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met. Some, like the massacre in Tiananmen Square had directly affected circumstances in Hong Kong but the events in Eastern Europe had also had a profound affect on the Peoples' Republic of China (PRC). Of these, perhaps the
Revolution had rocked
rocked the Chinese leaders the
Romanian Revolution most.
2. The Chairman then turned to CBF Hong Kong and invited him to set the scene by providing the Meeting with the current situation in Hong Kong from his perspective as CBF and as a member of the Executive Council. Maj Gen Duffell began by observing that the rise in the pro-democracy movement post-Tiananmen Square was due in part to loss of credibility in the 'one country two systems' tenet,
especially amongst the young who were particularly shocked by the events of June 1989. This had given rise to demonstrations in
in the streets. Coupled with this, the usual diplomatic ties had broken down, including the work of the Joint Liaison Group (JLG). The eye of the storm had now passed but the increasingly beleaguered Chinese leadership saw Hong Kong as a threat and this had manifested itself in increased rhetoric on issues such as the perceived attempt by the UK to internationalise the question of right of abode and the planned move of the Naval base to Stonecutters' Island. By refusing to accept returned illegal immigrants in protest over the failure to return the swimmer Yang Yang, the PRC had demonstrated its willingness to take retaliatory action.
3. CBF observed that the increasing aspirations for democracy in Hong Kong were unlikely to be reflected in the Basic Law and that this posed a difficult problem for the British Government, namely, whether the so called 'through train' to the change in sovereignty should be abandoned or whether it would 'kow tow' to PRC's position.
4
•
the
On top
top of all this there was the tragedy of Vietnamese Boat People (VBP). The decision of the British Government to proceed with mandatory repatriation had been held up by the outcome of the UNHCR Steering Committee Meeting in Geneva. That message would be getting back to the camps. Maj Gen Duffell concluded by saying that he predicted we would be in for a slightly bumpy 1990 and much had still to be reconciled.
5.
ITEM 2 - MINUTES OF THE LAST MEETING
The Minutes of the previous meeting were passed as true record. It was agreed that the matters arising would be dealt with in the business tabled for discussion.
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