MTHAHG
RESTRICTED
A
BASIC LAW : DEFENSIVE MODULES
British Government's Right to Scrutinise?
The drafting of the Basic Law is a matter for the People's
Republic of China, not the United Kingdom. It rests wholly within
their sovereignty. Even so, China has entered into an agreement
with us, the Joint Joint Declaration an international agreement
-
registered in accordance with Article 102 of the UN Charter
through which she has set out the policies she will adopt when she
resumes exercise of sovereignty over Hong Kong. The Basic Law in
turn will stipulate the policies of the People's Republic of China
for post-1997 Hong Kong in implementation of paragraph 3(12) of the
Joint Declaration. In practice the Chinese have ensured that the
process of drafting the Basic Law is open to public scrutiny and
consultation. We welcome this.
RESTRICTED
A
Page 60Page 61