TNAG-2493-FCO40-3625-Future-of-Hong-Kong-constitutional-development-Chinese-reac-1992 — Page 175

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REACTIONS TO POLICY ADDRESS

City Forum: Four speakers at yesterday's "City Forum" did not agree with the setting of the Governor's Business Council, saying that its members would speak only for the interests of the commercial sectors and therefore could hardly help work out a comprehensive competition policy for the territory. Huang Chen-ya said setting up an economic development committee would be more appropriate. Most of the speakers expressed support for the new Monetary Authority, but they were disappointed that the policy address fail to mention concrete measures to fight inflation, the media noted.

Social Workers: The HK Social Workers' General Union told a press conference that the policy address failed to provide a comprehensive welfare policy. It only concentrated on rehabilitation services, welfare for the aged and social security. The address had not attached importance to convergence problems in 1997.

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UDKK: The media quoted UDHK leader Martin Lee as saying that the constitutional reforms in the policy address were the "bottom line". He thought that the Governor should not make further compromise as far as the issue was concerned when he met Chinese leaders in Peking this week. He hoped that Mr Patten would make efforts to persuade China to raise the number of directly-elected seats in Legco to 30 in 1995. Mr Lee in an interview with R-3 this morning that China would become the laughing stock of the world if it carried out a threat to hold its own election for HK's legislature before 1997. UDHK member Cheung Man-kwong noted that if China and Britain could not reach agreement on HK's political reforms, then the issue should be returned to and decided by the HK people themselves. The party hoped that a referendum on our political changes would take place early next year. However, the Express said that UDHK's proposal to move a motion debate in Legeo to hold a referendum had not yet received the necessary and sufficient support from fellow members.

Petitions: About 20 representatives from a joint conference formed by 27 local community yesterday petitioned Government House urging the Government to increase the number of directly elected seats in the 1995 polls. They felt that at least half of the Legco members by that time should be returned by direction election. They called on Mr Patten to make public his negotiations with the Chinese side in Peking after his visit to the capital this week. Six UDHK members had requested the Government to cancel the ex-officio seats in the district boards in the NT. They urged a review of the terms of reference of the district Boards so as to increase their powers. Representatives of a Kwun Tong local group yesterday petition Government House expressing their views on the policy address. They said that the proposed political changes were too drastic and were worried that they would affect HK's social stability and economic growth,

SZETO WAH: Legislator Szeto Wah said at yesterday's UDHK public hearing that the policy address had not violated the Basic Law, the spirit of which was to uphold the 'one country, two systems" concept and high. autonomy in HK.

Sunday Reports: Twenty-seven local groups petitioned outside the NCNA local office building last Saturday criticising the Chinese remarks on the policy address as "unfriendly". Wen Wei Po published an advertisement by a HK Ka-ying commercial association hitting out at Mr Patten's political reforms. They said that the reforms were too drastie and would not be conducive to HK's stability and prosperity.