TNAG-2770-FCO40-3987-Coverage-of-Sino-British-talks-in-the-Hong-Kong-press-1993 — Page 22

UNCLASSIFIED

UNCLASSIFIED

HKB 301/2

RECET

SOUSTRY

1993

FM HONG KONG

TO IMMEDIATE FCO

INDEX

PA

ALIKAN

TELNO 1251

OF 280854Z JULY 1993

REGIST YOP COPY QDIST?

INFO PRIORITY PEKING, UKREP JLG HONG KONG

(73)

112443

MDHIAN/0312

CONSTITUTIONAL DEVELOPMENT : BEC AND YAU TSIM/MONG KOK DB MERGER : PRESS REPORTS (24 - 28 JULY 1993)

-

(BEC)

1. THE SETTING UP OF THE BOUNDARY AND ELECTION COMMISSION (23 JULY) AND THE LEGCO DEBATE ON THE MERGER OF THE YAU TSIM AND MONG KOK DISTRICTS (21 JULY) WERE WIDELY NOTED BY THE PAPERS. LEGISLATORS GENERALLY WELCOMED THE MOVE WHILE CHINESE SOURCES CRITICISED HKG IN PUSHING AHEAD WITH THE GOVERNOR'S REFORM PACKAGE UNILATERALLY. NCNA VICE-DIRECTOR ZHANG JUNSHENG ON 25 JULY DESCRIBED THE SETTING UP OF THE BEC AS ANOTHER ''PETTY TRICK'' BY THE BRITISH SIDE. A NCNA DISPATCH TODAY (28 JULY) ALSO QUOTED A SPOKESMAN OF THE CHINESE FOREIGN MINISTRY AS ASKING THE BRITISH SIDE TO STOP ALL ACTIONS THAT MIGHT INTERFERE WITH THE SINO-BRITISH TALKS. THE ESTABLISHMENT OF THE BEC AND MERGER OF YAU TSIM AND MONG KOK DISTRICTS WERE CRITICISED AS 'UNILATERAL MOVES' BY THE BRITISH SIDE TO CREATE A FAIT ACCOMPLI WHICH THE CHINESE SIDE WOULD IN NO WAY ACCEPT. THE SPOKESMAN SAID THAT THE TWO MOVES WERE RELATED TO ELECTORAL ARRANGEMENTS FOR THE 1994/95 POLLS AND SHOULD BE SUBJECT TO DISCUSSION AND AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE TWO SIDES.

2. THE LEFT-WING TA KUNG PAO AND WEN WEI PO ECHOED SIMILAR CRITICISMS. WEN WEI PO CRITICISED THE TWO MOVES AS ''FALSE STARTS'' ON FOUR CONSECUTIVE DAYS (24-27 JULY) AND MAINTAINED THAT THE VIOLATIONS'' WERE DETRIMENTAL TO THE TALKS. THE PAPER FURTHER STATED THAT THE MOVES WERE THE PRELUDE TO THE GOVERNOR'S UNILATERAL MOVE TO PUSH FORWARD HIS REFORM PACKAGE IN OCTOBER. TA KUNG PAO CARRIED SIMILAR ATTACKS. THE INDEPENDENT PAPERS GENERALLY ONLY REPORTED THE FACTS WITHOUT OFFERING ANY COMMENTS.

3. NPC LOCAL DELEGATE LIU YIU-CHU ON 24 JULY TO HAVE CRITICISED HKG'S UNILATERAL ACTION TO PROCEED WITH THE BEC AND SAID THAT THERE WOULD BE NO GUARANTEE THAT THE RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE COMMISSION WOULD BE ADOPTED BY THE CHINESE SIDE AFTER 1997. DAB'S CHENG KAI- NAM WAS ALSO QUOTED AS HOPING THAT THE SINO-BRITISH TALKS WOULD NOT BE AFFECTED. THE PAPERS HOWEVER REPORTED ON 26 JULY THAT DAB'S TAM YIU-CHUNG DID NOT THINK THAT THE ESTABLISHMENT OF THE BEC WOULD AFFECT SINO-BRITISH TALKS AND BELIEVED THAT CHINESE OFFICIALS WERE

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