SECRET
D.
Method of Selection
9. The present Chinese position is that the first Chief Executive should be chosen before 1997 by consultation, whatever the method to
be used subsequently. The Chinese do not yet seem to have
considered who should be consulted or
or how the consultation exercise
should be mounted.
to
10. At present the indications are that the Chinese would not agree to the selection of the first Chief Executive by election. (A major factor in their thinking must be that in practice an election would
have
be conducted in Hong Kong while the territory was still
under British administration.) There would however be great
advantage, in terms of confidence in Hong Kong, if the main features of the method of selection to be used after 1997 could be tested out
in advance, for the selection of the first Chief Executive. This
would assist him by ensuring that he entered office with a
demonstrable degree of support from the people of Hong Kong. We should put these arguments to the Chinese in due course.
E.
Candidates
a
11. It is too early to consider
to consider what type of individual might be
best suited to be the first Chief Executive of the Hong Kong SAR. Broadly speaking the choice is between a
the choice is between a former official drawn from
the Hong
Government Kong
service, and
with a non-official
background in the Executive Council and/or the Legislative Council. The former would bring more direct experience of practical
administration, the latter
higher political a
profile. If we envisaged two terms of office for a Deputy Governor before 1997, the two incumbents need not be drawn from the same background. We have no clear picture of thinking in Peking on this point, beyond one or two indications (not necessarily reliable ones) that the Chinese may see some attractions in a Chief Executive selected from among senior
Government officials.
Foreign and Commonwealth Office
October 1986
SECRET
-4-
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