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GOVERNMENT WERE STRONGLY OF THE VIEW THAT THE ORDER SHOULD MAKE
CLEAR THAT THOSE AFFECTED SHOULD BE ENTITLED NOT ONLY TO BN(0)
STATUS BUT ALSO TO A PASSPORT SHOWING THAT STATUS. THEY ARGUED
THAT THE HOLDING OF THE PASSPORT WAS SO FUNDAMENTAL TO THE
AGREEMENT THAT THE PEOPLE OF HONG KONG WOULD EXPECT NO LESS.
GOVERNMENT ACCEPTED THE FORCE OF HONG KONG'S ARGUMENT, AND
PROPOSE THEREFORE TO MEET THEIR WISHES.
13.
THE FORMALITIES GOING WITH THE REGISTRATION OF
CITIZENSHIP WILL BE KEPT TO A MINIMUM. WE ENVISAGE ONLY THAT
THE
EACH PERSON'S PARTICULARS WILL BE ENTERED ON A CENTRAL REGISTER.
NO SEPARATE FEE WILL BE CHARGED FOR THIS. THE DETAILED
ARRANGEMENTS WILL BE WORKED OUT WITH HONG KONG BETWEEN NOW AND
1987, AND IT WILL BE NECESSARY TO MAKE REGULATIONS TO GOVERN
THESE IN THE NORMAL WAY UNDER THE BRITISH NATIONALITY ACT 1981.
14.
ARTICLE 6 SETS OUT THE GOVERNMENT'S PROPOSALS FOR
REDUCING STATELESSNESS. THIS IS A MATTER OF CONSIDERABLE
IMPORTANCE AND UNDERSTANDABLE INTEREST. THE GOVERNMENT HAS GIVEN
THE MATTER THE MOST CAREFUL THOUGHT. DURING THE DEBATES LAST
YEAR AND DURING THE PASSAGE OF THE HONG KONG BILL A NUMBER OF
MEMBERS WERE CONCERNED THAT THE BRITISH DEPENDENT TERRITORIES
CITIZENS IN HONG KONG WHO WERE NOT ETHNICALLY CHINESE, AND THEIR CHILDREN, MIGHT BE LEFT STATELESS IN 1997 BECAUSE THEY WOULD NOT
BE REGARDED AS CHINESE NATIONALS. THE GOVERNMENT RECOGNIZED THIS
AND GAVE A FIRM UNDERTAKING THAT NO FORMER HONG KONG BRITISH
DEPENDENT TERRITORIES CITIZEN, NOR ANY CHILDREN BORN AFTER JUNE 1997 TO SUCH A PERSON, WOULD BECOME STATELESS AS A RESULT OF THE
AGREEMENT. IN RESPONSE TO FURTHER REPRESENTATIONS FROM A NUMBER
OF QUARTERS, THIS UNDERTAKING WAS EXTENDED DURING THE COMMITTEE
STAGE OF THE BILL IN ANOTHER PLACE TO COVER THE GRANDCHILDREN OF
FORMER HONG KONG BRITISH DEPENDENT TERRITORIES CITIZENS IF THEY
WERE BORN STATELESS.
15.
SINCE THEN, FURTHER REPRESENTATIONS HAVE BEEN MADE BY THE
NON-ETHNIC CHINESE COMMUNITY IN HONG KONG, WITH THE SUPPORT OF A NUMBER OF SPEAKERS DURING THE RECENT LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL DEBATE,
WHO WERE NOT HAPPY WITH THE PROPOSED PROVISIONS.
ENDS.
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