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DSR 11 (Revised Sept 85)
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In Confidence
FOREIGN AFFAIRS COMMITTEE OF ENQUIRY INTO HONG KONG
MEMORANDUM ON HONG KONG
I.
Background to the negotiation of the Joint
Declaration
Enclosures flag(s).
1. Under the Treaty of Nanking (1842) and the
Convention of Peking (1860), Hony Kong Island, the
southern part of the Kowloon Peninsula and Stonecutters
Island were ceded to Britain in perpetuity. The rest of
the territory of Hong Kong (comprising 92% of the total
land area) was leased to Britain for 99 years from 1 Jul
1898 under a second Convention signed in Peking in that
year. This leased area, consisting of the area north of
Kowloon up to the Shenzhen River and 235 adjacent
islands, is known as the New Territories.
2. The Chinese Government have always taken the view