TNAG-1580-FCO40-2154-Extension-to-Hong-Kong-of-European-Community--European-Free-1987 — Page 3

4

1 0 JAN 1987

RECEIVED IN REGISTRY

ICER

PA

REGISTRY

Action Taken

(13)

EXTRACT

from

HKD'S BACKGROUND

BRIEF

HKK 371//3

SECTION 1: CONSTITUTIONAL AND POLITICAL BACKGROUND

RY

16 JAN 1987

1.

1 Hong Kong consists of:

TRY

in Taken

HIND

19/1

(a) Hong Kong Island, ceded by China by the Treaty of

Nanking (1842);

(b)

the Kowloon peninsula and Stonecutters' Island, ceded

in 1860 by the First Convention of Peking; and

(c)

Its

the New Territories, which China leased to Britain

for 99 years in 1898 by the Second Convention of Peking.

`APER

square

total land area is 1,064

kilometres and it has a

population of over 5.3 million, of whom 98% are Chinese. The New

Territories account for approximately 92% of Hong Kong's total area and more than 50% of its total population.

1.2

Hong Kong is a Dependent Territory and the Secretary of

State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs is responsible to Parliament for its government. The Territory is administered by

a Governor, with the help of an Executive Council and a

Legislative Council. As Hong Kong is a dependent territory, there is no British Embassy there. British trade interests are

dealt with by the

British Trade Commission, which also covers

trade with Macao. Included within the Commission is a China

Trade Unit which is responsible for trade with China through Hong Kong, and also, under the supervision of the British Embassy in

Peking, for promoting British trade with the provinces of

southern China.

1.3

The Governor, who represents the Crown, is the head of

government and has the power to make laws (called "ordinances") for the "peace, order and good government" of Hong Kong. His authority derives from the Letters Patent and the Koyal

The Crown reserves the power to disallow

legislate for the In practice, no post-war British

Instructions.

ordinances enacted in Hong Territory by Order in Council.

Kong and

to

-1-