number of countries willing to accept to this legal principle.87
88
and the
reactionary nature of this principle that works for the benefit of the
colonist at the expenses of the colony. The latest dilemma posed by
application of this principle is shown in Hong Kong. About 50,000
Indian descendents born in Hong Kong, hold Hong Kong British
passports. While China insists that all Hong Kong Chinese are
comptriots and Chinese nationals, whether or not they are holders of the
British Dependent Territories Citizens passports, these Indian British
subjects are completely ignored in the memorandum signed with the U.K.
Her dilemma is obvious. If China, following jus sanguinis, shows
willingness to accept Indians, who are British subjects because of their
association with Hong Kong, thus would endanger her position in dealing
with other nations over the issue of naturalization.
Other countries
could interpret this to mean that when they take over colonial
territory, they could also take all colonial subjects in the colony as
their nationals.
Chinese.
89
In 1957, China condemned South Vietnam, which was under the
leadership of Ngo Dinh Diem, for forcing naturalization upon ethnic
However, also in 1957, China and Mongolia reached an
agreement to allow children born into an interracial married couple with
a Chinese father to choose either to remain Chinese nationals, or to be
naturalized after they reach 18 years of age. In other examples of
China's application of jus sanguinis,
90
China condemned Vietnam for the
91
expulsion of ethnic Chinese from Vietnam in 1979. These cases show
that the PRC is consistent in carrying out her nationality law under the
principle of jus sanguinis, in ways very similar to her predecessor, the
Kuomintang and the Ching. The only difference is she is willing to
negotiate to eliminate dual nationality with some parties, when they
show friendliness to her, such as Indonesia did, under the leadership of
37