18
THE SINO-BRITISH JOINT DECLARATION ON THE FUTURE OF HONG KONG
exchanges between the two sides on the basis on which the negotiations would be conducted, and on the agenda. On 1 July 1983 it was announced that the second phase of the talks would begin in Peking on 12 July. The pattern of negotiation in the second phase, which was continued until the end of the negotiations, was for formal rounds of talks to be held between delegations led by the British Ambassador in Peking and a Vice or Assistant Minister of the Chinese Foreign Ministry, supplemented as necessary by informal contacts between the two delegations. The Governor of Hong Kong took part in every round of formal talks as a member of the British delegation.
In the course of the negotiations the British Government explained in detail the systems which prevail in Hong Kong and the importance for these systems of the British administrative role and link. Following extensive discussion, however, it became clear that the continuation of British administration after 1997 would not be acceptable to China in any form. After full consultation with the Governor and the Executive Council of Hong Kong, the British Government therefore proposed that the two sides discuss on a conditional basis what effective measures other than continued British administration might be devised to maintain the stability and prosperity of Hong Kong and explore further the Chinese ideas about the future which had at that stage been explained to them, in order to see whether on this basis arrangements which would ensure lasting stability and prosperity for Hong Kong could be constructed. The Chinese Government was told that, if this process was successful, the British Government would consider recommending to Parliament a bilateral agreement enshrining the arrangements. The British Government also undertook in this event to assist in the implementation of such arrangements. Following this, the British Government sought to explore with the Chinese Government the implications of the Chinese Government's concept of Hong Kong as a Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China. In response, the Chinese side further elaborated its policies and ideas.
In April 1984 the two sides completed initial discussion of these matters. There were a number of outstanding unresolved points, but it was by then clear that an acceptable basis for an agreement might be possible. At the invitation of the Chinese Government the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs visited Peking from 15 to 18 April. During his meetings with Chinese leaders the two sides reviewed the course of the talks on the future of Hong Kong, and further progress was made. In Hong Kong on 20 April Sir Geoffrey Howe made a statement on the approach of the British Government to the negotiations. He said that it would not be realistic to think of an agreement that provided for continued British administration in Hong Kong after 1997: for that reason the British Government had been examining with the Chinese Government how it might be possible to arrive at arrangements that would secure for Hong Kong, after 1997, a high degree of autonomy under Chinese sovereignty, and that would preserve the way of life in Hong Kong, together with the essentials of the present systems. He made it clear that the British Government were working for a framework of arrangements that would provide for the maintenance of Hong Kong's flourishing and dynamic society, and an agreement in which such arrrangements would be formally set out.
After Sir Geoffrey Howe's visit in April 1984 negotiations continued. A working group was established on 21 June 1984 to meet full-time in Peking and consider documents tabled by both sides. From 27 to 31 July 1984 the Secretary of State for Foreign and Common- wealth Affairs again visited Peking. The visit was devoted almost entirely to the future of Hong Kong. Sir Geoffrey Howe announced in Hong Kong on 1 August that very substantial progress had been made towards agreement on the form and content of
Page 30Page 31