Canada has warned China it will undermine international confidence in Hong Kong by abolishing the Legislative Council.
Raymond Chan, Secretary of State for Asia-Pacific Affairs, said yesterday he had expressed concern during a meeting last week with Foreign Minister Qian Qichen and Lu Ping, director of the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office.
'Our position is that it might be because China and Britain cannot come to an agreement on some issues and that caused the creation of the temporary Legco,' Mr Chan said.
'But to us they have undermined the confidence of the Hong Kong people and eroded the confidence of the international community.' Mr Chan's comments were made while he was leading a trade mission with representatives of 39 Canadian companies.
He sought to smooth any concerns that relations with China could be affected by speaking out over Hong Kong. 'Being friends is to be able to be frank,' said Mr Chan.
The territory has a high profile in Canada because of the 350,000 Hong Kong people that have emigrated there since 1970.
