From: newsdis%bat@CSD.HKU.HK (News Distributor)
Newsgroups: soc.culture.hongkong
Subject: China & HK News
Date: 23 Jul 92 17:09:01 GMT
X-Unparsable-Date: Thu, 23 Jul 92 22:22:50 HKT

Source : South China Morning Post
Date   : 21st July, 1992

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Britain told to stop "bullying" on airport
Patten gets choice in Exco lineup
Shenzhen party chief tipped to head NCNA branch
Shenzhen to be "friendly competitor" with Kai Tak
Plea to change law on parades
Extradition treaty gets China blessing
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Britain told to stop "bullying" on airport
==========================================

By DOREEN CHEUNG and FANNY WONG

THE Chinese Communist Party General Secretary Mr Jiang Zemin yesterday
blamed the British Government for raising side issues on the airport
projects, thus creating obstacles for the talks.

His remark was made during a meeting with the 21-strong delegation
of the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment of Hongkong (DAB) at
Zhongnanhai.

It came amid an escalated campaign in Hongkong attacking the Chief
Secretary, Sir David Ford, for revealing confidential information
relating to the airport talks. 

Mr Jiang was quoted by DAB members as saying that he was surprised
to see that the British side had complicated the issues after the
signing of the Memorandum of Understanding on the new airport which
he thought should have settled the Sino-British dispute over the mammoth
plan.

A member of the delegation Mr Cheng Kai-nam quoted Mr Jiang as saying
in the two- hour session that Britain should not bully the Chinese
Government.

The party chief was quoted as saying that even if China was to suffer
losses, it should be made aware of it.

Stressing that the Chinese Government had not intended to make a profit
out of the airport projects, Mr Jiang said they only hoped that the
infrastructure plan would not impose a financial burden on the future
Special Administrative Region (SAR) government.

Should the SAR government run into financial difficulties in the future,
the central Government would not subsidise it, he said.

In Hongkong, the campaign against Sir David continued with the left-wing
press mounting concerted efforts to denounce the Chief Secretary for
disclosing details of the talks.

They also cast doubt on the sincerity of the British administration,
including the Governor, Mr Chris Patten, in solving the impasse on
the airport financing plan.

The Ta Kung Pao editorial criticised Sir David for stirring up "megaphone
diplomacy" in divulging the outstanding differences on the airport
talks.

It said Sir David's unilateral accusation against the Chinese side
had clouded the airport negotiations.

"The attempt to put pressure (on China) from outside the meetings
would only spoil the friendly co-operative atmosphere (of the talks)
and would not be conducive to narrowing down the differences and solving
the problems," said the editorial.

The Chinese side could not sign an open cheque to commit itself on
any wilful overall expenditure on the airport plan, the editorial
said.

Referring to the Chinese proposal for the British side to go ahead
with the Chek Lap Kok reclamation plan first before getting a full
agreement on the airport financial package, the editorial said there
was precedent in awarding funds for projects in stages.

Sir David's refusal to accept the proposal while demanding a full
agreement from the Chinese side on the financial plan was delaying
the construction work, it said.

Therefore, China should not be blamed for the delay.

Under the guidance of the airport memorandum, the editorial believed
that ultimately, the two sides should be able to reach a consensus
on the airport plan through mutual concessions.

But it had yet to reach this stage, it said.

In a separate commentary in the paper, it said the overt pressure
exerted on the Chinese side would do more damage than good.

The commentary said in Sir David's speech to the Hongkong General
Chamber of Commerce last week, he clearly understood the problems
relating to the airport plan.

Instead of trying to improve the arrangements, the British Hongkong
administration had taken a "tough" line which was not conducive to
solving the problems, it said.

"If this kind of approach is allowed to continue, it will be inappropriate
and dangerous. It also ignores the advice of former governor, Lord
Wilson, for not confronting China," it added.

