HONG KONG ACTIVISTS RESPOND TO THE GREEN PAPER
At th hd of June, some 30 Hong Kong activists currently living in Britain the majority as post- graduate students at universities-met in London to consider the Hong Kong Government's Green Paper on the territory's political structures and prepare a response for the Survey Office.
On July 7th, they published a statement setting out their views, in both Chinese and English. It was carried by Reuters and reviewed by a number of Hong Kong papers including Sing Tao, Ming Pao, The South China Morning Post, the Hong Kong Standard and Pai Shing. The English text of their statement is reproduced below.
The initiative was significant because it seems to be the first time (to our knowledge) that Hong Kong citizens living in Britain have acted together in such a fashion in effect creating a network in this country which might react to issues and developments in Hong Kong.
Those involved included graduates studying at the universities of Cambridge, Cardiff, Durham, Essex, Kent, Lancaster, London, Oxford, Sheffield, Surrey and Sussex. Although they came together as individuals, members of several Hong Kong political groups were present, including the Association for People's Livelihood and Democracy, the Hong Kong Affairs Society, Hong Kong Policy Viewers, and Meeting Point.
The group circulated the statement for signature and it was signed by some 140 people (despite the fact that the universities were closed during the consultation period) whose names were forwarded to the Survey Office at the end of September.
The initiative is being evaluated, with the idea of convening more meetings of the same kind, to enable people from Hong Kong to meet and share their perspectives on developments in the territory. If any Hong Kong Link readers would be interested to repeat the experience, or become involved, please write to Yung Wai Yip (Gideon), c/o Hong Kong Link.
The Hong Kong Government's Green Paper
A Response by Hong Kong Citizens in the United Kingdom, June 1987
We, a group of Hong Kong residents who study or work in the United
Kingdom, wishing to respond to the 1987 Green Paper on political reforms, express the following opinions. 1. In 1988 not less than one quarter of the seats in the Legislative Council (LegCo) should be constituted by direct election, with the proportion increasing steadily in the years to come.
The Chinese government has promised in the Sino-British Joint Declaration that the future Hong Kong Special Administrative Region 'shall enjoy a high degree of autonomy and shall be administered by the people of Hong Kong'. The White Paper on the Further Development
of Representative Government, issued by the Hong Kong government in 1984, clearly indicated that by progressive development they mean the introduction of a number of directly elected members to LegCo by 1988, building up to a majority of directly elected members by 1997.
Recent opinion polls in Hong Kong show that the majority of Hong Kong people endorse the view that a number of the seats in LegCo should be directly elected as soon as possible. If the authorities concerned comply with the people's demand and introduce direct elections in 1988, this will not interfere with the drafting of the Basic Law; such progressive development of an open government will also prevent any sudden changes in 1997 and the unfortunate influence these might have.
Until sovereignty reverts to China in 1997, Hong Kong will continue to be governed by the Governor-in-Council. In consequence, the introduction of direct elections in the form of one man- one vote in 1988 will not erode the Hong Kong government's authority or violate the spirit of existing constitutional principles.
The introduction of direct elections in 1988 will enhance, on the one hand, the government's authority and credibility, while improving the people's trust in government, on the other, thus reinforcing the stability our society now enjoys.
2. The number of seats elected either by functional constituencies or the electoral college should not be increased.
Election via functional constituencies is defective in that it confuses political rights with occupational interests. It grants to a small number of people the right to vote and the right to be elected, thereby giving and guaranteeing to
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some occupational groups in the community political rights that others do not enjoy.
As the Green paper states, election through the electoral college has 'created factions in individual District Boards in the same constituency' and 'caused enduring grudges between candidates'. Under no circumstances should members of an electoral college decide, on behalf of the general public, who is suitable to sit on the Legislative Council.
Neither the functional constituencies nor the electoral college are truly democratic. To give more than one vote to a minority violates the principle of equal rights for all. Therefore, in 1988 these two forms of election should not be developed further and should be subject to further examination and review by the government.
3. Before China resumes sovereignty over Hong Kong in 1997, the Hong Kong government should conduct another review to ensure that Hong Kong's representative structures are in convergence with the Basic Law. The coming years will be critical for the establishment of Hong Kong's future system. Everyone in Hong Kong is concerned to ensure that political developments converge with the Basic Law. The Hong Kong government should fulfil its promise to ensure that the transition to Chinese sovereignty is smooth. It should therefore conduct a further review after the Basic Law is promulgated to ensure that the political system will evolve step-by-step in co- ordination with the Basic Law.
Paragraph four of the Joint Declaration stipulates that 'during the transitional period...the Government of the United Kingdom will be responsible for the administration of Hong Kong with the object of maintaining and preserving its economic prosperity and social stability; and the Government of the People's Republic of China will give its co-operation in this connection'. We sincerely urge the Chinese and British governments to fulfil the promises they have made to the Hong Kong people. They should therefore respect and adhere to the people's demands for direct elections. In order to ensure a smooth transfer of government in 1997, it is the responsibility of both governments to help Hong Kong to develop a more open and democratic government in the years to come.■
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