continuing success. The economic stake lies
in China's investment in Hong Kong, its
trade with the territory, and the part which
Hong Kong capital and enterprise has played
in energising the the neighbouring areas of
the mainland. The political stake lies in
the damage to China's interests and prestige
which would be caused if Hong Kong were to
go downhill after 1997. Since the Joint
Declaration came into force in May 1985, we
and the Chinese Government have been working
consistently together through the Joint
Liaison Group to make practical and legal
arrangements that will endure after 1997,
and that will be faithful to the letter and
spirit of the Joint Declaration. And China
has recently completed nearly 5 years work
on the promulgation of the Basic Law. If
the Chinese had the contempt for these
arrangements that the Jeremiahs would have
us believe, it is odd for them to have
wasted so much time and energy in this work.
If they simply intended to ignore the
arrangements, why worry so much about their
content?
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