TNAG-1839-FCO40-2614-House-of-Commons-Select-Committee-on-Foreign-Affairs-enquiry-1989 — Page 10

FCO40 Hong Kong Department Records 聯邦事務部香港部檔案 All

Arrangements other than continued British administration

:hat

ld ensure Hong Kong's future stability and

prosperity.

7. Following the Foreign Secretary's visit to Peking in April 1984, the two sides began to examine how it might be possible to devise arrangements which would secure for Hong Kong after 1997 a high degree of autonomy under Chinese sovereignty; and which would enable Hong Kong, as a Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China, to preserve its existing way of life and the essential elements of its present system. great deal of work was required in order to turn this

A

-

concept that of "one country two systems

11

-

into a

written agreement that embodied such arrangements with sufficient clarity and precision to be acceptable to the

The Foreign Secretary paid another

British Government.

visit to Peking in July 1984, at which further

substantial progress was made.

That paved the way to

final agreement: the texts were initialled on 26

September 1984.

III:

Consultation with the people of Hong Kong

8.

The British Government had made it clear from the outset of the negotiations that any agreement on Hong Kong's future would have to be acceptable to the people

a member of of Hong Kong. The Governor of Hong Kong was

the British negotiating team and the British Government took care to ensure that members of the Executive

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