780
2.3 DEC 1987
CONFIDENTIAL
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RECEIVED IN REGISTRY 12 JAN 1988
Private Secretary
FROM: PS/Lord Glenarthur DATE: 23 December 1987
Cc:
Mr McLaren Mr Paul, HKD News Department
VISIT OF MR MARTIN LEE TO LONDON: LETTER TO THE PRIME MINISTER
1. The Secretary of State will wish to see the text of Lord Glenarthur's proposed reply to Mr Martin Lee's letter of 8 December to the Prime Minister about the Joint Declaration and direct elections in Hong Kong (Mr Paul's submission of 22 December below). Lord Glenarthur has signed a text which offers only that he, rather than the Secretary of State, should receive Mr Martin Lee on a future visit.
2.
Lord Gienarthur feels very strongly indeed that we should not now reverse our policy on the level at which to receive Mr Lee. Although Mr Lee has a degree of support in Parliament and the press, Lord Glenarthur has found very wide sympathy, including from among many Parliamentarians most closely associated with Hong Kong, for the approach we have adopted. He is convinced that we should stick with it. Mr Lee argues his case well. But we can answer all his points equally effectively; and we are, after all, going to go ahead with direct elections well before 1997, even if not as rapidly as Mr Lee and his group would wish.
3.
Lord Glenarthur also feels that his own position in Hong Kong, and that of the Governor after a difficult few months, would be seriously weakened by an offer by the Secretary of State to see Mr Lee. Such a decision would also presumably set a precedent that would oblige the Secretary of State to receive any other LegCo delegation that wished to make its views known. This is obviously
undesirable.
4. Lord Glenarthur therefore concludes that we must not cave in. He would welcome Mr Meyer's comments on the presentational implications of so doing. He would like to speak to the Secretary of State personally if there is any question of sending a letter to Martin Lee that does other than offer that Lord Glenarthur would receive him on a future visit.
David Mowaway
David Reddaway PS/Lord Glenarthur
23 December 1987
CONFIDENTIAL
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