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HONG KONG : BULL POINTS
RELATIONS WITH CHINA OVER HONG KONG
Understandable that confidence in Joint Declaration has been severely shaken. But underlying reality remains that 92% of the land area of Hong Kong must revert to China when the lease expires in 1997. The remaining 8% could never be viable on its own. Question is therefore whether Hong Kong reverts to China with an agreement or without one. We negotiated long and hard to ensure that this heppened on best possible terms for Hong Kong.
Destiny of Hong Kong inevitably bound up with destiny of China. This is historical and geographical reality. Any viable future for Hong Kong must depend on successful and secure coexistence with China. That objective enshrined in Joint Declaration.
Joint Declaration is a remarkably good agreement. Spells out the kind of future we want for Hong Kong ie continuation for at least fifty years of Hong Kong's capitalist system and way of life, with all its human rights and freedoms, its laws and legal system, its own freely convertible currency and its free port.
In their report, published on 30 June, the Foreign Affairs Select Committee described the Joint Declaration as "the best and surest treaty base for the future of Hong Kong".
Firmest guarantee of any agreement is that it is based on common interests. China has massive stake in Hong Kong's continuing success both economically and politically. Nothing that has happened in recent months has changed that fact
On a number of recent occasions, Chinese leaders have publicly reaffirmed their commitment to Joint Declaration and concept of "one country, two systems"
NATIONALITY
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As Prime Minister has already made clear, it would be impossible or the British Government to give right of abode to several million people. Would be an enormous new immigration commitment on unprecedented scale. Potential practical difficulties would be overwhelming. Would be irresponsible for us to make commitments or raise expectations that no future British Government could possibly
meet.
But we are determined to do what we can to help within limits of what is practicable.
We are therefore working on a scheme to give the assurance of right of abode to some people in both the private and the public sectors in Hong Kong on the basis of value of service to Hong Kong as well as connections with Britain. Our aim is to give people whose professional, administrative, technical and managerial skills