Another left-wing paper, the Wen Wei Po, also carried a lengthy commentary
yesterday, accusing the British side of playing tricks in breaching
the confidentiality of the airport talks.

The commentary queried whether the British side was genuine in seeking
a full agreement on the airport plan as its proposal was only intended
to sort out the problem with the Chek Lap Kok facility and excluded
the airport railway financing.

Reiterating the previous theme that the British were trying to milk
Hongkong's fortunes, the commentary said: "Britain's calculations
on the airport plan are for it to set the bill and keep the bill on
the projects and leave it to the Chinese Government to generously
sign the bill on behalf of Hongkong people."

It also noted Mr Patten's comment in favour of getting a full agreement
on the projects as being similar to those made by Sir David.

The commentary questioned whether such an approach was in line with
Mr Patten's pledge outlined in his maiden speech delivered in his
swearing-in ceremony that he would protect Hongkong's interests.

"Hongkong people should just wait and see whether the new Governor
will make any new moves in the airport negotiations and whether he
has the sincerity for co-operation in protecting Hongkong's interests,"
it said.


Patten gets choice in Exco lineup
=================================

By FANNY WONG

MEMBERS of the Executive Council appointed by Lord Wilson last year
are willing to step down so that the new Governor can make his own
choice of advisers.

The Senior Member of the Executive Council, Lady Dunn, has written
to Mr Chris Patten, saying they are ready to resign so that he can
appoint his own inner cabinet.

In a personal memo to the Governor last week, Lady Dunn said she and
her non-civil service colleagues on the Executive Council would "gladly"
step down at any time.

Her suggestion comes amid intense speculation that Mr Patten is ready
to appoint more directly elected legislators to the top policy-making
body to broaden its representativeness.

Lady Dunn met Mr Patten at Government House yesterday ahead of meeting
members of the United Democrats of Hongkong and the Co-operative Resources
Centre (CRC).

Of the nine existing non-civil service Executive Councillors, only
Mr Andrew Wong Wang- fat is a directly elected legislator.

Four belonging to the CRC are Mr Allen Lee Peng-fei, Mrs Rita Fan
Hsu Lai-tai and Mrs Selina Chow Liang Shuk-yee, who are appointed
legislators, and Mr Edward Ho Sing-tin, who represents the functional
constituency for architects, surveyors and town planners.

The other councillors are Hongkong Bank chief Mr William Purves, Professor
Wang Gungwu and Mr Hui Yin-fat, who represents the social welfare
functional constituency.

Lady Dunn said in her memo that Mr Patten need not be bound by the
current two-year terms of the appointments made by Lord Wilson last
October.

She said her offer was meant to give Mr Patten maximum flexibility
and power in appointing his inner cabinet.

Mr Patten is understood to have already replied, saying he was glad
that his advisers had come up with such a decision.

But there was no hint on whether he would accept Lady Dunn's offer.

In an interview with the semi-official Hongkong China News Agency,
Lady Dunn said that, constitutionally, it was not required that Exco
members had to be legislators or vice versa.

She warned that there was pressure to change the Exco and Legco relationship
and even a suggestion to appoint legislators to the inner cabinet
in proportion to each political group's representation in Legco.

Mrs Selina Chow, who is also a Legco member, said cross-membership
between the two councils was not a necessity but "had its usefulness
for information flow and understanding".

She said a number of councillors sat in both chambers and she did
not mind having more.

However, Mr Andrew Wong preferred the retention of the present arrangement
of overlapping membership to keep the link.

Mrs Fan said there was a tendency for some legislators to be critical
of the Government in a way similar to an opposition party.

Therefore, the function of Exco members as a bridge between the two
chambers, which worked in the past, was inevitably reflected in the
present situation.

United Democrats chairman Mr Martin Lee Chu-ming declined to comment
on the specific points made by Lady Dunn but reiterated that his party
hoped Mr Patten would appoint more directly elected legislators to
Exco.

