TNAG-1596-FCO40-2181-Constitutional-development-in-Hong-Kong-1988 — Page 109

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touch on the drafting of the Basic Law. The Chinese have been

unexpectedly receptive: they have assured us that they do not

regard this as interference, and have encouraged us to continue

putting forward our ideas.

5.

A first set of papers (concerning the problem of convergence between the existing government system and that to be stipulated under the Basic Law) was handed by the Secretary of State to Foreign

Minister Wu Xueqian during their meeting in Brussels in May 1986. A second set (on more detailed aspects of the executive/legislature

relationship, the future of appointed members in LegCo, and legal

issues arising from the Basic Law) were passed to Wu in the margins

of the State Visit to China last October. A further paper on the

Governor and the Chief Executive was handed over by Sir R Evans in early December. The paper on legal issues arising from the Basic

Law was followed up by a further set of more technical legal papers

passed to the Chinese in February of this year.

6.

We have subsequently succeeded in establishing a direct

channel of communciation between Mr Fifoot and Shao Tianren, Legal

Adviser to the Chinese MFA. Mr Fifoot visited Peking in early June.

We hope to maintain this channel to discuss technical legal issues

relating to the Basic Law.

7.

At the meeting between the Secretary of State and the Chinese

Foreign Minister in Berne on 27 March Wu suggested that "overall

consideration should be given to all aspects of the political

structure in Hong Kong". This gives us the cue for the transmission

of the attached papers. We propose that they should be passed by the Chargé in Peking at a high level in the MFA: he would refer to the exchange between Ministers in Berne and the earlier papers in

the same series.

The Papers

8.

The papers that we propose to hand over comprise a short covering note and three detailed papers which deal in turn with the

Chief Executive, the Executive and the Legislature. The papers are

intended to be free standing and self-explanatory.

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There is