TNAG-2452-FCO40-3569-Future-of-Hong-Kong-constitutional-development-1992 — Page 181

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AIRPORT. THERE WOULD COME A POINT WHEN IT WOULD SURELY BE WHOLLY

WRONG FOR US TO OVERLOOK CONTINUING CHINESE ATTEMPTS AT

INTIMIDATION.'

ΤΟ

3. MORE GENERALLY, WE WILL CONTINUE HERE, AS WITH THE CHINESE, ENCOURAGE COUNTER PROPOSALS FROM THOSE WHO DO NOT LIKE MY PACKAGE, NO GROUP HAS YET COME UP WITH A BETTER WAY OF MEETING MY CRITERIA, BUT SOME ARE BEGINNING TO FORMULATE IDEAS (ADPL AND THE CIVIC ASSOCIATION SO FAR). IF ALTERNATIVES EMERGE WHICH MEET MY CRITERIA, AND COMMAND MAJORITY SUPPORT IN LEGCO, I WOULD CERTAINLY BE PREPARED TO CONSIDER EMBRACING THEM. THE KEY POINT

IS THAT THE EVENTUAL PACKAGE WHICH LEGCO PASSES MUST BE

DETERMINED BY AND IN HONG KONG.

4. AS YOUR PAPER MAKES CLEAR, THE NEXT FEW MONTHS ARE LIKELY TO BE ROUGH. IF THE CHINESE TRY TO OPPOSE OUR LETTING THE AIRPORT PLATFORM CONTRACT, LIFE MAY BECOME ROUGHER CALTHOUGH SO FAR AT

LEAST THERE SEEMS TO BE A GOOD MEASURE OF SUPPORT IN FINANCE COMMITTEE - EVEN FROM THE CRC). PUBLIC SUPPORT HAS SO FAR HELD UP REMARKABLY WELL. IN THE WEEKS AND MONTHS AHEAD WE WILL BE CONCENTRATING ON TWO GROUPS: INDIVIDUAL LEGCO MEMBERS AND THE

BUSINESS COMMUNITY.

S

5. I WILL WANT TO TALK TO THE SECRETARY OF STATE ABOUT THE

MEETING BETWEEN HIM AND QIAN QICHEN. THE AIM WOULD BE LESS TO REACH AN ACCOMMODATION THAN TO PREVENT THE CONSULTATION PROCESS DRAGGING ON ENDLESSLY AND TO SHOW HONG KONG OPINION THAT WE HAVE

BEEN THROUGH ALL THE CONSULTATIVE HOOPS. WE DO NOT SUGGEST APPROACHING THE CHINESE UNTIL NEARER THE TIME, BUT IT WOULD BE

HELPFUL IF THE SECRETARY OF STATE COULD BLOCK OFF SOME DATES IN

THE FIRST HALF OF JANUARY.

PATTEN

YYYY

ADVANCE

.HK POLICY

MR HUM HKD//HD

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