GRS 1300
CONFIDENTIAL
FM HONG KONG
TO IMMED HATE FCO
CONTIDENTIAL
|:
Akk 166/1
AKC
RECEIVEL IN REGISTYour que
22 JUL1936
TELNO 2343
OF 181035Z JULY 86
INFO IMMEDIATE PEKING,
PARIS
NUCLEAR SAFETY: CHINA
DESK GA CER
WEEX
TOP CORY
312
REGISTAY
Action Tuken
WE SET OUT BELOW A FULL DETAILED REPORT
FURTHER TO OUR TELNO 2324, WE SET OUT BELOW
ON THE ADJOURNMENT DEBATE WITH A VIEW TO HIGHLIGHTING THE
SALIENT POINTS MADE BY THE 27 UNOFFICIAL LEGCO MEMBERS (PARAS 2 9 BELOW) AND THE PRESS REACTION (PARA 10 BELOW).
2. ALL THE 27 UNOFFICIALS STRESSED THAT THE MOUNTING PUBLIC CONCERN RS UNDERSTANDABLE IN THE WAKE OF THE CHERNOBYL INCIDENT. MR. HILTON CHEONG- LEEN, MR. TAM YU-CHUNG AND DR. CHIU HIN-KWONG WENT FURTHER TO SUGGEST THAT THE CHERNOBYL INCIDENT TRIGGERED OFF PUBLIC ANXIETY IN HK OVER THE SAFETY OF THE DAYA BAY PROJECT. MR. HILTON CHEONG-LEEN EVEN SAID THE 'HAD MT NOT BEEN FOR CHERNOBYL, THE IMPENDING SIGNING OF VARIOUS CONTRACTS FOR THE DAYA BAY NUCLEAR POWER PLANT WOULD HAVE GENERATING OVERWHELMING MUCH MORE SUPPORT THAN OPPOSITION IAN HK.''
3. EIGHT UNOFFICIALS SPOKE ON THE QUESTION WHETHER THE INCREASING PUBLIC ANXIETY OVER THE DAYA BAY PROJECT WOULD LEAD TO A CONFIDENCE CRISIS IN HONG KONG. SEVEN OF THEM, INCLUDING DR. CHAMU HIKN-KWONG, MR. SZETO WAH, MR. HUM YUN-FAT, MR. PANG CHUN-HO, MR. MARTIN LEE, DR. RICHARD LAI AND MRS. ROSANNA TAM WERE CONCERNED THAT THE SUBJECT HAD DEVELOPED INTO A POLITICAL ISSUE WHICH WOULDLEAD TO A CONFIDENCE CRISIS. MR. HUM YAN-FAT SAND THAT THE INCIDENT WAS A TOUCHSTONE TO TEST WHETHER HONG KONG WOULD HAVE A REAL OPEN GOVERNMENT AS WELL AS THE CHINESE GOVERNMENT'S ATTITUDE TOWARDS MAINTAINING HONG KONG'S PROSPERITY AND STABILITY. DR. RICHARD LAN EMPHASISED THAT RUMOURS ABOUT NUCLEAR ACCIDENT COULD SHAKE CONFIDENCE AS ONE MUST NEVER UNDER-ESTIMATE THE DAMAGE IRRATIONAL FEAR COULD DO. MR. K.C. CHAN WAS THE ONLY ODD ONE OUT WHO DID NOT BELIEVE ANY DAMAGE HAD BEEN DONE TO CONFIDENCE SO FAR NOTWITHSTAND- HING THERE WAS A FEELING OF INSECURITY AMONG THE PUBLIC.
4. TEN UNOFFICIALS (MR. HO SAM-CHU, MR. TAM YU-CHUNG, DR. DANIEL TSE, PROFESSOR C.K. POON, MR. LU LINT-FOR. MRS. ROSANNA TAM, MRS. RITA FAN, MR. S.L. CHAN. MR. ALLEN LEE AND MR. NGA SHU-K#IT) CALLED ON THE PUBLIC TO REMAPN CLAM AND ADOPT A RATIONAL APPROACH TO THE DAYA BAY ISSUE. INDEED, MR. HO SAK-CHU AND MRS. ROSANNA TAM STRESSED THAT BLEND OPPOSITION TO NUCLEAR ENERGY FOR THE SAKE OF OPPOSITION WAS WRONG. THREE OF THESE LEGCO MEMBERS,' NAMELY MR. ALLEN LEE, MR. NGA SHU-KIT AND DR. DANIEL TSE EVEN WARNED THAT THE SUBJECT HAD CHANGED TO A POLITICAL MOVEMENT. II3N THIS CONNECTION, MR. ALLEN LEE HARD-HIT THE AMIT-NUCLEAR GROUPS FOR SKILFULLY EXPLOITING THE SITUATION AND FOR FANNING THE CITIZENS
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