TNAG-2714-FCO40-3920-House-of-Commons-Select-Committee-on-Foreign-Affairs-enquiry-1993 — Page 103

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8.

The Committee recommended (2.10) that the penalty of capital

punishment should be reviewed before 1997. The Executive Council

approved a proposal to abolish capital punishment in October, 1992, and the Crimes (Amendment) Bill 1992 is now at the Committee

stage in the Legislative Council.

The Basic Law

9.

The Committee's recommendations on the relationship between

the Joint Declaration and the Basic Law were considered in detail

in the Government's observations in May 1990, after the final version of the Basic Law had been promulgated. The Chinese have stated publicly that the Basic Law cannot be amended before it

comes into force on 1 July 1997.

ACTIONS WITHIN HONG KONG

X

(i) Progress towards Representative Government

10.

The Committee noted in its Report the importance of the

events of Tiananmen Square in changing and intensifying the concerns of Hong Kong people.

11. This was particularly apparent in the debate over the pace of democratic development, notably over the question of elections

to the Legislative Council. In 1989 just under half the

membership of the Legislative Council was indirectly elected, the

rest being appointed or official members. The Hong Kong

Government's policy at that time, following an extensive

consultation exercise in 1987/88, was that in the elections to the

Council due in 1991, there should for the first time be 10 directly-elected seats. After June 1989 pressure grew in Hong Kong for a much faster rate of progress. But many people also attached importance to ensuring continuity in arrangements for the Legislative Council beyond 1997 (the "through train"). There

followed a period of intensive negotiations between the British

and Chinese Governments about the electoral provisions to be

select.cttee.PR.JRB