TNAG-2186-FCO40-3123-Ethnic-minorities-in-Hong-Kong-1990 — Page 38

Dame Janet Fookes DBE MP

House of Commons London SWLA OAA

HKD 340/2

RECEIVED IN REGISTRY

- 9 OCT 1990

INDEX

DESK OFFICER PA

Hssu

(84)

х

Douglas Hurd Thank you for your letter of 7 December to the foreign Secretary about the non Chinese ethnic minorities in Hong y Kong and the representations by the Council of Hong Kong

Indian Associations.

made on their behalf

x Douglas Hard had the opportunity to discuss these

concerns with a delegation from the Council of Hong Kong Indian Associations in London in November, and his Parliamentary Private Secretary, Tim/Yeo, also met them in Hong Kong on 16 January.

X

We have taken very careful note of all the representations on this issue. In reaching the decision which was announced to the House on 20 December, the we Government took fully into account the arguments put to us by the Council on behalf of the non-ethnic Chinese minorities. We concluded that we could not treat this group as a special category within the scheme: the non-ethnic Chinese minorities will be eligible to apply for British citizenship under the scheme and each application will be treated on its merits.

As you know, in recognition of the particular concern of the ethnic minorities in Hong Kong, the Government have already taken steps to feassure them about their position after 1997. We have made provision for the children and grandchildren of former BDTCs born after 1997 to acquire British Overseas Citizenship if they would otherwise be stateless. And we have also given a specific assurance in Parliament that if, against all expectations, the ethnic minorities came under pressure to leave Hong Kong in the future, and had nowhere to go, we would expect the × Government of the day to consider their case for

admission here with considerable and particular sympathy. We stand by that undertaking.

The Council have also expressed concern about the absence of clear provisions on how non-Chinese people can prove that they have taken Hong Kong as their place of permanent residence. The Joint Declaration makes explicit provision for non-Chinese people to have right of abode in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. and this is fully reflected in Article 24(4) of the draft

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