Hong Kong: the Joint Declaration

House of Commons Library

Hong Kong: the Joint Declaration

The UK Government’s response to the recent protests in Hong Kong has drawn attention to the 1984 Sino-British Joint Declaration. This briefing paper explores what the Declaration is and concerns about its status.

How did the Declaration come about?

• British rule over Hong Kong dates to the 19th century, when Hong Kong island was cededto Great Britain by China after the first Opium War in 1842.
• Further territory was added after the second Opium War and in 1898, when Great Britain obtained the New Territories on a 99-year lease.
• On 19 December 1984 the UK Government and the Government of the People's Republic of China (PRC) signed The Sino-British Joint Declaration on the Question of Hong Kong.On 1 July 1997 the UK transferred sovereignty over Hong Kong to thePRC.

"One country, Two systems": what does the Joint Declaration say?

The principle ‘One country, Two systems’ underpins the Declaration although the term is not explicitly used in the Declaration. The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR) will be directly under the authority of the People’s Republic of China but will enjoy a “high degree of autonomy” and its social and economic systems and lifestyle will remain unchanged for fifty years.

Is the declaration legally binding?

• TheUK Government is clear that the Joint Declarationis a legally binding treaty, registered with the United Nations, which continues to remain in force.Itremains as valid today as it did when it was signed over thirty years ago.
• The Foreign Secretary reaffirmed this on the 22nd anniversary of the handover when he declared the UKs commitment to the Declaration as unwavering.
• Since 1997 the Foreign Secretary has reported to Parliament at six-monthly intervals on the implementation of the Joint Declaration.

China challenges the status of the Joint Declaration

• Chinese officials have, in recent years, challenged the status of the Joint Declaration.
• TheForeign Affairs Committee noted comments by Chinese Foreign Ministry officials in 2017 suggesting the arrangements under the Joint Declaration are now history and described it as ridiculous for the UK to pose itself as a supervisor on Hong Kong affairs.
• This view was repeated more recently following UK Government concerns about the police response to protests in June-July 2019.
• Our clear view is that the Sino-British joint declaration of 1984 obliges the Chinese Government to uphold Hong Kongs high degree of autonomy, and its rights and freedoms, and we call on the Chinese Government to do so.
• The Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties, to which both the UK and China are States Parties, provides only for the suspension of the operation of a treaty in the event that it is breached.
• The UK Government has assessed there has been one serious breach of the Joint Declaration.
• This was in 2015 and relates to the involuntary removal British citizen and Hong Kong bookseller Lee Po from Hong Kong to mainland China.

'One country, one system?': Concerns about Hong Kong's autonomy

• The protests against the extradition bill in June and July 2019 reflect fears that Hong Kong's autonomy and freedoms are at risk.
• These have been catelogued by the UK Government in its six-monhtly reports to Parliament.
• In 2017 the FCO reported "Hong Kong's high degree of autonomy is under increasing pressure".
• Commentators have alsocommented on theerosion of political and media liberties in Hong Kong.

The extradition law protests

• OnSunday 9 Juneprotestors took to the streets of Hong Kong to oppose a draft amendment to extradition laws.
• The law would allow the extradition of individuals from Hong Kong to mainland China.
• Critics fear the law would enable the Chinese government to pursue political opponents.
• On2 Julyprotestors broke into the Parliamentary building, the LegCo, and draped a colonial-era Hong Kong flag on the podium.