CONFIDENTIAL
DSR 11C
Campbell, an official of the Chinese customs, signing on
behalf of China.
3. The Government of the People's Republic of China (PRC)
regards the 19th century treaties concluded with Western
powers, amongst them the 1887 agreements with Portugal, as
unequal' and has announced that it reserves the right to
abrogate or renegotiate them when it wishes. It regards
Macau as Chinese territory, occupied by Portugal. Official
PRC statements describe Macau, like Hong Kong, as a problem
left over by history, to be resolved "when conditions are
ripe". However China has shown no interest in taking back
Macau and is clearly satisfied with the status quo. It earns
an increasing if still small amount of foreign currency
from the territory, and is concerned that change in Macau
would damage confidence in Hong Kong. The Chinese Foreign
Minister, Huang Hua, is reported to have said to the
Portuguese President during a visit to Lisbon in May this
year that China would maintain the status quo in Macau, although
in the future it could study, together with the population
of Macau and the Portuguese authorities, other solutions for
the territory which would not affect the standard of living
of the population, nor the interests of foreign investors.
?
Because there is no "lease" for Macau, land tenure is
unaffected by any terminal date. Some land, particularly
that belonging to the Church, is held freehold. Land newly
formed by the Government is now generally leased for a 25-
year period, renewable for 10 years at a time.
CONFIDENTIAL
15.