TNAG-2709-FCO40-3915-House-of-Commons-Select-Committee-on-Foreign-Affairs-and-Par-1993 — Page 69

What it did Challenge was the authority of the Chines

population; lowering the voting age to 18; and ensuring that the members of the Election Committee, which will

itself elect 10 members of LegCo, should themselves be

elected. This did not challenge the Chinese insistence that the Basic Law cannot be changed before 1997 elections

or the directly elected seats increased beyond the 20 set

The Chinese had also objected

strongly to speculation that Mr Martin Lee might be

to say what out in the Basic Law.

The debate of

The System

shows appointed to the Executive Council (ExCo). 197. Hence the did not happen. problem.

This, again,

Our strong support for the Governor's proposals has

not changed. The Chinese criticism has had an unsettling

effect in some quarters. But among the population as a

whole the proposals continue to attract strong support

a ratio of about 2:1 according to the polls.

by

At the least it implied agreement

ما عمان ۹۱

There has been some discussion about whether the

Governor's proposals are compatible with the Basic Law and

the Joint Declaration. To set the record straight I am

enclosing a brief summary of how the Governor's proposals

fit with the relevant sections of both these documents.

The exchange of letters I had with the Chinese Foreign

Minister in 1990 did not result in an understanding between

us on the 1995 elections. We placed the text of these and

a commentary in the Library of the House when they were

published last autumn.

Eleclas Committee In a way which would allow Thou elected by in to go throug '97.

We and the Governor have made it clear that his

proposals were not set in concrete and that we were open to

alternative ideas from the Chinese side as well as from

people in Hong Kong. The Governor himself made this clear when he announced his proposals. A range of alternative ideas has been put forward in Hong Kong, and the Hong Kong

Government have produced a compendium of these for the

benefit of members of the LegCo. We have given a copy to

the Chinese. A. copy is in the Library of the House.