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Concerning the second purpose, the Nationality Law serves to de- fine the nationality status of Chinese students and experts studying abroad over whom the PRC may exercise jurisdiction on a non-territo- rial basis. It also prescribes a naturalization and nationality restoration process to help attract alien experts, particularly the "patriotic" over- seas Chinese, to participate in the nation's modernization efforts. Fi- nally, the enactment of the Nationality Law enlarges the growing body of Chinese law, which in turn will enhance her domestic stability and lend credence to her foreign posture as a civilized nation in a modern world.
Prior to the adoption of the 1980 Nationality Law," the previous governments had unveiled a succession of three nationality laws. China's first nationality law was adopted in 1909 by the Qing (Manchu) dynasty (1644-1911), in an attempt to justify her claim to the allegiance and protection of overseas Chinese in Java and Sumatra (now Indonesia). The law applied the principle of jus sanguinis to male lineage as the major basis for acquiring Chinese nationality, re- gardless of the country of birth.
After the fall of the Qing Imperial Government and the formation of the Republic of China in 1912, the nationality law of 1909 was abol- ished and the second nationality law was promulgated. In 1914, the 1912 statute was revised as the Amended Nationality Law." The third nationality law was adopted in 1929 by the Kuomintang (Nationalist)
3. The original text of the law was drafted by the Ministry of Public Security, an organ that has been entrusted with the administration of Chinese nationality matters since the establishment of the PRC in 1949. The draft was then submitted to the Stand- ing Committee of the National People's Congress in February 1980 for adoption. The law was distributed to the lower people's congresses of all provinces and autonomous regions and to the three cities directly under the jurisdiction of the central Government (Beijing, Tianjin and Shanghai) for discussion and commentary. The final version was adopted and put into force by the Fifth National People's Congress at its Third Session on Sep- tember 10, 1980, after extensive consultations with and review by the Ministries of Pub- lic Security and Foreign and Internal Affairs, as well as by the Office of the Översess Chinese Affairs. See EDITORIAL Dep't Legal Text, Fagui Xuanbian (Selected Laws & Regulations) 603 (1983). See also Brinng Røv. No. 40, at 17 (1980).
4. Law on the Acquisition and Loss of Chinese Nationality, reprinted in 4 AM J. INT'L L. 160 (Supp. 1910) (hereinafter cited as 1909 Low). For a discussion of the 1909 Nationality Law, see Tsai, The Chinese Nationality Law, 1909, 4 Am. J. INT'L L. 404 (1910).
5. See Sheng, supra note 1, at 207-09.
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