Ridiculous
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MDLIAN 6202
24 IN PEKING, WAS REPORTED IN WIDE COVERAGE. SPEAKING TO REPORTERS BEFORE HIS DEPARTURE, TONY GALSWORTHY SAID HE HOPED THAT BOTH SIDES WOULD EXCHANGE VIEWS IN A FRANK MANNER AT THIS ROUND OF MEETINGS. HE SAID THAT AS SOON AS HE ARRIVED IN PEKING, HE WOULD DISCUSS WITH HIS CHINESE COUNTERPART THE AGENDA FOR THE CURRENT ROUND OF TALKS. HE SAID THAT HE WAS OPTIMISTIC ABOUT THE OUTCOME OF THE MEETINGS. GUO FENGMIN TOLD NEWSMEN IN PEKING THAT THE NATIONALITY PACKAGE AND THE PROPOSED BILL OF RIGHTS FOR HK WOULD BE ON THE AGENDA. IT WAS UNDERSTOOD THAT THE BRITISH SIDE WANTED TO DISCUSS THE BL BECAUSE IT WAS NOT SATISFIED WITH SOME ECONOMIC PROVISIONS AND WANTED TO PROPOSE SOME VIEWS ON THESE PROVISIONS AT THE MEETINGS. HOWEVER, GUO INDICATED THAT THE BL WAS USUALLY NOT DISCUSSED.
10.
THE HK TIMES (23.4) SAID IN AN EDITORIAL THAT JUDGING FROM THE PERFORMANCE OF THE JLG IN THE PAST FEW YEARS, IT COULD BE SAID THAT THE GROUP HAD NEVER DONE ANYTHING THAT WAS CONSTRUCTIVE FOR THE FUTURE OF HK AND THAT IT HAD PROVIDED CHINA WITH A CHANNEL TO
INTERFERE WITH HK'S INTERNAL AFFAIRS.
BASIC LAW
11. THE CS, SPEAKING IN JAPAN, SAID THAT THE BL HAD SATISFACTORILY ELABORATED ON THE MEANING OF THE JD. HE SAID THAT IT WOULD PROVIDE A FRAMEWORK FOR HK TO ENTER THE NEXT CENTURY AND TO MAINTAIN ITS STABILITY AND PROSPERITY. HE BELIEVED THAT THE ''ONE COUNTRY, TWO SYSTEMS' CONCEPT WOULD BE WORKABLE IN HK.
12. THE PREMIER OF TAIWAN, LI HUAN, SAID IN A STATEMENT THAT THE TAIWAN GOVERNMENT WAS DETERMINED THAT IT WOULD NOT RECOGNISE THE BL, WHICH WAS FORMULATED UNDER THE CONTROL OF THE CHINESE COMMUNIST PARTY, THE MEDIA (21.4) REPORTED. HE SAID THAT SHOULD A CRISIS BREAK OUT IN HK, THE TAIWAN GOVERNMENT AND PEOPLE WOULD NOT SIMPLY LOOK ON BUT WOULD TAKE PRACTICAL ACTIONS TO ASSIST HK PEOPLE. LI STRESSED THAT TAIWAN WOULD CONTINUE ITS LONG-ESTABLISHED POLICY AND WOULD TRY ITS BEST TO HELP HK PEOPLE FIGHT FOR FREEDOMS, ECONOMIC PROSPERITY AND A DEMOCRATIC POLITICAL SYSTEM. HE BELIEVED THAT HK PEOPLE'S FREEDOMS AND RIGHTS WOULD BE ERODED AFTER THE
IMPLEMENTATION OF THE BL.
OTHERS
13.
QUOTING SOURCES, THE MEDIA (20.4) REPORTED THAT CHINA HAD EXAMINED CONTENTS OF THE DRAFT BILL OF RIGHTS AND FOUND PROBLEMS IN THREE AREAS. THE CHINESE SIDE NOTED THAT SOME WORDING IN THE
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