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the light of recent developments.
DSR 11C (Revised 5/87)
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21. Britain will continue to construct its approach to
this question on the basis of the views that Hong Kong
people themselves express. Once a clear consensus has
emerged in this respect, the British Government will
certainly wish to respond. But it is already clear to me
from my recent discussion in Hong Kong that:
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the changes currently proposed for 1991 will need to be
re-examined;
we need to consider carefully what further steps may be
necessary before 1997; and that
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the provision of the draft Basic Law on constitutional
arrangements after 1997 will need full re-appraisal once
the drafting process resumes.
22.
Just as there have been calls to scrap the Joint
Declaration, so there are many who have lost faith in the
value of the Basic Law in the wake of recent events.
Public consultation in Hong Kong on the second draft of
the Basic Law has been effectively suspended for the time
being. Some Hong Kong members of the Drafting Committee
have resigned, saying that they can no longer cooperate
with the Government responsible for the brutality in
Tiananmen Square. But recent events have not changed the
underlying reality that the Basic Law is of crucial
No comments yet.
Private notes are available after approval.