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The Mayor of Washington, D C, Mr Marion Barry, Jr today (Tuesday) praised the local electorate for the high voter turnout rate in the just concluded Legislative Council election.

In a meeting with the Secretary for Home Affairs, Mr David Lan, Mr Barry said he was impressed by the determination of the local voters to let their voices be heard through the ballot box, considering the general weather condition on polling day.

Mr Lan told Mr Barry : "If nothing else, it signified the people now regarded Hong Kong as their home and that they are determined to exercise their right in deciding how the place is to be run, through their chosen candidates. It appeared to me that the average citizen no longer treated Hong Kong as a 'borrowed time, borrowed place' entity."

He added that the public generally agreed that the election had been held in an efficient, open and fair manner, resulting in the election of a credible legislature.

Mr Lan said he had explained to Mr Barry that the electoral arrangements were in accord with the Basic Law provisions and allowed for intense but fair electioneering activities among competing candidates.

"I stressed that the SAR Government, commencing from the moment we proceeded with the voter registration exercise in January this year, had gone all out, without fear or favour, in promoting the election and impressing upon the eligible voters the importance of taking part in it to realize the principles of 'Hong Kong people ruling Hong Kong' and the high degree of autonomy provided for in the Basic Law.

"We have apparently provided the right environment for democratic developments to take root," Mr Lan added.

End/Tuesday, May 26, 1998

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