TNAG-2717-FCO40-3923-House-of-Commons-Select-Committee-on-Foreign-Affairs-enquiry-1993 — Page 6

of discretion, indeed secrecy, which many people comment upon. It was great hesitation and great personal anxiety that I decided

to do this.

It was preceded by a good deal of private consultation, I can tell you. On hearing of the Governor's speech of October 1992 I had a special interview with the Prime Minister and expressed my great concern about what was going to happen if we

went on down this road... I subsequently wrote to him at considerable length. When I discovered that I was not making

much impression and that things were moving on, I warned the

authorities that I would have to go public in the sense that I

could not pretend to a questioner that my views were other than

they were. I then, as you know, wrote to The Times and gave a TV interview on the subject.

It seems to me in a situation like this, Chairman, that the

duty of people who know a little about the subject and feel that the wrong course is being followed is to speak up. There is an alternative view that we should all watch in respectful silence

while the Governor takes Hong Kong over the edge. I myself do

not adhere to that view. We are here to do our best for Hong Kong, because that is our prime responsibility, not to look after

British face or interests but to look after Hong Kong. I hope

that here, in our discussions, we shall be concerned simply with

an objective consideration of what is the best course for Hong

Kong in the present crisis.

Mr David Harris: We have great respect for your knowledge of the subject but also your integrity in approaching in the way you have. Are you saying therefore that China should have a complete veto over any further moves to introduce a very

modest measure of democracy in Hong Kong, because that is what

you appear to be saying?

Sir Percy Cradock: I say that, in the interests of

Hong Kong, it is better to have a settlement with China on the

best terms you can get, rather than to have the defiance with great damage to Hong Kong. I put it to you that, of those two

courses, the less damaging though not very attractive, is to

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