‘Godfather of Hong Kong politics’ Chung Sze-yuen once described by top British adviser as ‘not reliable’
- Archives show aide to Margaret Thatcher was wary of Exco member and blamed him for near disasters in handover negotiations with China
- Chung’s supporters however say he was Hong Kong’s champion and bowed to neither London nor Beijing
He may have been the “godfather of Hong Kong politics”, but the late Chung Sze-yuen was once described by a top British government adviser as “not reliable” in his judgment of the central government during negotiations for the city’s return to Chinese rule, latest declassified records show.
The files, released by the British National Archives two weeks ago, reveal the harsh appraisal of Chung by Percy Cradock, a trusted foreign policy adviser of then prime minister Margaret Thatcher.
Chung was at the time the only senior member of Hong Kong’s Executive Council, the city’s top policymaking body in the colonial era.
The files also shed light on the tricky exercise of selecting a governor for the colony, which had to take into account locals’ anxiety, dealings with China and business interests.
