Word: hong
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Dates: during 1980-1989
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...words of a Western diplomat, send the Chinese "a very broad signal." As the diplomat loosely paraphrased it, the letter said: "We know you will gain sovereignty, but before we put things down in black and white let's see what you have in mind for administering Hong Kong...
...Peking's plans are more cloudy than black and white. The Chinese insist, for instance, that the current talks concern only Peking and London. When Hong Kong's Governor, Sir Edward Youde, announced that he would attend the discussions as a representative of the colony's citizens, he was quickly upbraided. "Mr. Youde," said a Chinese statement, "can only represent the British government in the talks...
...while denying Hong Kong's residents any official role in the discussions, China has been inviting delegations from factory owners to farmers to Peking for discussions. Most of those talks have centered on China's intention to make Hong Kong a "special administrative region" under the terms of an amendment to the Chinese constitution that was formally approved last year. So far, however, that special region has not been precisely defined. Peking has merely hinted to visiting delegations that Chinese and Hong Kong flags would fly together, that the Hong Kong dollar would remain an international currency...
Such promises, however, do not satisfy all of Hong Kong's residents. In a paper presented during a trip to Peking in mid-May, twelve leading young professionals and businessmen insisted that "the suggested self-administration solution cannot achieve the avowed object of maintaining Hong Kong's prosperity and stability. There is no such precedent that we know of where a dependent territory of a socialist country has practiced capitalism in isolation and managed to retain its prosperity...
Paradoxically, Hong Kong's unique status has been good not only for the colony's residents but also for China. Peking earns more than $10 billion annually, or 40% of its foreign exchange, from selling goods to and through Hong Kong. Most businessmen in Hong Kong believe that their city will survive and prosper only if Peking agrees to some form of continued British presence. So far, however, Chinese officials have not convinced either Britain or the colony's residents that Peking also realizes how much it has at stake in Hong Kong's future...