RESTRICTED
did not consider it right to accede to the request for British
citizenship for ethnic minority BDTCs. Ministers took the view that
the provisions
of the Joint Declaration and the proposed Order
in
Council met fully the concern of this community to have both а
recognised nationality status and a secure right of abode in Hong
Kong, where they want to continue to live. However, Ministers, in
recognising the concern felt among this community in Hong Kong, stated in Parliament that they would consider it an obligation upon
future government to treat with very considerable and particular
sympathy the case for admission to the United Kingdom of any
individual British national who, against all expectations, came
any
under pressure to leave Hong Kong.
16.
Once the Order had been made Her Majesty's Government
initiated in September 1986 an extensive diplomatic exercise to
explain to other countries the new status and the passport that goes
with it. Parliament will be informed of the results of the exercise
in due course.
The response
Government are confident that
SO far has been favourable, and the
the new status will receive widespread
international acceptance.
17.
Memoranda
entered
of Foreign
right of
On 11 April 1986,
were exchanged between the
British Embassy in -eking and the Chinese Ministry
Affairs recording the agreement reached on the terms of a
abode endorsement to be
in the passports of
Nationals (Overseas). This endorsement will indicate the
right to return to Hong Kong and thus make the British
(Overseas) Passport more readily acceptable for international travel
before and after 1997.
British
holder's
National
(e)
Drafting of the Basic Law of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region
18.
Under paragraph 3(12) of the Joint Declaration the policies.
of the People's Republic of China regarding Hong Kong, which are set
out in paragraph 3 of the Joint Declaration,
of the Joint Declaration, and the elaboration of
them in Annex I to the Joint Declaration
Basic Law
People's
of the Hong Kong
Republic of
Special
China by the
are to be
be stipulated in a
Administrative Legion of the
Chinese National People's
RESTRICTED