Independent Miss Emily Lau Wai-hing said she was lost for words in
relation to the baroness' view. She said it was now for Mr Patten
to decide whether Lady Dunn would sit for another term, although she
had recently expressed her desire to do so.

"We should give the Governor time to decide whether there should be
a complete separation of the Legislative and Executive councils, or
a ministerial system should be set up," she added.


Shenzhen party chief tipped to head NCNA branch
===============================================

By KENT CHEN

SHENZHEN'S party chief, Mr Li Hao, has emerged as the favourite candidate
to succeed the Director of the Hongkong branch of the New China News
Agency, Mr Zhou Nan, who has been in poor health since soon after
taking up the post.

Mr Zhou, China's top representative in Hongkong, has been in Beijing
for some time after undergoing an operation there. His wife has also
been receiving medical treatment.

An informed source said yesterday Mr Zhou's departure was only a matter
of time, although a vice- director, Mr Qin Wenjun, denied that Beijing
was looking for a successor to Mr Zhou.

"We expect the person to provide the kind of leadership necessary
for cultivating a cohesive force in Hongkong to ensure the smooth
transition in the run up to 1997," the source said.

"If the director is still plagued by poor health after the operation,
we have no choice but to accept a change in the leadership in the
NCNA."

Sources said although two Beijing-based officials had been suggested
as possible candidates to succeed Mr Zhou, the 66-year-old Mr Li could
be the dark horse.

He is secretary of the Chinese Communist Party's Shenzhen municipal
committee.

The selection of Mr Yan Mingfu, the former head of the party's United
Front Work Department and now vice-minister of civil affairs, was
described as "less likely".

And the vice-director of the Hongkong and Macau Affairs Office, Mr
Chen Ziying, was regarded by locals as "just another diplomat".

In an unusual move, Mr Li, together with Director of the Hongkong
and Macau Affairs Office, Mr Lu Ping, attended a meeting between the
Prime Minister Mr Li Peng and leading Hongkong businessman Mr Peter
Woo in Beijing last week.

A native of Guangdong, Mr Li was deputy secretary-general of the State
Council from 1983 to 1985 and was later appointed Guangdong vice-governor.
He has been Shenzhen party chief since 1988.

A local deputy to the National People's Congress and Hongkong Affairs
adviser Mr Cheng Yiu-tong said the choice of Mr Zhou's successor depended
on Beijing's definition of the role of the NCNA during the transitional
period.

Another local NPC delegate and Hongkong affairs adviser, Miss Dorothy
Liu Yiu-chu said the choice of Mr Li would be welcomed by the people
of Hongkong.

Miss Liu described Mr Li as an "amiable and sincere" official who
was proficient in political, economic and cultural affairs.

"He is probably the most knowledgeable person on Hongkong affairs
among mainland officials of similar ranking," said Miss Liu, who has
experience working with Mr Li in the NPC.

"It is difficult for Hongkong people to accept a person who has no
previous experience in the south or who is not a Cantonese," she said.


Shenzhen to be "friendly competitor" with Kai Tak
=================================================

By NG KANG-CHUNG

AIR traffic congestion at Hongkong's Kai Tak airport is expected to
ease when Shenzhen Airport opens for direct international flights
early next year.

But Shenzhen deputy general manager, Mr Kong Dong, gave an assurance
yesterday there would be no conflict in business interests between
the two airports.

"There may be some sort of reasonable competition. But on the whole,
the two airports are interdependent and will be complementary to each
other," he said.

The nine-month-old Shenzhen Airport, the fourth busiest airport on
the mainland, is planning to offer direct international flights by
April.

Officials are also discussing with international consultants starting
work on an expansion plan, including a second terminal, later this
year to cope with demand in the late 1990s, according to Mr Kong.

Mr Kong said the airport had obtained approval to offer unilateral
flying rights to some foreign and Taiwanese airlines.

Mr Kong estimated the present domestic terminal would be up to its
full capacity of dealing with 4.75 million passengers a year by 1995.
And he expected the passenger volume would grow to 10 million a year
by the turn of the century.

