The shadow foreign secretary of Britain's Labour Party, Robin Cook, is in town on a familiarisation visit. Since defections and deaths have left the unpopular ruling Conservative Party with a wafer-thin majority in the House of Commons, Labour may find itself in power.
This means Labour, which has taken little interest in the colony, would have to hand it over to the Chinese Government on July 1, 1997. To British politicians, the colony is an embarrassing anachronism. However, Labour's past neglect will haunt the party in the months to come. As the countdown to 1997 begins in earnest, hordes of foreign journalists will pour in to the colony. Hong Kong officials predict as many as 3,000 foreign correspondents will come here to cover the historic event next year.
Chinese officials said there could be 6,000.
There is no doubt the transfer of sovereignty will attract worldwide attention. If things go horribly wrong, such as demonstrations becoming violent, political activists being arrested, people getting injured or killed, disturbances may follow.
The atmosphere then could become highly charged. Thus Labour should be prepared for turbulent times. The last thing a Labour government wants is to be confronted with nasty and humiliating surprises.
It should be obvious to Mr Cook that the biggest problem facing the colony is the people's lack of confidence in the future. Many expect to lose their freedoms, particularly those associated with the mind. There is also fear over erosion to the rule of law and a rise in corruption. The rules of the game which govern our lives are going to be drastically changed.