TNAG-2621-FCO40-3812-Visits-by-Alastair-Goodlad--Minister-of-State-for-Foreign-an-1992 — Page 37

CONFIDENTIAL

27(1)

International Commission of Jurists report

9.

In April the International Commission of Jurists published a report which, inter alia, critized the Joint Declaration and Basic Law for not ensuring the election of the Chief Executive, HMG for not permitting a referendum on the JD and the Basic Law for not allowing sufficient autonomy to the SARG. It also calls for a Human Rights Commission to be established in Hong Kong. There has been less comment on the report in Hong Kong than in the UK and some eg the SCMP have critized the report as being concerned with matters that are now very much water under the bridge. Some questions raised, eg the Human Rights Commission and conditions of service of the judiciary, are matters for HKG rather than us. So far we have limited our public comment to saying we are studying the (somewhat lengthy) report. We will have lines for the Minister's use with the press.

T

Nationality Matters BNA 1981 CHILDREN

10. It is likely that Dr Leong of OMELCO will raise with Mr Goodlad the question of registering as British citizens a

RB3ACW/6

CONFIDENTIAL