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061357 MDHIAN 6325
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FM HONG KONG
TO IMMEDIATE FCO
TELNO
1499
OF 03064OZ JUNE 92
INFO PRIORITY PEKING, UKREP JLG HONG KONG, BTC HONG KONG
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OUR TELNOS 1483 AND 1487: MR. GOODLAD'S VISIT TO HONG KONG: PRESS COVERAGE.
MR. GOODLAD'S ACTIVITIES DOMINATED THE NEWS COVERAGE FOR EACH DAY OF HIS VISIT TO HONG KONG. PRESS AND ELECTRONIC MEDIA INTEREST IN THE VISIT WAS HEIGHTENED BY SPECULATION THAT HMG'S POLICY ON THE PACE OF DEMOCRATIC DEVELOPMENT WAS CHANGING AND RUMOURS THAT A WAY WOULD BE FOUND TO DRAW THE UDHK INTO EXCO. MR. GOODLAD CAME UNDER INTENSE PRESSURE TO COMMENT ON THESE ISSUES, AND HIS DETERMINATION TO AVOID FUELLING THE SPECULATION LED INITIALLY TO SOME MILD CRITICISM IN THE PRESS. HIS COMMENTS ON THE LAST DAY ON THE POSSIBILITY OF AMENDING THE BASIC LAW CAUSED A CONSIDERABLE REACTION IN THE MAINSTREAM AND LEFT WING PRESS, AS REPORTED IN TURS.
DETAIL
2.
THE MINISTER OF STATE'S VISIT TOOK PLACE AT A TIME WHEN THE LOCAL PRESS AND ELECTRONIC MEDIA THOUGHT THEY HAD DETECTED SIGNS OF A CHANGE IN HMG'S ESTABLISHED POLICIES ON HONG KONG ISSUES. MOST LOCAL JOURNALISTS AND THEIR EDITORS READ A GREAT DEAL INTO THE PRIME MINISTER'S MEETING WITH MARTIN LEE AND YEUNG SUM. THESE IMPRESSIONS WERE REINFORCED BY POLITICIANS (ALLEN LEE) AND BUSINESS REPRESENTATIVES (VINCENT LO) WHO, HAVING VISITED LONDON, CLAIMED TO HAVE DETECTED A SHIFT IN HMG'S THINKING ON THE DEMOCRACY ISSUE AND ON THE UDHK'S CLAIM FOR EXCO PLACES. THE PRESS CORPS WAS THEREFORE WELL PRIMED FOR MR. GOODLAD'S VISIT AND FEW WERE PREPARED TO ACCEPT IT FOR WHAT IT WAS, I.E. A NEWLY APPOINTED MINISTER COMING TO GET HIMSELF BRIEFED AND TO FEEL THE PULSE OF THE TERRITORY.
3.
MR. GOODLAD'S ACTIVITIES DOMINATED THE NEWS COVERAGE FOR EACH DAY OF HIS VISIT. ON THE FIRST DAY (25 MAY), THE VISITS TO CHEK LAP KOK AND THE SCENE OF AN ARMED ROBBERY AT TAI KOK TSUI WERE THE MAIN NEWS EVENTS. THE MINISTER'S REMARKS REFUTING ALLEGATIONS OF A PRO-BRITISH BIAS IN AWARDING AIRPORT CONTRACTS
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