Now - a More Open Race

And yet when 67-year-old Yang announced last week he would step down, with immediate effect, from the top judicial post to run for chief of the future Special Administrative Region, he was seen by many as a viable candidate. How viable? He is clearly not the front-runner. That designation remains with enigmatic shipping tycoon Tung Chee Hwa, 59, even though he has never publicly expressed interest in the job. But the mere fact that Yang felt encouraged enough to step forward suggested Tung's selection was not the foregone conclusion it had been portrayed.

Yang's candidacy also focused attention on the disquiet in some Hong Kong circles at the prospect of the chief executive being drawn from the business community. "I personally would not want the future Hong Kong to be ruled by a businessman," said Tsang Hin Chi, owner of Goldlion, a clothing manufacturer with factories in China. "Yang would make a better chief executive than Tung."

The unspoken question was whether Tung - as honorable as his intentions might be - could be impartial on matters of business. This need for neutrality has been stressed by those who believe that the head of the civil service, Chief Secretary Anson Chan Fang On Sang, would be the perfect choice for the job. But Chan, perhaps out of loyalty to Gov. Chris Patten, hurt her chances by publicly opposing Beijing's decision to scrap Hong Kong's elected legislature and replace it with an appointed, provisional one after the handover. No longer considered a likely choice for the top spot, the 56-year-old is still seen as a shoo-in for the No. 2 position - as long as she feels she can work with the chief executive.

Yang certainly has his critics. For one thing, he has been described as a poor administrator and not an especially astute politician - skills that will be needed in abundance in a job that encompasses the twin tasks of overseeing one of the world's most dynamic economies while dealing with a Beijing leadership that has been accused of not always understanding what makes Hong Kong tick.

If it does nothing else, Yang's candidacy may have the effect of smoking out Tung, who, despite having the apparent backing of China's President Jiang Zemin, has doggedly refused to be drawn on his plans. Further pressure was applied on him last week, when his key Hong Kong sponsor, property tycoon Li Ka Shing, publicly urged him to join the race.

Tung recently met with grassroots Hong Kong politicians, including militant Democrat Tsang Kin Shing, an uncompromising critic of China's human rights record and of the plan to disband the Hong Kong legislature. After the meeting, Tsang said of Tung: "It's quite obvious he is interested in running for the top post." Tung also revealed deals between his shipping company and a Taiwan concern, a disclosure that was seen as preempting any attacks by his opponents.

With speculation growing that Tung could not postpone an an-nouncement much longer, press reports in Hong Kong said China had officially de-cided to abandon its leftist, ideology-driven approach to the territory - and to Taiwan. In its place, said the reports, was a top-level appreciation that a smooth political and economic transition next year was vital. The question was: Who would best serve that end? A successful businessman, a former chief justice or another, as yet undisclosed, candidate?