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the editorial has this to say :
"At the time the People's Republic of China was inaugurated, our Government declared that it would examine the treaties concluded by previous Chinese governments with foreign governments, treaties that had been left over by history, and would recognise, abrogate, revise or renegotiate them, accord- ing to their respective contents.......As a matter of fact, many of these treaties concluded in the past either have lost their validity, or have been abrogated or have been replaced by new ones. With regard to the outstanding issues, which are a legacy from the past, we have always held that, when conditions are ripe, they should be settled peacefully through negotiations and that, pending a settlement, the status quo should be maintained. Within this category are the questions of Hong Kong, Kowloon and Macao and the questions of all those boundaries which have not been formally delimited by the parties concerned in each case".
(Peking Review, Nos 10 and 11,
15 March 1963)
This statement has not, so far as I know, been superseded and can therefore presumably still be taken as expressing the Chinese position on the three treaties. For China to have sought to abrogate the treaties would have almost undoubtedly forced it into a consideration of new arrangements for Hong Kong, and that is a task it appears to have shied away from.
4. Britain is clearly aware of China's attitude towards the treaties, but appears never to have referred officially to the Chinese view and indeed, reserves its position on Hong Kong.
5. The allegation that Britain is willing to turn over administration of the colony to the Chinese on request
The term "on request" is unclear, as it could signify either a takeover of Hong Kong or negotiations to settle its future. It is generally accepted that Hong Kong cannot be defended militarily; so a Chinese request to hand over control of the colony that was backed by a clear threat to use military force to achieve such control might presumably be complied with by HMG. It is more likely that in such circumstances, HMG might seek to initiate negotiations. a move on China's part would, moreover, be a reversal of its earlier-expressed readiness to settle peacefully through negotiations.
6.
Such
For China, negotiations would almost certainly be held to cover the whole of the colony: Hong Kong Island, Kowloon and the New Territories. Britain, in view of the reservations mentioned above (paragraph 2(c)), might presumably be willing to enter into negotiations at least over the terms of the New Territories lease, but would doubtless be very reluctant to see the colony split into different areas receiving different treatment.
7. How actively is the British government working to resolve the question of who will control the colony?
By "control of the colony", the reference is presumably to either British or Chinese control and not to the structure of the Hong Kong Government.
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