TNAG-1382-FCO40-1830-Future-of-Hong-Kong-nationality-and-citizenship-1985 — Page 10

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this is

matter a

for each country to decide and stipulate. Such obligations would normally include respect for the country's Constitution or sovereign, adherence to its laws, payment of its taxes, and so

forth.

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I come now to the position of those whom Mr Cheung and Mr Carl Tong have described as the ethnic minorities in Hong Kong. I fully endorse Mr Tong's observation that Hong Kong has been well served by its minorities and, in so many ways, Hong Kong's success has derived from its cosmopolitan dimension.

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Of course, many of those who are living and working in Hong Kong and who are not Chinese by race already have

have the nationality of their country of origin and, in any case, the position of those who do not have British nationality is not for the

British Government to determine. Some, however, are Hong Kong BDTCS, and Hong Kong BDTCs alone, and it is understood that they will not have Chinese nationality automatically when sovereignty over Hong Kong is returned to China. The position of these BDTCs is that, in the same way as all other DTCs who have derived their status from their connection with Hong Kong, they will be eligible to acquire the status of British National (Overseas). Those of them who fail to do so, for example by mistake or accident, and who as a result become stateless, will acquire British Overseas citizenship.

citizenship. The Secretary of State, Sir Geoffrey Howe, has stated clearly in Parliament that the children born after 30 June 1997 to such non-Chinese BN (0) s ΟΙ BOCS will acquire British Overseas citizenship automatically at birth if they would otherwise be stateless. There should, therefore, be no question of statelessness among those who are Hong Kong DTCs on 30 June 1997, oI

among the children born to them after that date.