TNAG-2715-FCO40-3921-House-of-Commons-Select-Committee-on-Foreign-Affairs-enquiry-1993 — Page 75

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IN HAVING IT DESCRIBED BUT IT IS VERY HARD TO CLARIFY COMPLETELY WHERE PEOPLE STAND, PARTICULARLY WHEN OFTEN THE SAME PEOPLE HOLD RATHER CONTRADICTORY VIEWS, CONTRADICTORY VIEWS, NAMELY, THAT OF COURSE NO ONE WANTS A ROW

OR WHAT ARE ALLEGED TO WITH CHINA, THAT IS JUST GOING TO UNSETTLE THINGS, BUT NOR DO WE WANT TO SEE HONG KONG UNPROTECTED AND UNCERTAIN FUTURE, AND THAT I THINK IS A SET OF OPINIONS THAT A UNSAFEGUARDED IN AN GREAT MANY PEOPLE HOLD. SO WHETHER YOU CAN DESCRIBE THAT AS A CLEAR BOTTOM-LINE OR NOT, I DON'T KNOW, BUT IT IS OBVIOUSLY A VIEW THAT IS VERY WIDELY HELD.

NOW I SAID I WOULD BRING IN DAVID SUMBERG NEXT.

MR SUMBERG:

I WOULD JUST LIKE TO COMMENT ON THE QUESTION FROM THE LADY ON THE RIGHT OVER THERE ABOUT WHAT WE FOUND IN BEIJING. I HAVE TO SAY, SPEAKING PERSONALLY OF COURSE, THAT 1 FOUND THE ATTITUDE THERE CHARACTERISED BY GREAT RIGIDITY. THERE WAS NO EFFORT, IN MY

VIEW, TO MAKE ANY PROGRESS WITH THE NEGOTIATIONS WITH GOVERNOR, THERE WAS NO MEETING OF MINDS. YES, OF COURSE THE THE PLATITUDES WERE EXPRESSED ABOUT DESIRE FOR GOOD RELATIONS WITH GREAT BRITAIN, BUT AT THE END OF THE DAY THE LINE CAME VERY FIRMLY THAT THEY THOUGHT THE FAULT WAS BASED HERE. VIEW, IF WE ARE TO MAKE ANY PROGRESS, THERE HAS GOT TO BE AND IN MY MOVEMENT FROM BEIJING, THERE HAS GOT TO BE A MOVEMENT TO ACTUALLY SPELL OUT WHERE THE PROVISIONS OF THE BASIC LAW ARE BEING BROKEN. THAT WAS NOT DONE, IT WAS MERELY RECITED AS IF BY RECITING IT, IT MUST BE TRUE, AND I FOUND THAT ASPECT VERY UNSATISFACTORY. SO ALTHOUGH NICE PLEASANTRIES WERE EXPRESSED ABOUT THE FUTURE OF ANGLO-CHINESE RELATIONSHIPS, THE REALITY WAS THAT I THINK WE RECEIVED A FAIRLY RIGID AND RATHER NEGATIVE ATTITUDE SO FAR AS THE CHINESE GOVERNMENT WERE CONCERNED.

MR HOWELL:

THERE IS A GENTLEMAN FROM RADIO HONG KONG AND THEN I WILL BRING MR JOPLING IN.

QUESTION (RTHK):

MR CANAVAN, I HAVE A QUESTION FOR YOU. YOU EXPRESSED SURPRISE THAT THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY WERE OPPOSED TO DEMOCRACY.

YOU, IN YOUR REPORT, IN YOUR RECOMMENDATIONS, PARTICULARLY FROM YOUR OWN POINT OF VIEW, ARE YOU GOING TO PROPOSE PERHAPS WHAT THE PEOPLE OF HONG KONG WANT GROUPINGS WITHIN HONG KONG

THE VARIOUS AREAS, THE VARIOUS THAT THE BRITISH GOVERNMENT AND PERHAPS THE LABOUR PARTY WOULD WHAT HONG KONG WANTS, OR WHAT IT IS LIKE HONG KONG TO HAVE?

MR CANAVAN:

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I CAN'T ANTICIPATE WHAT THE FINDINGS OF OUR COMMITTEE WILL BE. WE ARE NOT HERE AS SPOKESPERSONS, WE ARE HERE AS PARLIAMENTARY REPRESENTATIVES OF PARTY SPOKESPERSONS OR GOVERNMENT AN ALL PARTY COMMITTEE AND WE WILL HAVE TO GO BACK TO WESTMINSTER AND DISCUSS AMONGST OURSELVES WHAT OUR FINDINGS ARE GOING TO BE. BUT MY OWN VIEW, AND I DON'T THINK IT IS UNIQUE WITHIN THE COMMITTEE, IS THAT SOME OF THE BUSINESS INTERESTS HERE TAKE THE VIEW THAT THE PROMOTION OF BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES BETWEEN HONG

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