TNAG-2717-FCO40-3923-House-of-Commons-Select-Committee-on-Foreign-Affairs-enquiry-1993 — Page 135

Mr Ricketts

Mr Hum

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FROM: R A J Bunten

Hong Kong Dept

DATE: 8 November 1993

0111612.

CC

Mr Chamberlain Miss Barrett Miss Saunders

FAC : TRANSCRIPT OF YOUR AND MR CHAMBERLAIN'S EVIDENCE

1.

I have been through the transcript of the evidence of the FAC hearing on 3 November. Apart from a few transcription errors, which I have corrected on the attached master, there are possible problem areas. First in paragraph 49 on page 6 there is a slightly garbled transcript of Mr Chamberlain saying that one area of the BL we would have wished to see changed was the provision that limited to 20 the members of the Legislative who did not have the right to vote (sic) in the SAR. This should read right of abode in the SAR. This would still not be strictly accurate since the BL limit is on those with foreign nationality or right of abode. All LegCo members have to have right of abode in the SAR.

3. In paragraph 81 on page 22 Mr Chamberlain says that China's record of abiding by International agreements to date has been very mixed.

This is a moot point. In the past we have claimed in answer to questions whether the Chinese will ignore the Joint Declaration after 1997, that the Chinese record in this area is good. I have consulted Mr Wye in RAD (FE). He believes that it is possible that the Chinese may have breached international agreements with the Vietnamese during the Sino-Vietnamese conflict in the seventies. So we cannot state that their record in this area is perfect, but it would seem that it is better than Mr Chamberlain's answer might imply.

4. In Paragraph 83 on page 23 Mr Chamberlain said that the Chinese have accepted that the Bill of Rights Ordinance will remain as part of the Law of Hong Kong. This is not correct. The Chinese have merely stated that they would reserve the right to consider its compatibility with the Basic Law after 1997.

5.

We might attempt to correct the record in these three areas by Mr Chamberlain writing to the clerk of the FAC. But I am not sure that we need to do so. the first point, (on the nationality rule) could possibly be dealt with along with the

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