TNAG-1752-FCO40-2472-Future-of-Hong-Kong-Parliamentary-debates-1988 — Page 127

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002717 MDLIAN 4735

POLITICAL DEVELOPMENT OF HK.

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I I

4 SPEAKING TO THE PRESS ON HIS RETURN FROM LONDON, MARTIN LEE WAS

QUOTED BY THE STANDARD AS SAYING THAT HIS TRIP HAD BEEN ''USEFUL

AND SATISFACTORY BECAUSE THE BRITISH PARLIAMENT HAD BEEN INFORMED

THAT PART OF THE RESULTS OF HK GOVERNMENT COMMISSIONED SURVEYS ON

THE GREEN PAPER WAS TOTALLY UNRELIABLE. LEE QUOTED THE MANAGING

DIRECTOR OF THE AGB MANAIR AS SAYING THAT THE COMPANY'S HANDS WERE

BOUND WHEN SETTING OUT THE QUESTIONAIRES ON DIRECT ELECTIONS. THE

S CMP'S REPORT QUOTED LEE AS SAYING THAT SIR PETER BLAKER HAD WRONGLY CLAIMED THAT HE (LEE) WAS UNABLE TO PRODUCE EVIDENCE THAT THE

BRITISH GOVERNMENT HAD COMMITTED ITSELF IN 1984 TO INTRODUCING

DIRECT ELECTIONS IN HK BY 1988. LEE SAID DURING HIS MEETING WITH SIR GEOFFREY HOWE, WHO ASKED HIM (LEE) FOR HIS BEST POINT, THE

LEGISLATIVE COUNCILLOR SAID HE REQUESTED THAT SIR GEOFFREY READ THE POSITION PAPER IN FULL.

IN

BE FINALISED. HE ADDED THAT SINCE THIS

HE,

5. QIAO ZHONGHUAI, A VICE DIRECTOR OF NCNA HK BRANCH, DECLINED TO COMMENT ON THE DEBATE WHEN ASKED BY REPORTERS AT A RECEPTION

MEMORY OF THE 95TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE BIRTH OF MADAM SOONG CHING LING

QIAO SAID THAT IT WOULD NOT BE APPROPRIATE TO MAKE COMMENTS

AS THE WHITE PAPER HAD YET TO

WAS A MATTER FOR THE BRITISH, ANY COMMENTS. BLDC MEMBER LIU

'REALISTIC IN POINTING OUT THE CENTRAL FALLACY THAT THERE WAS A

CHOICE BETWEEN THE INTERESTS OF HK AND THE GOOD RELATIONS BETWEEN

BRITAIN AND CHINA. IT WAS IMPORTANT FOR SIR GEOFFREY TO MAKE THIS

POINT CLEAR BECAUSE SOME PEOPLE WOULD TEND TO FORGET THAT THE

IMPLEMENTATION OF THE JOINT DECLARATION DEPENDED ON A GOOD SINA-

BRITISH RELATIONSHIP.

AS A STAFF OF NCNA, SHOULD NOT MAK E YIU-CHU SAID SIR GEOFFREY WAS

6. MEETING POINT CHAIRMAN YEUNG SUM SAID THAT THE DEBATE WOULD

ENABLE PARLIAMENT AND THE BRITISH PUBLIC TO UNDERSTAND THAT AFTER THE SIGNING OF THE JOINT DECLARATION, THERE WERE STILL MANY HK ISSUES WHICH NEEDED TO BE RESOLVED. HE FELT THAT SIER GEOFFREY'S

SPEECH ONLY REINFORCED THE BELIEF THAT THE INTERESTS OF HK WOULD BE

SACRIFICED TO PLEASE CHINA. L.K. DING OF THE ASSOCIATION FOR

DEMOCRACY AND PEOPLE'S LIVELIHOOD SAID THAT DESPITE THE SUPPORT

SHOWN BY THE MPS FOR DIRECT ELECTIONS IN HK, IT WAS OBVIOUS THAT THE HK GOVERNMENT HAD ALREADY EXCLUDED THE POSSIBILITY OF

INTRODUCING DIRECT POLLS THIS YEAR.

7 A SENIOR LECTURER AT THE CITY POLYTECHNIC,

SAID THAT THE CHINESE AND THE

CHEUNG PING-LEUNG,

BRITISH MIGHT HAVE REACHED A TACIT

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