TNAG-1407-FCO40-1882-Future-of-Hong-Kong-passports-and-visas-1985 — Page 29

GRS 350

CONFIDENTIAL

FM HONG KONG

TO PRIORITY FCO

TELNO 2569

REQUIR

7 C NOV 1985

CONFIDENTIAL

INDEX

PA

OF 19094OZ NOVEMBER 35

INFO PRIORITY PEKING

200

HONG KONG GOVERNMENT OFFICE BRUSSELS

PARA. 3 OF YOUR TELMO 1636: HONG KONG AGREEMENT : ACCEPTABILITY

OF BN (0) PASSPORTS: FRG

IN INFORMAL DISCUSSION WITH SECRETARY FOR SECURITY YESTERDAY," THE GERMAN CONSUL-GENERAL SAID THAT SPEAKING PERSONALLY AND REPEATING WHAT HE HAD ALREADY SAID PUBLICLY IN HONG KONG, AS HIS GOVERNMENT RECOGNISED BDTC PASSPORTS HE SAW NO REASON WHY IT SHOULD

HE HAD NOT (NOT) RECOGNISE BN (0) PASSPORTS AT LEAST UNTIL 1997. SENT A COPY OF THE WHITE PAPER TO BONN AND HAD ADVISED HIS GOVERNMENT OF HIS VIEWS.

2. AS REGARDS THE SITUATION AFTER 1997, AS THERE WOULD BE A CHANGE OF SOVEREIGNTY, HE STRESSED THAT THE GERMAN GOVERNMENT'S RECOGNITION OF BN (0) PASSPORTS WOULD DEPEND ON WHETHER THE PASSPORTS WOULD INDICATE CLEARLY THE HOLDERS' RETUPNABILITY TO HONG KONG. HE EMPHASISED THE IMPORTANCE OF THE PASSPORT HAVING AN ADEQUATE RIGHT OF ABODE ENDORSEMENT. HE ALSO ENQUIRED WHETHER RESIDENTS OF THE HONG KONG SAR WOULD BE ALLOWED TO HOLD TWO PASSPORTS: AN SAR PASSPORT AND A BN (0) PASSPORT. IN REPLY, BASED ON PARA. 13 OF PEKING TELNO 1514, WE SAID THAT THIS QUESTION HAD BEEN RESOLVED IN THE FRAMEWORK OF THE JOINT DECLARATION SEMICOLON AND THAT SECTION XIV OF ANNEX I TO THE JOINT DECLARATION READ TOGETHER WITH THE CHINESE MEMORANDUM ASSOCIATED WITH THE JOINT DECLARATION MADE IT QUITE CLEAR THAT THE HOLDING OF A BN (0) PASSPORT WOULD NOT PRECLUDE THE HOLDING OF A TRAVEL DOCUMENT ISSUED BY THE HONG KONG SAR GOVERNMENT.

3. ON THE SUBJECT OF VISAS, HE THOUGHT HIS GOVERNMENT WOULD PROBABLY AGREE TO MULTIPLE ENTRY VISAS VALUED FOR ONE YEAR FOR BDTC PASSPORTS. THERE WAS A POSSIBILITY THAT HIS GOVERNMENT WOULD ALSO AGREE TO THEM FOR BM(0) PASSPORTS BUT WOULD PROBABLY REVIEW THE DECISION IF THERE WAS EVIDENCE OF AN EXODUS FROM HONG KONG.

CONFIDENTIAL

14

A

385