TNAG-2005-FCO40-2853-Hong-Kong-political-parties-1990 — Page 5

at Annex

emphasis is on the collection of money for charitable and welfare purposes which will benefit the welfare of the people of Hong Kong. The guidelines are so framed that it would normally be inappropriate for the Director of Social Welfare to issue a permit to enable a public collection to be organised for specifically political

political objectives

objectives such as, for example, to fund a political campaign.

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We accept that the development of political parties and meaningful political campaigns will depend on the availability of funds. Public fund raising activities for political purposes are therefore a legitimate and inevitable consequence of political development and should, as far as possible, not be unduly restrained. A wide variety of avenues already exist to enable unrestrained fund raising activities in privately owned premises, or through the printed media, personal appeals, mail, and by telephone.

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political donations in is that this should be

terms.

This

As far as the collection of public places is concerned, our view considered in similarly sympathetic

Practical considerations also point to the need for some degree of liberalisation. This is because of an existing anomaly whereby the law provides for the seeking of permission for political donations but without the flexibility in our administrative system to grant such permission in practice. unsatisfactory situation has

not discouraged political organizations from circumventing the system in their appeals for public donation for the 1991 elections. In recent weeks the United Democrats have sold raffle tickets in thoroughfares and

to raise funds to finance their activities. (The question of whether this was illegal is being studied by Legal Department.)

ferry concourses

Con deas. sounds like triple of it in

16

Ł

There is a strong case, however, to continue with the prohibition of fund raising activities of this nature on the streets, because of the nuisance and disruption to pedestrians. Security implications are another important consideration. We therefore recommend that fund raising activities for political purposes should be permitted only in more confined public places, such as the Municipal Council venues referred to in paragraph 12 above.

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above,

Subject to agreement in principle to paragraph 16 detailed proposals, including the accounting and auditing aspects of political fund-raising, will be submitted to the Council for consideration shortly. We envisage extending the existing provisions of section 4(17) of the Summary Offences Ordinance (paragraph 13 above) to cover political donations.

CONFIDENTIAL