TNAG-2329-FCO40-3373-Hong-Kong-contacts-with-academics-and-writers-1991 — Page 35

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the Governor has said: "Above all, it would be difficult to overstate the importance of our economic relationship with China. This project is intended to have important benefits for Hong Kong; and it will have benefit as well for the PRC. One example of Hong Kong's way of life is the nature of its management skills, some of which are being lost through emigration. Conversely, the whole question of

38 management training of PRC personnel is very much a confused one. Most importantly for Hong Kong businesses, the investment which they put into training in some areas may perhaps be too easily squandered by PRC personnel transfers. Is this so? Might thought be given to the subject, with participation of people from Hong Kong, officials from Guangdong, and a small number of high-flyers employed by Hong Kong companies over the border in Guangdong? The first purpose would be to seek ways to ensure that specially trained people working for Hong Kong companies in Guangdong are not likely to be moved unreasonably from one post to another by the Guangdong authorities who directly employ them. With stability in this field, it might result in PRC personnel being trained to a higher level of expertise than is currently the case. second purpose of a seminar, say, would be to aim for a model for management training programmes (which could be explained at a high political level in Beijing) based on the need to foster continuity in the relationship between those who are paying for the training and those who are trained. If such an obvious step could be shown to be of benefit to both sides, Hong Kong would be entitled to hope that the seriousness of the point would be understood in Beijing. And this could bolster commercial links. The "lifestyle project will be designed to have many such practical benefits.

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The

Explaining Hong Kong's Lifestyle to the World

Sir David Wilson defined lifestyle in his speech of 10th October, 1990. He said this:-

"The essence of the Hong Kong way of life is the individual's

ability to take decisions and to take responsibility for himself and his family. This will be the decade of greater freedom of choice.

Politically, we have reached the point where the people of Hong Kong must assume greater responsibility. The three sets of elections in 1991 are the next stage in the evolution of our political system. Now is the time for Hong Kong to develop its own leaders: to find Hong Kong solutions to Hong Kong

problems

The formula "finding Hong Kong solutions to Hong Kong problems" is a practical way forward towards the idea of "Hong Kong people administering Hong Kong", gangren zhigang. The need here is to encapsulate Hong Kong's internal dilemmas and options in ways which are