TNAG-2770-FCO40-3987-Coverage-of-Sino-British-talks-in-the-Hong-Kong-press-1993 — Page 349

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HK'S IMPORTANT ROLE TO CHINA WOULD DIMINISH WITH THE FURTHER OPENING UP OF CHINA'S COASTAL CITIES. BRITAIN'S PLOY OF USING THE ECONOMIC CARD WOULD NOT WORK. THE REPORT ALSO NOTED RECENTLY THE SHENZHEN MILITARY REGION HAD ISSUED INSTRUCTIONS TO ARMY UNITS STATIONED IN GUANGZHOU, ZHUHAI AND WEIYANG, ALERTING THEM AGAINST CHALLENGES FROM THE BRITISH FORCES IN HK AND TO BE PREPARED TO TAKE UP NEW ASSIGNMENTS CONTRIBUTING TO THE RETURN OF HK TO CHINA.

4. WEN WEI PO (1.2) DEVOTED TWO FULL PAGES TO RE-RUNNING OLD ARTICLES CRITICISING THE GOVERNOR'S REFORMS. AMONG THESE WERE LU PING'S INTERVIEW WITH TVB, ZHOU NAN'S INTERVIEW WITH ''THE MIRROR''

AND ZHANG JUNSHENG'S INTERVIEW WITH ''NEWSWEEK''

5. REPORTS NOTED (2.2) ZHOU NAN, AT THE NCNA HK SPRING RECEPTION, SAID IN THE SECOND HALF OF LAST YEAR, THE BRITISH HK AUTHORITIES HAD DELIBERATELY CHALLENGED SINO-BRITISH CO-OPERATION AND POSED OBSTACLES FOR A SMOOTH TRANSITION. THIS WAS SOMETHING THE CHINESE SIDE AND HK PEOPLE WERE NOT WILLING TO SEE. ON THESE CARDINAL ISSUES BETWEEN RIGHT AND WRONG, THE CHINESE GOVERNMENT WOULD NOT BARTER AWAY ITS PRINCIPLES. MR ZHOU INDICATED THE CHINESE STILL HOPED THE BRITISH HK AUTHORITIES WOULD QUICKLY GIVE UP THEIR WRONG POSITION. NO MATTER WHAT HAPPEND, THE CHIENSE SIDE WOULD FIRMLY UPHOLD ITS SOVEREIGNTY AND STRICTLY ADHERE TO THE JD, BL AND PREVIOUS SINO-BRITISH AGREEMENTS. VICE DIRECTOR ZHANG JUNSHENG WAS QUOTED AS REITERATING AT THE RECEPTION THAT THE GOVERNOR'S ''THREE VIOLATIONS' PACKAGE WOULD NOT BE ACCEPTED. MR ZHANG STRESSED LEGCO WAS ONLY AN ADVISORY BODY AND THAT CHINA HAD ALL ALONG NOT RECOGNISED THE ''THREE LEGGED STOOL'' SITUATION. REPORTS ALSO NOTED MR ZHANG, WITHOUT NAMING THE FOREIGN SECRETARY, HAD CRITICISED MR HURD'S EARLIER REMARKS THAT THE TIME FOR RESOLVING HK'S PROBLEMS SOLELY BETWEEN THE TWO SIDES (WITHOUT TAKING ACCOUNT OF HK'S VIEWS) HAD GONE. MR ZHANG CLAIMED THE STATEMENT CARRIED SERIOUS IMPLICATIONS AND WAS TANTAMOUNT TO SAYING THEY COULD DO WITHOUT THE JD. FCO SPOKESMAN IN HK CHRIS OSBORNE WAS QUOTED BY THE HK ECONOMIC JOURNAL (3.2) AS SAYING THE BRITISH GOVERNMENT FELT THE TIME WHEN BRITAIN AND CHINA DISCUSSED HK ISSUES BEHIND THE DOOR HAD GONE BUT THIS DID NOT MEAN THE TWO SIDES WOULD HAVE NO FURTHER CO-OPERATION. MR OSBORNE SAID MR HURD MEANT THE POLITICAL PROPOSALS SHOULD BE PASSED TO LEGCO TO TAKE INTO ACCOUNT PUBLIC VIEWS.

6. THE FEBRUARY ISSUE OF BAUHINIA MAGAZINE CARRIED A SIGNED COMMENTARY ATTACKING THE GOVERNOR'S POLITICAL PROPOSALS. THE

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