TNAG-2770-FCO40-3987-Coverage-of-Sino-British-talks-in-the-Hong-Kong-press-1993 — Page 50

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6. PWC POLITICAL SUB-GROUP HK LEADER LEUNG CHUN-YING WAS QUOTED AS SAYING THAT THE SUB-GROUP WOULD FIRST STUDY THE FORMATION OF THE SAR GOVERNMENT AND ITS FIRST LEGISLATURE. THE GROUP WOULD ALSO LOOK INTO THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE EXECUTIVE AND THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCILS. LEUNG BELIEVED THAT THE EXISTING RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE TWO COUNCILS WAS INCOMPATIBLE WITH THE BASIC LAW. LEUNG FURTHER SAID THAT THE SUB-GROUP HAD NOT DISCUSSED THE SINO-BRITISH TALKS AND WOULD NOT FORMULATE DIFFERENT PROPOSALS BECAUSE OF THE PROGRESS OF THE TALKS.

7 SARPC PWC MEMBER XIAO WEIYUN WAS QUOTED AS SAYING THAT

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LEGISLATORS ELECTED IN 1995 HAD TO BE RECONFIRMED BEFORE THEY COULD BE ALLOWED TO TAKE THE THROUGH TRAIN IN 1997. XIAO SAID THAT BRITAIN AND CHINA HAVE TWO DIFFERENT SET OF LAWS AND THEREFORE TWO DIFFERENT TYPES OF LEGISLATORS MIGHT BE ELECTED. A LEGAL PROCESS WAS THEREFORE NECESSARY TO RECONFIRM THE LEGISLATORS AS A REALISATION OF CHINESE SOVEREIGNTY. IT WAS NOT ENOUGH FOR LEGISLATORS TO SWEAR ALLEGIANCE TO THE CHINESE GOVERNMENT BECAUSE THEIR PERFORMANCES HAD TO BE ASSESSED, A POINT WHICH HE DID NOT ELABORATE ON. XIAO SAID THAT WHEN DRAFTING THE BASIC LAW THERE HAD BEEN DISCUSSIONS ON WHETHER DETAILS ON THE FORMATION OF THE FIRST LEGISLATURE UNDER THE SARG SHOULD BE INCLUDED BUT IT WAS DECIDED THEN TO LEAVE THE MATTER TO THE SARPC TO BE ESTABLISHED IN 1996.

8. REPORTS ON SUNDAY GAVE GOOD COVERAGE TO THE REMARKS MADE BY CHINESE FOREIGN MINISTER AND DIRECTOR OF THE PWC, QIAN QICHEN AT THE MEETING OF THE PWC. QIAN QUOTED THE WORDS OF DENG XIAOPING IN 1982 DURING THE MEETING WITH THE THEN PM MRS. THATCHER. MANY PAPERS HIGHLIGHTED DENG'S REMARKS THAT CHINA MIGHT CHANGE THE TIMETABLE FOR ITS RESUMPTION OF SOVEREIGNTY IF HK SUFFERED GREAT INSTABILITY DURING THE TRANSITION PERIOD. WEN WEI PO SAID THAT QIAN QICHEN USED DENG'S REMARKS TO CONCLUDE THE TWO-DAY MEETING OF THE SARPC PWC TO SHOW THAT CHINA'S POLICY TOWARDS HK WAS FIRM AND UNCHANGEABLE. WHILE CHINA WOULD NOT COMPROMISE ON MATTERS OF PRINCIPLES SUCH AS THOSE RELATING TO SOVEREIGNTY, CHINA WOULD WORK TOWARDS HK'S SMOOTH TRANSITION THROUGH SINCERE CONSULTATION WITH THE BRITISH SIDE. DENG'S WORDS SHOULD GIVE DIRECTIONS TO THE WORK OF THE PWC AS WELL AS HELP HK PEOPLE TO BETTER UNDERSTAND THE WAY THE CHINESE GOVERNMENT WOULD HANDLE TRANSITIONAL MATTERS.

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