ARZADT
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OPENING PASSAGE FOR WIND-UP SPEECH
It
My Lords, today's Debate has served to underline the continuing interest and concern for Hong Kong which is felt by the House. has also served to demonstrate an impressively high level of understanding and knowledge of Hong Kong's current preoccupations.
These are messages which will I am sure be well received in Hong
Kong.
The theme of the debate has been the implementation of the
Joint Declaration. In concentrating on the detail which it
contains, we may sometimes forget what a remarkable document it is.
In dwelling on the fears which quite understandably · are sometimes voiced by people in Hong Kong, we may forget the
certainties which the Joint Declaration embodies.
Just five years ago the only certainty in the lives of Hong
Kong people was the legal inevitability of the expiry in 1997 of the lease on over 90% of the territory. The Joint Declaration brought
clarity and reassurance in the form of a detailed and binding
international agreement. In co-operation with the Chinese
Government we are giving substance to that agreement, building securely on its foundation.
Five years ago who could have imagined that a committee formed
by the Chinese legislature would be embodying the provisions of the
Joint Declaration in a detailed legal instrument: or that this would
enshrine in Chinese law the protection of the systems, freedoms and
life-style that Hong Kong people now enjoy. But that task is now
well under way, with the full participation of the Hong Kong people themselves. We should not lose sight of this remarkable progress. Nor should we forget what a unique and innovative concept the draft
Basic Law represents for all its present incomplete and imperfect
state.
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