TNAG-2714-FCO40-3920-House-of-Commons-Select-Committee-on-Foreign-Affairs-enquiry-1993 — Page 19

14-JUL-1993

14:38

Gallagher

MR ALASTAIR GOODLAD

TRANSCRIPT

0491 579838

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SELECT COMMITTEE 14 JULY 93

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yourself have pointed out, of some significance that the words which were used by the Chinese government and reflected in your report were used before the events of 4 June 1989 and I have heard it said and seen it reported that after those events and after the collapse of the former Soviet Union there was a feeling, and I do not know whether it is shared throughout the government of the People's Republic of China, or held by any of its members, but there was a feeling that political pluralism and democratic institutions held dangers as well as promise. But it is really not for me to speculate on the views held by the People's Republic of China, I shall read the conclusions from your report with great interest.

SIR ROBIN MCLAREN:

I think in very diplomatic terms the Minister has pointed very clearly to the reason for the change in attitude. I would first say though that I do not think that even in April 1989, despite the sentence from your then report which you read out, that the Chinese were wholly in favour of a faster pace of democratisation, even then it would mean what was meant by a faster pace. I think they were willing to contemplate a measured gradual pace of increase in democratisation but would not have been in favour of a very rapid democratisation even at that time. But what hardened their attitudes was the events of May and June 1989 and that caused them to look in a distinctly jaundiced way at exponents, whether in China or in Hong Kong itself, of Western style democracy and it caused them to look with particular suspicion at