Published by: THE WORLD UYGHUR NETWORK NEWS, July 1, 1997

HONG KONG - A self-proclaimed champion of self-rule for Chinese provinces and territories called here Friday for independence for Hong Kong just 11 days before the British colony reverts to Chinese rule.

Jose Rodrigues, an ethnic Chinese from Macau, distributed "sensitive" material to the secretariat of the soon-to-be-abolished Legislative Council here asking members to carefully study his plan to break up China.

Rodrigues, a freelance translator, said he was a founding member of the 200-strong "Federalist Alliance of China" and a representative of a republican party of Hong Kong which has gone underground,

"Why can't Hong Kong achieve independence?" he said, citing the example of Singaporean patriarch Lee Kuan Yew, who led the largely ethnic Chinese island to independence from Malaysia in 1965.

Hong Kong police questioned Rodrigues and checked his identity before letting him go.

Rodrigues, 38, wearing a peach T-shirt and jeans, said pro-democracy forces in Hong Kong were too conservative and had no courage to overthrow the People's Republic of China.

"Politics should be creative, just like composing a song. We support the independence movement in Xinjiang and Tibet," he said.

He also called for the setting up of a republic in Guangdong, the southern Chinese province bordering Hong Kong.

The party's final goal is to let parts of China become self-governing and decide whether to join a Confederation of China, he said.

"The idea of unifying the whole Chinese race is very outdated. Why cannot we in China have several independent states?" he asked.

He added that his group would soon distribute its propaganda material secretly in Guangdong.

Rodrigues handed out a statement signed by the "Committee for the Independence of Hong Kong" saying while its members no longer wanted to become colonial citizens, "we want to be the real owner of Hong Kong."

"We're going to found the Republic of Hong Kong, and collaborate in building the Confederation of China," it said. "Viva Hong Kong people! Viva Federalist of China!"