TNAG-1838-FCO40-2613-House-of-Commons-Select-Committee-on-Foreign-Affairs-enquiry-1989 — Page 53

CONFIDENTIAL

FM HONG KONG

TO IMMEDIATE FCO

TELNO 277

OF 251130Z JANUARY 89

CONFIDENTIAL

55

HKB 011/3

023243

MDHIAN 9853

PERSONAL FOR PAUL, HKD, FROM GOVERNOR

(28;

YOUR TELNO: 215: FOREIGN AFFAIRS COMMITTEE ENQUIRY INTO HONG KONG

I WOULD BE USEFUL TO KNOW WHAT SORT OF SPECIALIST ADVISERS THE FAC HAVE APPOINTED FOR PREVIOUS ENQUIRIES. CLEARLY WE HAVE AN INTEREST IN TRYING TO ENSURE, IF WE CAN, THAT THEY DO NOT HAVE TO RELY ON PEOPLE WHO HAVE A STRONG BIAS AGAINST THE POLICIES OF HMG ON THE HKG. BUT IT MUST BE DOUBTFUL IF THE FAC WOULD WISH TO APPOINT ANYONE WHO MIGHT APPEAR TO THEM TO ERR IN THE OTHER DIRECTION BECAUSE OF CLOSE OR RECENT ASSOCIATION WITH BRITISH POLICY-MAKING TOWARDS HONG KONG.

2. FOR THE REASONS, ABOVE, I SUSPECT THAT RICHARD EVANS IS A NON-STARTER, BIM DAVIES MAY BE WORTH TRYING, AS HIS INVOLVEMENT IS LESS RECENT. MOREOVER, AS A FORMER HONG KONG CIVIL SERVANT INVOLVED IN THE NEGOTIATION BUT NOT THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE JD, HE MAY BE SEEN AS MORE OBJECTIVE. ANOTHER GOOD CANDIDATE, THOUGH HE TOO MAY BE TAINTED WITH THE BRITISH GOVERNMENT BRUSH, WOULD BE RICHARD MARGOLIS.

3. I HAVE ALSO BEEN TRYING TO THINK OF ACADEMICS WHO HAVE A KNOWLEDGE OF HONG KONG AND ARE INTERESTED IN ITS POLITICS AND WHO WOULD NOT AUTOMATICALLY TAKE A HOSTILE APPROACH. IN THE UK, BRIAN HOOK EDITOR OF THE CHINA QUARTERLY, OR DICK WILSON, EX-EDITOR OF THE CQ AND NOW A FREELANCE WRITER, WOULD BOTH BE GOOD. HOOK STARTED LIFE IN THE HKG AND HAS VISITED THE TERRITORY REGULARLY IN THE PAST TWO YEARS. WILSON ONCE EDITED THE FEER AND ALSO KEEPS FAIRLY CLOSELY IN TOUCH. IN HONG KONG, LAU SHIU-KAI OF CUHK IS AN OBJECTIVE AND RESPECTED POLITICAL SCIENTIST, ALBEIT RATHER ACADEMIC ON HIS APPROACH. HE IS THE AUTHOR OF A RECENT BOOK CALLED THE ETHOS OF THE HONG KONG CHINESE AND A 1987 MONOGRAPH CALLED ''DECOLONISATION WITHOUT INDEPENDENCE: THE UNFINISHED POLITICAL REFORMS OF THE HONG KONG GOVERNMENT''

WILSON

YYYY