on these subjects.
Hong Kong would be able to
maintain a vast range of international links, and
would continue to participate in international
organisations as it does today.
entry into Hong Kong from China will continue to be
regulated as at present, so that Hong Kong would not
be swamped by immigrants from the mainland.
The Joint Declaration was welcomed in 1984, both in
Hong Kong and internationally, as the best achievable
basis for a secure future for Hong Kong. A great deal of
work has been done since then to implement it and to
build on it, and that work has in general gone very well.
A central objective in all this work has been to
maintain confidence among the people of Hong Kong and
among overseas investors that the Joint Declaration will
indeed be implemented according to the letter and spirit
of its provisions - confidence that Hong Kong will indeed
be a truly autonomous and distinct entity after 1997.
The maintenance of that confidence has depended very much
on the performance of the Chinese government, and
perceptions of their commitment to the Joint Declaration.
And that confidence has now been shaken very badly by the
appalling events in China on the weekend of 3/4 June and
by the repression that has followed, which have aroused
the condemnation of the whole international community