TNAG-1444-FCO40-1928-Constitutional-development-in-Hong-Kong-1986 — Page 17

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and in another tone behind the scene? Who would believe that an open

remark represents "official opinion" while personal opinion is regarded

as "public opinion"?

That is why people who know the background to the remark

Mr Leung's opinion is public opinion" will interpret it differently.

C.M. Leung's superior is Alan Scott, the British official who is in charge

of the 1987 review. This time, it is not known whether he had extended a

visible hand or an invisible one.

AS

Nevertheless, there are still some people who play the old tune

used in the Daya Bay incident, that is, Peking has no bottom line. long as "public opinion" demands it, there will be direct election

in 1988.

It is precisely because of this that the Hong Kong Government,

which controls the media machinery, will henceforth hear the "public

opinion" it wants to hear. The British want to give Hongkong people the

impression that direct election was won for them by British efforts, despite the fact that Peking advocates against introducing direct election too hastily although it is not opposed to direct election as such, and that

the post-1997 political system is to be laid down by the Basic Law

and

representative government should converge with the Basic Law.

Democracy is a gradual process, not something which can be accomplished

in a matter of a few years.

The "public opinion card" appears once again. Will it succeed this time? People should follow closely the moves of the "advisers".