CONFIDENTIAL
FM PEKING
TO FLASH F C O
TELNO 2242
OF 30070OZ DECEMBER 89
INFO FLASH HONG KONG
CONFIDENTIAL
1
B.
156236
MDHIAN 0890
FOLLOWING FOR MCLAREN, AUSS : ACTING HEAD OF HONG KONG DEPARTMENT AND NEWS DEPARTMENT
·
1 I HAVE BEEN INFORMED BY GUO FENGMIN, HEAD OF HONG KONG AND MACAO OFFICE OF THE MFA, THAT THE FOREIGN MINISTRY WILL ISSUE A STATEMENT THIS AFTERNOON ON THE NATIONALITY PACKAGE ANNOUNCED BY THE SECRETARY OF STATE ON 20 DECEMBER.
2.
FOLLOWING IS A ROUGH TRANSLATION FROM CHINESE TEXT:
BEGINS
ON DECEMBER 20, THE BRITISH GOVERNMENT UNILATERALLY ANNOUNCED ITS DECISION TO GRANT 50,000 HOUSEHOLDS (225,000 PEOPLE IN ALL) OF HONG KONG RESIDENTS THE STATUS OF FULL BRITISH CITIZENSHIP WITH THE RIGHT OF ABODE IN THE UNITED KINGDOM. THE CHINESE GOVERNMENT IS TOTALLY SURPRISED AT THIS ACTION OF THE BRITISH GOVERNMENT.
THIS COURSE OF ACTION BY THE BRITISH GOVERNMENT IS A GROSS VIOLATION OF ITS OWN SOLEMN COMMITMENT. AGREEMENT WAS REACHED ON THE ISSUE OF NATIONALITY OF HONG KONG RESIDENTS IN THE SINO-BRITISH TALKS ON THE QUESTION OF HONG KONG FIVE YEARS AGO,
THE AND THE TWO SIDES ALSO EXCHANGED MEMORANDA ON THIS BASIS. MEMORANDUM OF THE BRITISH SIDE STATES IN EXPLICIT TERMS THAT: ''ALL PERSONS WHO ON 30 JUNE 1997 ARE, BY VIRTUE OF A CONNECTION WITH HONG KONG. BRITISH DEPENDANT TERRITORIES CITIZENS (BDTCS) UNDER THE LAW IN FORCE IN THE UNITED KINGDOM WILL CEASE TO BE BDTCS WITH EFFECT FROM 1 JULY 1997, BUT WILL BE ELIGIBLE TO RETAIN AN APPROPRIATE STATUS WHICH, WITHOUT CONFERRING THE RIGHT OF ABODE IN THE UNITED KINGDOM, WILL ENTITLE THEM TO CONTINUE TO USE
THE PASSPORTS ISSUED BY THE GOVERNMENT OF THE UNITED KINGDOM.'' CONTENTS AND THE WORDING OF THE MEMORANDUM OF THE BRITISH SIDE, LIKE THAT OF THE CHINESE SIDE, WERE AGREED UPON BETWEEN THE TWO SIDES THROUGH NEGOTIATIONS.
IN RECENT WEEKS, THE BRITISH SIDE HAS ON MANY OCCASIONS STATED
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