TNAG-0661-FCO40-810-Implications-for-Hong-Kong-of-changes-in-British-nationality-1977 — Page 8

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Of the 3,300,000 million British subjects who would be most affected by the proposed revisions of the British Nationality, Law, 79% (2,600,000 in number) are Hong Kong people. It is regrettable that the Hong Kong Government has taken no positive steps to encourage those Hong Kong people who would be affected to take part in a discussion of the issue. The authorities also failed to supply the press with detailed information on the issue when the latter asked about it. It does look like that the Hong Kong Government is not really facing up to its responsibility.

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The Green Paper, running to 26 pages in 79 paragraphs, . is a report written with the intention of fulfilling the promise. to revise the Nationality Law made by the British Labour Party in its Platform in February 1974 before the General Elections. It was given considerable coverage by such nation-wide newspapers as the London Times a day or two after its publication, but nary a murmur about it has been heard afterwards. It is likely that the majority of the British people are still unaware of its

existence.

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British Commonwealth immigrants who would be directly affected by British immigration and nationality laws have reacted to it more strongly, however, and they have voiced their opinion through various immigration organisations that the recommendations made by the Green Paper mercly aim to give another. screw to the suppression of non-white immigrati on. It has also been pointed out by Ann Dummet. an authority on racial problems and spokesman for racial relations organisations, that the implementation of the revised Law would help swell the number of stateless people; it would also be prejudicial to the relations between Britain and Commonwealth countries and might even arouse doubt in British Commonwealth immigrants about the sincerity of the British Government's proclaimed wish to

promote racial harmony.

EXISTING BRITISH NATICFALITY LAW IS IN A LUDDLED STATE

Founders of the British Empire had the ideals about nationality, as they hoped that all people naturalised born

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in the Empire would belong to the same nationality. Since the major members of the Empire at that time were the United Kingdom (i.e., Britain proper) and her colonies, people in the Empire would be "United Kingdom & Colonies Citizens" in the dependent territory, but would be of "British Nationality" in the Empire as a whole. And, theoretically speaking, all people in the Empire are of the same nationality and have the same rights and obligations.

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Subsequently, colonies of the Empire became independent one after another, and the definition of "citizenship" for her own people would vary with each independent country. In 1964 Canada took the lead in drawing up a "Canadian Nationality" scheme, defining the said nationality and laying down provisions on the rights and obligations of people holding same. In other words, "United Kingdom & Colonies Citizenship" has been superseded by "Canadian Nationality" in Canada after her independence.

Bui, as Canada is still a British Commonwealth country, Canadian people are nominally still of "British Nationality" in the Commonwealth.

After the 1947 London Conference other independent British Commonwealth countries followed suit and each of them gave her own definition of "citizenship" for her own people. But at the same time they acknowledged that both their own citizens end

citizens of other Commonwealth countries were of "British

Nationality." In the following year the British Government enacted the "British Nationality Act 1948 and these arrangements were incorporated into it. Thus since 1946 it has been the general rule to classify the nationality of British Commonwealth people under the following 3 categories:

(1)

"United Kingdom & Colonies Citizenship" of those people in Britain proper and in British colonies; or

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(2)

The nationality conferred upon their own people by former colonial countries after they became independent;

The nationality of Commonwealth people, be they under Category (1) or (2), is at the same time also nominally

(3) "British."

In theory, matters would be much simpler if all former colonies followed the steps of Canada, etc, after achieving independence by converting "United Kingdom & Colonies Citizenship" into their own nationality. Problems arose, however, in 1950 & 1951 when India & Fakistan refused to recognise part of their people before independence as citizens. Similar events also took place later in Kenya, Malaysia & East Africa. As a result, part of the people in the former colonies have no other nationality than "United Kingdom & Colonies Citizenship" & "British Nationality".

The "United Kingdom and Colonies Citizenship" system

itself has numerous defects, the conspicuous one being that in a Western country, normally any person of that country's nationality will automatically have the right of free entry to that country, whereas with the exception of people of Britain proper, persons holding "United Kingdom and Colonies Citizenships" and are from existing colonies or former colonies (and we have mentioned the latter in the proceding paragraph) have been denied the right of entry to the United kingdom ever since 1962. Whenever the British Government attempts to take new control measures on immigration sho reclassifies "United Kingdom and Colonies Citizens" into many categories. She has admitted with regret, that to confer varying rights of entry on persons of the same nationality would leave herself open to charges of racial discrimination.

The Green Fapcr is of the opinion that the British Empire is a thing of the past and that the British Government is no longer directly responsible for some 900 million nominally

/"British