be financed needs some funds. Where does the money come from?

by Beijing, the consultative committee would be tinted with officialism

If the consultative for at least its resources do not come from the public. committee is a non-governmental set-up, it can raise funds through subscription. During the course of subscription, Hong Kong people's concern over the drafting of the Basic Law would also be incited.

The task is a solemn one;

it is an awakening symbol that the Hong Kong people control their own fate and they speak up for their future. To emerge from a colony to a highly autonomous special administrative region, it needs the participation of the Hong Kong people, and it needs a stronger sense of democracy. All the work and methods to mobilize Hong Kong people should not be considered as too

much but as too little.

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