TNAG-2185-FCO40-3122-Ethnic-minorities-in-Hong-Kong-1990 — Page 56

From The Minister of State

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Foreign and Commonwealth Office

London SW1A 2AH

45

17

10 July 1990

HKD 34.012 нко

RECEIVED I REGISTRY

17 JUL 1990

быто

Janet

DESK OFFICER INDEX

REGISTRY

PA

Action Taken

Thank you for your letter of 15 June about the concerns of the Eurasian community in Hong Kong.

Mr Ho, President of the Welfare Leaque which represents the Eurasians in Hong Kong, has written to Members of both Houses of Parliament setting out the case for amending the British Nationality (Hong Kong) Bill to make special provision for the Eurasian community in the territory. He argues that Eurasians may be at risk when sovereignty over the territory reverts to the People's Republic of China in 1997, because of their antecedence. For this reason, Mr Ho asks that those Eurasians who claim to be the direct descendants of Britons should be able to register as British citizens.

Ministers have given careful consideration to the position of the Eurasian Community. However, it is our view that if any Eurasians were not to be regarded as "Chinese" after 1997, the same safeguards available to the other members of the non-Chinese ethnic minorities in Hong Kong would also apply to them. The non-Chinese ethnic minorities' right of abode in the Special Administrative Region of Hong Kong is explicitly protected in the Sino-British Joint Declaration and the Basic Law. In addition, the Hong Kong (British Nationality) Order 1986 already gives the ethnic minorities a further assurance by providing subsequent children and grandchildren of those who are British Dependent Territory citizens prior to 1 July 1997, with British Overseas citizenship if they would otherwise be stateless.

The Rt Hon The Baroness Young

House of Lords

LONDON

SW1A OPW

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