TNAG-2289-FCO40-3293-Future-of-Hong-Kong-Basic-Law-1991 — Page 35

布政司署

香港下亞厘畢道

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DIEU

29

GOVERNMENT SECRETARIAT

LOWER ALBERT ROAD

HONG KONG

PA SCR5/1162/89

本署檔號 Our Ref.:

來函檔號 Your Ref.:

S Riordan Esq

Hong Kong Department

FCO

Jean Shawn,

hkc 0123

15 NOV 1991

8 November 1991

RAR

ref's pleate

Ms.

Basic Law

I refer to your minute of 22 October to Rod Wye which was copied to me and which attached a memo from Rod on altering the Basic Law.

I am not sure we need spend much time worrying about the "risk of reopening other aspects of the Basic Law". If the Chinese wish to change the Basic Law they will do so: the frequency with which they have altered their own constitution surely tells us they will have no compunction about altering Hong Kong's if it suits them. They would however have to avoid obvious breaches of the Joint Declaration. Meanwhile if they

do not wish to change it they won't, whatever we say. A change in one area would make it harder for them to take the line which Lu Ping has been taking, that alteration of the Basic Law is "impossible". Whether we have any success when we eventually go to them to ask for more directly elected seats will depend not on the technicalities of altering the Basic Law but on the Chinese internal situation at the time.

wu

Yours a

Управи

(S E Bradley)

Deputy Political Adviser

cc Miss J Rogan, Peking

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