From: v3keong@student.business.uwo.ca (Victor Keong)
Subject: LKY's visit and comments on Hong Kong's Democracy movement
Organization: University of Western Ontario
Date: Wed, 16 Dec 1992 16:57:37 GMT

For everyone's interest : 

                 Copyright 1992 South China Morning Post Ltd.  
      
                            South China Morning Post
 
                               December  15, 1992
 
SECTION: News; Pg. 1
 
HEADLINE: A smooth transition 'critical';
Lee issues warning on democracy
 
BYLINE: By ERIC ANDERSON
 
 BODY:
    SINGAPORE'S Senior Minister Mr Lee Kuan Yew last night played down
democratic reforms proposed for Hongkong, saying the territory's 
future hinged more on the selection of top civil servants who could 
smooth the transition to Chinese rule.
 
    One of the region's most senior politicians who has developed 
close links with leaders in Beijing, Mr Lee warned further democratic 
development might not be practical because of opposition from China.
 
    And he recommended Hongkong develop English language education 
and encourage expatriate businessmen to be based in the territory 
so it would maintain its economic links to the rest of the world.
 
    But a smooth transition might depend on who was appointed to 
lead the administration over the next few years.
 
    "I believe finding the right men for these jobs is more critical 
than whether Hongkong has 20 or 40 or more members who are directly 
elected to the Legislative Council," Mr Lee said.
 
    He said the Governor must appoint the top officials in consultation
with his Chinese counterparts.
 
    And he said the leaders of the administration should "have a deep,
almost instinctive, understanding of the communist Mandarin mind" if 
the concept of "one country, two systems" was to work smoothly.
 
    "For a successful transition, such men must be put in charge of 
the administration well before 1997," he added.
 
    "They must have a grasp of the practice of the system of government
in Hongkong and also be able to explain and persuade the PRC (People's 
Republic of China) mandarins that the Hongkong system must necessarily 
be different from the mainland's because this is what international 
business has been accustomed to and expects of Hongkong."
 
    Mr Lee warned the territory's proximity to China might mean it 
would have to relinquish hopes of achieving further democratic 
development.
 
    "You ask me: 'Is Hongkong ready for democracy?' My answer is yes, 
but yes if you can divorce yourself from China, tow it 2,000 miles 
away. If you can't, then I say look at the realities close to it."
 
    He added: "Yes, Hongkong deserves democracy but, alas in the 
world as it is, we do not often get what we deserve."
 
    In presenting the Li Ka Shing Distinguished Lecture at Hongkong 
University last night Mr Lee extensively quoted critiques of Mr 
Patten's reform proposals offered by former Hongkong governors 
Lord MacLehose and Lord Wilson and Britain's former foreign 
policy adviser Sir Percy Cradock.
 
    He said they had gone public to send a "desperate" message that 
Britain's leadership had misjudged Hongkong's situation by pressing 
for further political changes against China's wishes.
 
    Mr Lee also claimed it would be a "mistake" to lessen the emphasis 
on English in education after 1997, arguing that such a move would 
damage the business climate.
 
    Noting that all of Singapore's schools have been teaching English 
as a first or second language for more than 30 years, Mr Lee said 
his nation nevertheless was only "gradually" developing an 
"indigenous English-speaking environment".
 
    He advised Hongkong to enlarge its expatriate business community 
by providing an easy and congenial atmosphere plus the comforts of 
life in a well-run city.
 
    And he advised Hongkong that its established legal system was a 
vital economic asset.
 
    He warned that Hongkong's transition would not be easy and that 
"it will be dangerous to assume that morale, discipline and standards 
can be maintained if there is no climate of confidence".
 
    While Singapore enjoyed what he called a "leisurely" 17-year 
transition between its first Legislative Council elections in 1948 
to independence in 1965, Hongkong's transition will be "swift".
 
    Mr Lee returns to Singapore tomorrow.


v3keong@student.business.uwo.ca (Victor Keong)
Western Business School  --  London, Ontario
Newsgroups: soc.culture.asean