TNAG-1933-FCO40-2759-Future-of-Hong-Kong-13th-meeting-of-the-Sino-British-Joint-L-1989 — Page 8

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GOVERNMENT TO ALLOW YANG YANG TO GO TO TAIWAN ON HUMANITARIAN GROUNDS. WAH KIU YAT PO SAID THAT IF YANG YANG WERE SENT BACK TO CHINA, IT WOULD AGGRAVATE THE CONFIDENCE CRISIS IN HK.

FOREIGN SECRETARY

6. A SPEECH BY BRITISH FOREIGN SECRETARY JOHN MAJOR AT THE UN GENERAL ASSEMBLY IN WHICH HE SPOKE ON THE HK QUESTION WAS PROMINENTLY COVERED BY THE MEDIA (28.9). MOST REPORTS HIGHLIGHTED MR MAJOR'S REMARKS THAT BRITAIN WOULD CONTINUE VIGOROUSLY TO REPRESENT THE INTERESTS OF HK PEOPLE IN ITS DISCUSSIONS WITH CHINA AND THAT BRITAIN WOULD INTRODUCE CONCRETE MEASURES TO REASSURE HK PEOPLE ABOUT THEIR FUTURE, SUCH AS THE EARLY INTRODUCTION OF A BILL OF RIGHTS, THE DEVELOPMENT OF MORE REPRESENTATIVE GOVERNMENT AND A NATIONALITY PACKAGE. THE REPORTS NOTED THAT MR MAJOR SAID THAT PRACTICAL REASSURANCES WERE REQUIRED FROM CHINA TO HK PEOPLE.

7. COMMENTING ON MR MAJOR'S REMARKS AT THE UN GENERAL ASSEMBLY, THE HK ECONOMIC JOURNAL (3.10) SAID IN AN EDITORIAL THAT ALL MEASURES TO BOOST HK PEOPLE'S CONFIDENCE MENTIONED IN MR MAJOR'S ADDRESS WERE ONLY AIMED AT PROJECTING A GOOD BRITISH IMAGE TO THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY. THE PAPER SAID THAT BRITAIN HAD NEVER BEEN SINCERE ON THE QUESTION OF NATIONALITY, WHICH WAS AT THE HEART OF HK'S CONFIDENCE CRISIS. IT SAID THAT EVEN IF SOME HK PEOPLE WERE TO BE GRANTED THE RIGHT OF ABODE IN BRITAIN, NO ONE COULD GUARANTEE THAT BRITAIN WOULD NOT CHANGE ITS IMMIGRATION RULES AFTER 1997 SO AS TO CLOSE THE DOOR ON HK PEOPLE.

8. THE MEETING BETWEEN MR MAJOR AND HIS CHINESE COUNTERPART, QIAN QICHEN, IN NEW YORK WAS REPORTED IN GOOD COVERAGE IN THE MEDIA (30.9). MR MAJOR DESCRIBED THE MEETING AS USEFUL AND SUCCESSFUL. HE HAD OUTLINED TO MR QIAN HOW BRITAIN WOULD TRY TO RESTORE CONFIDENCE IN HK. MR QIAN SAID THAT THE TALKS WERE CONSTRUCTIVE AND THAT BOTH SIDES HAD AGREED TO ACT STRICTLY IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE PROVISIONS OF THE JOINT DECLARATION.

JLG

9. A JOINT COMMUNIQUE ISSUED AFTER THE 13TH ROUND OF THE JLG TALKS IN LONDON WAS GIVEN A GOOD RUN IN THE MEDIA (30.9). QUOTING SENIOR REPRESENTATIVE OF THE CHINESE TEAM ON THE JLG KE ZAISHUO, THE REPORTS SAID THAT THERE WERE STILL DIFFERENCES BETWEEN BRITAIN AND CHINA ON A NUMBER OF ISSUES. SPEAKING TO NEWSMEN ON HIS RETURN TO HK AFTER THE JLG MEETING, MR KE SAID THAT DIFFERENT VIEWS BETWEEN CHINA AND BRITAIN ON A NUMBER OF ISSUES THAT EMERGED AFTER THE JUNE 4 INCIDENT COULD NOT BE RESOLVED WITHIN SUCH A SHORT TIME AS THE

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