TNAG-2716-FCO40-3922-House-of-Commons-Select-Committee-on-Foreign-Affairs-enquiry-1993 — Page 122

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kindly and helpfully presented a paper which addresses a number of the

questions the Committee want to put anyway. I am going to suggest that

rather than just ask you to read out the paper to start with, because it is

quite long, it might be easier for the conduct of the meeting if we ask you

questions and then, as it were, you can take your answers from the paper

which you have given us or elaborate them exactly as you wish. Perhaps we

may proceed on that basis. I understand you have some other colleagues

with you from the Foreign Office, Ms Barret and Mr Edwards.

grateful to them for being here as well. Our concerns are with the Joint

Declaration of 1984 between China and the United Kingdom, and the Basic Law

promulgated by the Chinese Government. I suppose our first and rather

We are

obvious question is what is the status of these documents, where do they

stand in international law, and can they be referred to an International

Court of Justice and if not, why is that so?

(Mr Chamberlain)

Thank you very much, Mr Chairman. May I first say

how grateful I am for this opportunity to give evidence to your Committee.

I apologise for the delay in getting to you, the paper which I have

presented. I do not know whether Members of the Committee have yet had

time to read it and inwardly digest it.

46.

We have glanced at it.

(Mr Chamberlain) I would certainly be happy to answer any questions

on the basis of that paper and any other questions the Committee may have.

May I first of all introduce on my right Mr Christopher Hum, who is the

Assistant Under Secretary in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, with

responsibility for Northern Asia, which includes Hong Kong. Perhaps I may

turn, Mr Chairman, to the two questions that you asked, namely, the status

of the Joint Declaration and the status of the Basic Law in international

law. So far as the Joint Declaration is concerned, this document has the

status of a treaty in international law. It is slightly unusual in being

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