ZHENG MING no. 20,
1 June 1979
1997 and Hong Kong
Is Mr. Song Zhiguang Playing
an old tune?
by Hoi Hak
In his reply to questions about Hong Kong and Macau raised by a group of visiting French correspondents in May this year, the Chinese Assistant Foreign Minister, Mr. Song Zhiguang, said there was no pressing need for this question to be settled in the near future. He pointed out: "This question will be dealt with later. We still have 18.years before the expiry of the Hong Kong lease in 1997 to settle the question. We are not in a hurry." The news was reported by Western news agencies and was played up by many Hong Kong newspapers in a way which appeared that Hong Kong has been given a re-assurance about its future.
In fact, Mr. Song's remarks, strictly speaking, were nothing more than the playing of an old tunc and did not bear any new meaning. But Mr. Song has nevertheless made the statement probably because the French correspondents, having the chance of meeting a senior Foreign Ministry official in Beijing (Peking), were racking their brains to raise some questions on sensitive issues so that they could have something to write. Mr. Song was extremely familiar with such questions and could, of course, answer them with ease.
It must be pointed out that in recent years, French correspondents have become rather ignorant of Chinese affairs. If the interview had been conducted by correspondents from Britain, the United States or Japan, it would not have been done in such an “amateur- ish" manner. Hong Kong newspapers can hardly be blamed for having attached importance to the news because it is nothing harmful for Hong Kong people, nervous as they are, to be given a couple of doses of tranquillisers.
To say that Mr. Song was "playing an old tune" does not mean that he could have said nothing more than merely repeating what others had said before, or that he was merely trying to issue "PR releases". What it means is that the Chinese leaders, on issues of such international significance, had already made their decisions long ago. Any statement on these issues, regardless of whom it comes from, is most unlikely to depart from the policy established. Even during the time of Lin Piao and the "Gang of Four", the dis- ruptions they caused had been basically confined to internal affairs while foreign policy matters were still firmly under the control of Zhou Enlai (Chou En-lai). Although small- scale disruptions had occurred in connection with Indonesia and Burma, in addition to what happened to Hong Kong in 1967, these were quickly corrected. A case in point was the down-fall of the charge d'affaires to Indonesia, Yao Teng-shan, who had been a prominent figure and had once been placed beside Mao Tse-tung and Chiang Ching in posing for photograph when returning to Beijing airport.
China's policy on Hong Kong and Macau had already been made clear in the early 1960's when China was having quarrels with the Soviet Union and her allies. At that time, it was stated that "Hong Kong's and Macau's present position would be maintained for the time being." This principle can still be applied at present. The importance lies in the clause "present position would be maintained." The words "for the time being" to ordinary people may mean a relatively short period. But from the historic point of view, it could mean a few years or possibly a few decades. Provided that the factors leading to the decision on "maintaining the present position" remain unchanged, the period denoted by "for the time being" will continue to last.
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