TNAG-2733-FCO40-3939-Future-of-Hong-Kong-constitutional-development-1993 — Page 8

CONFIDENTIAL

FM FCO

TO IMMEDIATE GUIDANCE

TELNO 046

OF 091211Z DECEMBER 93

CONFIDENTIAL

TOP COPY Q DIST?

AND TO IMMEDIATE WASHINGTON, EC POSTS, TOKYO, OTTAWA AND TO IMMEDIATE CANBERRA, WELLINGTON, NEW DELHI AND TO IMMEDIATE ISLAMABAD, MANILA, SINGAPORE

AND TO IMMEDIATE KUALA LUMPUR, BANGKOK, SEOUL, JAKARTA AND TO IMMEDIATE BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN, MOSCOW

AND TO IMMEDIATE UKMIS NEW YORK, HOLY SEE, GIBRALTAR AND TO IMMEDIATE UKDEL STRASBOURG, CAIRO

INFO IMMEDIATE HONG KONG, BTC HONG KONG, PEKING INFO IMMEDIATE UKREP JLG HONG KONG

145

143756 MDHOAN 2059

caught develop. Jelive)

•MKB 012/1

"Y

HONG KONG: TALKS WITH CHINA ABOUT ELECTORAL ARRANGEMENTS: ROUNDS 16 AND 17

1.

INTRODUCTION (UNCLASSIFIED)

Since our Guidance telno 41, there have been two more rounds of talks (Rounds 16 and 17). No agreement was reached. On

2 December the Governor therefore announced his intention to introduce legislation to LegCo on the more urgent electoral issues on 15 December. The text of the Governor's statement, and my oral statement in the House on 6 December, have been distributed in the Verbatim series. paras 2 and 3.

2.

LINE TO TAKE (UNCLASSIFIED)

Posts may draw freely on

(i) After seven months of negotiation, we now need to legislate on the more urgent issues. Otherwise LegCo will simply not have

ALL time to pass all the complex electoral legislation involved. the primary legislation needs to be in place by July 1994. Some has to be passed by February.

(ii) Have been serious in working for an agreement in the talks on electoral arrangements. But not at any price. Any agreement would have to provide elections which were open, fair and acceptable to the people of Hong Kong. We are not prepared to bequeath to Hong Kong a system open to manipulation and corruption.

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