TNAG-2734-FCO40-3942-Hong-Kong-role-of-the-Legislative-Council-(LEGCO)-1993 — Page 148

GOVERNMENT HOUSE HUNG KUNG.

HED US MAR 93 07:23

୮

SECRET

DRAFT STATEMENT TO LEGCO (in the event of no substantive PRC response on talks)

I have a significant

announcement

PG.13

NO TALKS

to

make this

A

afternoon. I felt it right to make it to Honourable Members of

this Council.

2.

As Honourable Members will know, diplomatic contacts have continued in recent weeks in Peking with the aim of exploring whether a firm and productive basis could be found for the 2 sides to enter formal talks on the arrangements for the 1994/95 elections. In announcing last week that the Bill embodying those arrangements would not be published on

26 February, the Government promised to set out the reasons for the delay. I would like to explain to Honourable Members this afternoon where we now stand.

3.

Since my policy Address last October, we have consistently made clear that we are ready to talk at any time and without any pre-conditions in an effort to reach an understanding with the Chinese side on these electoral arrangements.

After

ExCo endorsed the legislation containing my proposals on 2 February, we passed to the Chinese on 6 February a copy of the draft Bill approved by ExCo covering all the arrangements for the 1994/95 elections (except those contained in the Boundaries and Election Commission Bill which we had passed to them earlier). We sent with the draft Bill messages from the Foreign Secretary to Qian Qichen and from me to Lu Ping repeating our willingness to talk at any time without pre-conditions; explaining to the Chinese side that the Bill was ready for gazetting and that we proposed to publish it on 12 February.

4.

11

willing

Saying they were now

to proceed witha February

uary proposing to proceed-with

The Chinese side responded on talks, while making clear that if we were gazett this would not be beneficial to the talks but would place an obstacle in their way. To help ensure that the talks got off to the best possible start, we decided, with the advice of the Executive Council, to postpone gazettal on 12 February

SECRET