[HK2AMP (2)]
CONFIDENTIAL
MR RAISON'S VISIT TO CHINA & JAPAN
HONG KONG: BASIC LAW
Background
1.
By paragraph 3 (12) of Joint declaration the Chinese Government has undertaken that the policies in the Joint Declaration and in Annex I will be stipulated in a a Basic Law of the Hong Kong SAR and will remain unchanged for 50
years.
2.
among
its 59
members.
a
The Chinese Government have said that they intend to
complete the Basic Law by 1990. They have appointed Basic Law Drafting Committee (BLDC) chaired by Ji Pengfei,
He ad of the Hong Kong and Macau office of the State
Council, and which includes 23
23 Hong Kong representatives They have also agreed to the
formation of a 150 member Basic Law Consultative Committee (BLCC) in Hong Kong. The BLCC includes members from a wide Cross section of Hong Kong society, including 15 expatriates. Although we believe that most of the actual drafting work will be done by officials of the Hong Kong
and Macau Office,
Office, we have welcomed the Chinese decision to consult Hong Kong people on such a wide basis.
3.
we
We have no standing in the drafting of Basic Law, and the Chinese are very sensitive to any suggestion that can dictate policies for the SAR, which will be a part of the PRC after 1 July 1997. We hope however that we will be able to influence the drafting process through informal
contacts. The crucial aspect for us is that the Basic Law accurately reflect the agreement.
CONFIDENTIAL