CHINA made it clear last night that the merger of the United Democrats of Hong Kong and Meeting Point would not change its belief that core members of the United Democrats were subversive.
Only hours after the two key liberal factions announced they would form the Democratic Party in October, mainland officials said that if the move was aimed at ''mending the fence between China and core United Democrats members'', the attempt was futile.
The alliance, however, puts China in an awkward predicament because it has consistently frozen out the United Democrats while wooing other liberal factions to the cause of planning post-1997 Hong Kong.
Meeting Point chairman Anthony Cheung Bing-leung, who was enlisted by Beijing in the latest batch of Hong Kong affairs advisers, stood staunchly behind the merger yesterday, clasping hands with Martin Lee Chu-ming and Szeto Wah, the two United Democrats most distrusted by China.
Announcing the formation of the party, a move which apparently took Chinese officials by surprise, Mr Lee said the need for a strong and united liberal coalition was becoming more pressing as 1997 approached.
''This is a time when we must not be intimidated by threats from Beijing. We must take a stand on principle, take a stand on human rights, the rule of law and the development of democracy,'' Mr Lee said.
''We represent a very wide section of the community and if China tries to isolate us, China's really trying to isolate the people of Hong Kong,'' he said, noting that the new party would comprise at least 17 legislators.