The second terminal would be built in 1994, he said, adding that maintenance
facilities and a warehousing complex were also being considered under
the expansion plan.

By the turn of the century there will be international airports at
Shenzhen, Chek Lap Kok, Baiyun and Macau in the Pearl River Delta
region.

But Mr Kong said: "It will not be too many for the region, in view
of its rapid economic development."

The 300-hectare airport, with a 400-metre runway, is at present handling
148 domestic flights each week or an estimated 1.4 million passengers
each year. The initial forecast was for 36 services a week.


Plea to change law on parades
=============================

By LANA WONG

LEGISLATIVE Councillors yesterday urged the Government to replace
the licensing system for holding public processions with a notification
system. 

Under the Public Order Ordinance, organisers of assemblies have to
notify the Commissioner for Police about the event in advance.

The Omelco Constitutional Development Panel discussed the issue yesterday
with government officials led by the Secretary for Security, Mr Alistair
Asprey. 

Panel convenor Mr Andrew Wong Wang-fat said after the meeting: "We
thought that a more sensible way of doing it would be to make it (the
holding of processions) consistent with the holding of public assemblies
by using the notification system in lieu of a licensing system."

Government officials told the panel that a current review to bring
the Public Order Ordinance in line with the Bill of Rights would go
along that line but did not say whether the Government had adopted
the proposal.

The councillors were also told that a comprehensive review of the
Summary Offences Ordinance, to ensure its compatibility with the human
rights law, would take a long time.

In view of this, panel members asked the Government to single out
the provision on the use of loud hailers as a matter of urgency to
be handled together with the review of the Public Order Ordinance.

This was agreed to by the Government, although the legal advice it
received did not find the provision inconsistent with the Bill of
Rights.

Mr Wong said that loud hailers were considered by human rights activists
as a means of propagating their message.

To subject their use to permission from the Government violated freedom
of expression.


Extradition treaty gets China blessing
======================================

By S. Y. YUE

CHINA has endorsed Hongkong's criminal extradition treaty with the
Netherlands, the first the territory has signed independently.

China is known to have asked Hongkong not to "go too fast" in reaching
agreements with countries other than the initial five, the four others
being Canada, Malaysia, Australia and the United States.

At present, Hongkong is covered by more than 40 extradition treaties
between Britain and other countries and a special provision covering
all Commonwealth countries.

A go-ahead was recently given during a sub-group meeting of the Sino-
British Joint Liaison Group (JLG) for Hongkong to begin informal talks
with France and Germany.

Observers said China might want to avoid embarrassment caused by a
backlog of draft agreements waiting to be cleared as did happen when
the Air Services Agreements were approved.

The extradition agreement with the Netherlands was initialled more
than a year ago and has now been approved by the JLG.

A source said the treaty would come into effect once the local legislation
on extradition was passed by the Legislative Council.

The Security Branch, responsible for the legislation, aims to introduce
it sometime in November.

However, sources said since the legislation was complex, they would
not be surprised if it did not go before the council until sometime
early next year.

The legislation would be a flexible one, embracing situations in different
legal systems.

"For example, escapes from prisons is a crime in some countries but
not others. The legislation will have to be flexible enough to accommodate
the differences," the source said.

But he admitted that the legislation's flexibility might become loopholes
for criminals smart enough to know which country to flee to in order
to avoid extradition for a particular crime.

"Our aim is to prevent Hongkong being turned into a haven for criminals
rather than to stop criminals from fleeing," he said.

The source described the discussion with Malaysia on extradition as
the most difficult because of its harsh laws on drug trafficking.

A small quantity of drugs, 15 grams of heroin or 200 grams of cannabis
carries the mandatory death penalty in Malaysia.

The source said the draft agreement with Malaysia would serve as a
model for negotiations with Southeast Asian countries like Thailand
and Singapore.

Newsgroups: soc.culture.hongkong