TNAG-2791-FCO40-4030-Relations-between-Hong-Kong-and-China.-With-maps-1993 — Page 130

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amongst which were several air services agreements and Hong

Kong's accession to the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade

(GATT); the Pacific Economic Cooperation Council (PECC) and the

forum for Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC)

and more

domestic matters such as the localisation of a wide range of laws

etc. The British and Hong Kong governments were subject to

considerable criticism in both London and Hong Kong for being

unduly sensitive to Chinese pressure to restrict the pace and

extent of the introduction of further democracy into Hong Kong.

Beginning in 1986 the Chinese side prepared for introducing

the Basic Law. A drafting committee of 59 members was established

of whom 23 were from Hong Kong and this was assisted by a

Consultative Committee of 180 members. A first draft was

published in 1988 and a second one in February 1989. Although

these drafts followed in general terms the requirements of the

Joint Declaration, the prevailing constitution of Hong Kong was

colonial and authoritarian in tone even though in practice many

of its executive powers were little used, or applied in a

relatively tolerant fashion that might not be true when applied

later under the authority of the Chinese communist Party. In the

absence of the democratic institutions in Hong Kong they had to

be negotiated into the Basic Law. But conversely, since the

British were committed to 'mirror-imaging' the Basic Law

democratic change was limited to the starting point which the

Basic Law provided for 1997.

for 1997. Indeed by 1988 it was professed

British policy to seek convergence with the Chinese proposals for

the SAR in the hope that a 'through train' would conduct Hong