UNCLASSIFIED
064377
MDLIAN 6489
STATUS OF NPC DELEGATES WAS NOT RECOGNISED, THE BL WOULD NOT BE RESPECTED. ANOTHER LOCAL DELEGATE, NG HONG-MAN, SAID IT WAS AGREED AMONG LOCAL DELEGATES THAT THEY SHOULD BE MORE ACTIVE IN REFLECTING VIEWS ON ISSUES OF CONCERN TO HK PEOPLE AS 1997 APPROACHED BUT THAT A PROPOSAL FOR THEM TO SET UP AN OFFICE SIMILAR TO THE OMELCO OFFICE WAS CONSIDERED NOT APPROPRIATE AS SUCH AN OFFICE WOULD BECOME A SECOND CENTRE OF POWER AND WOULD GENERATE CONFLICTS WITH THE HK GOVERNMENT.
OMELCO
11. QUOTING PEKING SOURCES, THE EXPRESS SAID THAT THE STATE COUNCIL'S HK AND MACAU AFFAIRS OFFICE HAD REFUSE TO ALLOW OMELCO MEMBERS TO VISIT GUANGDONG IN THEIR OFFICIAL CAPACITY. OMELCO MEMBER ROSANNA TAM SAID THAT THEIR PLAN TO VISIT GUANGDONG WAS MEANT TO INCREASE UNDERSTANDING ABOUT THE ECONOMIC CLIMATE IN THE PROVINCE, ADDING THAT THE VISIT SHOULD NOT BE OVER-POLITICISED.
BRITISH CONSULATE-GENERAL
12. RADIO-3 (12.11) REPORTED THAT BRITAIN AND HK HAD AGREED THAT THE POST-1997 BRITISH CONSULATE-GENERAL WOULD BE SITUATED AT COLVIN HOUSE.
NATIONALITY
BRITISH NATIONALITY PACKAGE
13. THE ORIENTAL DAILY NEWS NOTED THAT A LARGE SOLICITORS' FIRM HAD INDICATED THAT APPLYING FOR THE BRITISH NATIONALITY PACKAGE WAS NOT AS EASY AS THE AUTHORITIES HAD CLAIMED. RESEARCH BY THE CHINESE UNIVERSITY OF HK HAD SHOWN THAT INSTEAD OF THE ESTIMATED 225,000 PEOPLE GAINING BRITISH NATIONALITY, THE ACTUAL FIGURE WOULD BE ABOUT 158,000.
RESIDENCY RIGHTS
14. THE HK ECONOMIC JOURNAL (9.11) REPORTED THAT THE DIRECTOR OF ADMINISTRATION, DONALD TSANG, SAID THAT THE JLG WOULD DISCUSS HOW THE IMMIGRATION ORDINANCE WOULD BE CHANGED TO ALLOW NON-CHINESE PEOPLE TO OBTAIN PERMANENT RESIDENCY RIGHTS AFTER THEY HAD LEGALLY STAYED IN HK FOR MORE THAN SEVEN YEARS AS SUCH AN ARRANGEMENT WAS STIPULATED IN JD AND THE BL. BOTH SIDES HAD ALSO TO FURTHER EXCHANGE VIEWS ON WHETHER HK PEOPLE WHO ACQUIRED THE RIGHT OF ABODE IN THE UK WOULD BE REGARDED AS FOREIGN NATIONALS AFTER 1997 OR AS CHINESE NATIONALS UNDER THE CHINESE NATIONALITY
LAWS.
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