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III.
HONG KONG AND CHINA
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(a) Sino-British Relations
Her Majesty's Government continue to consider close and
friendly relations with China as important in themselves and of direct benefit to Hong Kong. Only through a cooperative relationship with China can we establish in good time a
solid and workable basis for Hong Kong's future and maintain
Hong Kong's own confidence in that future. During 1990, Her
Majesty's Government have worked for a steady improvement in Sino-British relations, particularly after the difficulties of 1989. The then Minister with responsibility for Hong Kong, Mr Francis Maude, visited Peking in July. In October, the 12 member states of the European Community
decided on a relaxation of the restrictive measures taken
against China in June 1989. In November, the Chinese Vice
Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr Tian Zengpei, visited
London. A further increase in high level contacts is
expected in the coming months.
(b) Basic Law
4. The Joint Beclaration provides that the basic policies of the People's Republic of China regarding Hong Kong will be stipulated in a Basic Law of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region and will remain unchanged for fifty
years. Enacted and promulgated on 4 April 1990 by the National People's Congress, the Basic Law is the product of extensive consultations with the people of Hong Kong, conducted over a period of five years by the Chinese
authorities. Her Majesty's Government took a very close interest in this process, making their views known to the Chinese authorities through a variety of channels. Their
concern throughout the drafting process was to ensure
consistency between the Basic Law and the provisions of the
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