UNCLASSIFIED
FM HONG KONG
TO PRIORITY FCO
TELNO 2545
OF 22103OZ OCTOBER 92
UNCLASSIFIED
MAR 0216
INFO PRIORITY PEKING, UKREP JLG HONG KONG
TOP COPY G DIST?
на Семна
Angle
161465 MDLIAN 0003
LEGCO ADDRESS: CHINESE REACTION 22 OCTOBER.
1. MY VISIT TO PEKING TOPPED THE NEWS TODAY AND YESTERDAY. MANY PAPERS PLAYED UP THE FACT THAT I WAS GREETED IN THE AIRPORT ONLY BY HKMAO VICE-DIRECTOR CHEN ZIYING AND WOULD NOT BE SEEN BY PREMIER LI PENG WAS SNUB TO ME. WEN WEI PO (WWP) GREETED MY VISIT WITH A TWO-PAGE SUPPLEMENT YESTERDAY CARRYING 12 OLD ARTICLES ATTACKING MY POLITICAL PACKAGE.
2. WWP IN ITS LEADING COMMENTARY YESTERDAY ACCUSED ME OF HAVING NO SINCERITY TO NEGOTIATE WITH PEKING BY TELLING PEOPLE AHEAD OF MY VISIT NOT TO EXPECT TOO MUCH FROM THE TRIP. IT SAID MY PROPOSAL TO INTRODUCE 39 DIRECTLY ELECTED SEATS IN DISGUISE WAS EVEN MORE AGGRESSIVE THAN MARTIN LI'S SUGGESTION TO INTRODUCE 30 SEATS BY 1995, AND WAS TOTALLY OUT OF STEP WITH THE PACE SET BY THE BL (I.E. 30 DIRECTLY ELECTED SEATS ONLY IN 2003). IT URGED ME TO DO MY OWN JOB PROPERLY WHICH WAS TO FACILITATE SMOOTH HANDOVER ↑ ON THE BASIS OF THE JD BUT NOT TO DETERMINE HK'S POLITICAL SYSTEM
AFTER 1997. THE PAPER IN ANOTHER COLUMN LIKENED ME TO LORD MOUNTBATTEN PRIOR TO HIS RETREAT FROM INDIA.
3. THE LEFT-WING PRESS TODAY PLAYED UP CRITICISMS OF MY POLICY ADDRESS BY CRC MEMBERS, INDEPENDENT ELSIE TU AND DAB MEMBER TAM YIU CHUNG. THE CRC MEMBERS GENERALLY FELT THAT DRASTIC POLITICAL CHANGES WOULD BRING NEGATIVE EFFECTS TO HK'S STABILITY AND PROSPERITY, WHILE ELSIE TU WARNED AGAINST DEEPENED POLITICAL CONFRONTATIONS WITH CHINA DURING THE TRANSITION.
4. THE HK COMMERCIAL DAILY REMINDED ME THAT I HAVE ONLY LIMITED POWER WITH REGARD TO THE FUTURE POLITICAL DEVELOPMENT OF HK, AND WARNED THAT THINGS THAT DID NOT CONVERGE WITH THE BL WOULD HAVE
TO BE DISCARDED IN 1997.
5. WWP TODAY LINKED MY POLITICAL REFORMS TO THE POLITICAL FUTURE OF THE PRIME MINISTER. IT SAID THAT FACED WITH TREMENDOUS DIFFICULTIES AT HOME SUCH AS THE MAASTRICHT TREATY AND THE
PAGE
1
UNCLASSIFIED
No comments yet.
Private notes are available after approval.