TNAG-2712-FCO40-3918-Parliamentary-relations-draft-White-Paper-on-Representative--1993 — Page 32

made plain in Round 16 they could not agree to abolition of

appointed members on this basis. The British side continues to

believe that abolition of appointed members in the District

Boards and Municipal Councils is an essential part of the

gradual development of Hong Kong's electoral system,

particularly as the Legislative Council will be composed

entirely of elected members from 1995.

LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ELECTIONS (1995)

The "Through Train"

48.

The British side proposed in round one of the talks that the only necessary qualification for legislators elected in 1995 to continue in office until 1999 should be a pledge of

allegiance to the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of

the PRC and a pledge to uphold the Basic Law. This would be

exactly the same requirement as that set out in Article 104 of

the Basic Law for SAR officials, Executive and Legislative

Councillors and members of the judiciary on taking office.

49. The Chinese side initially took the position that they

would only be willing to discuss criteria for the through

train when they were satisfied that the composition of the

1995 Legislative Council would conform to their interpretation

of the Basic Law. They also pointed out that according to the

Decision of the National People's Congress on the Method for

the formation of the First Government and the first

Legislative Council of the Hong Kong Special Administrative

Region (quoted as a footnote to paragraph 7 above) it would be

for the Preparatory Committee to confirm members of the

Legislative Council as members of the first SAR Legislature.

50.

In Round 13, the British side suggested a method for

achieving early promulgation of objective criteria, consistent

with the role laid down in the Basic Law for the National

statememt.8/BRIEFS/NJH

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