2088
HONG KONG LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL · 5 July 1989
Let me address the issue of danger. And by this I mean danger to Hong Kong; danger to the Hong Kong Government in facing an ungovernable situation in the future.
In a situation where there are the "haves" and the "have-nots" or when it is declared that "all men are born equal, but some are more equal than others", I fail to see how the "haves", in this case the government servants, could command the respect of and to govern the "have-nots" in the future.
The feeling of Hong Kong people towards the Administration in the last few months, very regrettably, Sir, has been that of scepticism and distrust as exemplified by the ever increasing industrial actions in the Civil Service.
To wit, there has been no industrial action between 1983 and 1986; there was only one in 1987 and one in 1988 respectively but there were more than a dozen in the first four months of this year alone!
These are not my sentiments alone, Sir, but those within and without this Chamber. Yet ironically, after all these, the Secretary of State in his parting words said that Her Majesty's Government is considering "selecting certain categories of Hong Kong residents to live in Britain and hopes that the Hong Kong community would be non-divisive by such selection". It baffled my mentality and intelligence that categorization can minimize division.
The right of abode has to be conceived as an inherent human right for all those born or naturalized British subjects in Hong Kong or any other city in Britain. As a signatory to the international human rights treaties, Britain has to restore these rights to the people of Hong Kong.
Hong Kong people cannot be convinced of Her Majesty's Government's ability to seek international assistance should the Joint Declaration be breached, as mentioned in the FAC report, as she has failed to take a lead in resettling the 20 000 plus Vietnamese refugees who have been stranded here for over 10 years. The same committee also failed to specify who and how to determine when the Joint Declaration is considered breached.
Sir, in the last two days Hong Kong people have demonstrated without reserve their emotions towards the British Government. Admittedly, some of the moves were out of proportion and this I do not condone. For, as Hong Kong people, we have our self-respect and dignity. Yet let me call upon those sitting in high chairs, sipping whiskey on the rocks in posh Mayfair clubs of London on the eve of Mondays, to pause for a moment before they criticize for we are the people sans hope, sans
faith and sans everything!
With those remarks, Sir, I support the motion.
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