THE FUTURE OF HONG KONG AND JAPAN
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SPEECH BY THE CONSUL-GENERAL OF JAPAN, MR. KOICHIRO MATSUURA
at the luncheon hosted by
The Japan Universities Alumni Society, Hong Kong
September 5, 1986.
It is a great honour and pleasure for me to speak before
this gathering on the future of Hong Kong and Japan.
Two years ago, soon after the initialling of the draft
Sino-British Joint Declaration on the future of Hong Kong, my
predecessor, Mr. Hiroaki Fujii, delivered a speech on the same
theme. In that speech Mr. Fujii stressed the importance of
preserving Hong Kong's prosperity, not merely for the direct
economic interests of Japan, but also, in a wider perspective,
for the interests of the entire Asian region, in view of Hong
Kong's standing as the most international metropolis in the
whole of Asia. While praising the efforts made by China and
Britain, which produced the valuable agreement on the future of
Hong Kong, Mr. Fujii also pointed out the necessity of efforts
by the people of Hong Kong, on the one hand, and of support by the
international community, on the other, to ensure the continued
success of Hong Kong.
Two years have passed since then and in many areas we have
observed desirable developments. Implementation of the Sino-
British Joint Declaration has begun smoothly. The Sino-British
Joint Liaison Group has been in full swing. Through this Group,
questions concerning future passports or travel documents for the
people of Hong Kong, and Hong Kong's continued participation in
international organizations have been discussed, and some agree-
ment has already emerged. In this regard, I would particularly
like to welcome Hong Kong's participation in the GATT as a separate
Contracting Party.
The work of drafting the Basic Law for Hong Kong has been
launched. Both the Drafting Committee under the National People's
Congress of China and the Consultative Committee in Hong Kong should
be congratulated for their intensive work to date towards the
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