Word: hong
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Dates: during 1980-1989
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...walkouts forced suspension of the delicate talks. Hong Kong negotiators said they were "temporarily unable to carry out our work as planned" because events in China "have done great damage to the Hong Kong people's confidence in the Basic Law." A preoccupied Beijing canceled a scheduled visit to the colony by Ji Pengfei, who heads China's office of Hong Kong and Macao affairs. Once discussions resume, Hong Kong is certain to bargain harder than ever for protection of its rights...
Half a world away, Britain watched the strife in China with acute concern. Nonetheless, the government of Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher intends to uphold its pledge to return Hong Kong to Chinese rule. "We cannot back away from the 1984 agreement," said a senior British diplomat. "We have signed it, and we are committed to it." Said another high official: "Once the situation settles down in China, it could be for the better. If the reformers do come out on top, that would be more promising for Hong Kong's future." By week's end, however, the liberal reformers appeared...
...London adamantly refuses to issue Hong Kong's Chinese residents, who make up 98% of the population, the first-class passports that would allow them to settle in Britain if they choose. As citizens of a British Dependent Territory, the Hong Kong Chinese cannot emigrate to the United Kingdom without special permission, which has become increasingly difficult to obtain. While a House of Commons committee is expected to recommend loosening the restrictions, most Britons fear that such a move would lead to an unwelcome new wave of immigration...
Anger at being barred from Britain apparently helped rouse Hong Kong's slumbering political spirit last week. In an emotional declaration, Frances Hung, a 24-year-old secretary who braved a typhoon to participate in a march, asserted, "I am a Chinese British subject with a British passport, but what does that mean? Nothing. I cannot leave Hong Kong. The people in Tiananmen Square are my brothers and sisters. They have the same blood as I do. I am Chinese." The unaccustomed outpouring of emotion left many demonstrators teary-eyed. Even the colony's upper crust showed its support...
...newfound solidarity end in the streets. Leading business and professional groups filled Hong Kong newspapers with ads backing the students in Beijing. "I see this as a positive development," said a Western diplomat, "because it means people are beginning to take an active political role and are not just looking for an exit visa...