rt. The Agreement itself consists of a Joint Declaration and three Annexes. Each part has equal status, the whole making up a formal international agreement legally binding in all its parts. An international agreement of this kind is t he highest form of commitment between two sovereign states.1 . A concise, official statement of the history of the London-Beijing agreement on the future of Hong Kong can be found in "A Draft Agreement between the Government of the United Kingdom of Great B ritain and Northern Ireland and the Government of the People's Republic of China on the Future of Hong Kong" (London: Her Majesty's Government, September 26, 1984). For a much richer history, see Frank Ching, Hong Kona and China (New York: China Council o f the Asia Society, 1985).
- 2In the Joint Declaration, the two governments restore the right of sovereignty over Hong Kong to China on July 1, 1997; set forth the basic policies of the PRC regarding Hong Kong (a point that will be elaborated upon momen tarily); agree that London will remain responsible for the administration of Hong Kong until June 30, 1997; and establish a Sino-British Joint Liaison Group to ensure a smooth transition of government in 1997. Annex I contains an elaboration of Chinese policies for the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR) after 1997. The concept of the SAR is contained in Article 31 of the PRC Constitution, which provides: The state may establish special administrative regions when necessary. The systems to be instituted in special administrative regions shall be prescribed by law enacted by the Nationai People's Congress in the light of the specific conditions. As explained by Peng Zhen in 1982, this provision was specifically designed for Taiwan, Hong Kong,,-la nd Macau.3 The fact that Hong Kong is a SAR with "a high degree of autonomy" is also significant, because it places Hong Kong ina special administrative relationship with the central government of China. This type of unique arrangement is what constitutes the "one country, two systems" concept, elaborated in October 1984 by Deng Xiaoping in Liaowang. Deng said: "The main system in China must be socialism .... The socialist system practised by one billion people on the mainland will not be changed, but a ca pitalist system will be 4allowed to exist in .certain regions, such as Hong Kong and Taiwan." The highly important Annex I detail7s how Hong Kong will work after the resumption of Chinese sovereignty and describes the extent of its autonomy. The subjects d ealt with include: constitutional arrangements and government structure; the laws; judicial system; public service; financial system; economic system and external economic relations; monetary system; shipping; civil aviation; culture and education; extern al relations; defense, security, and public order; rights and freedoms; and right of abode, travel documents, and immigration.
2. "The Constitution of the People's Republic of China," in Pcogle's Republic of China Year Book. 1985 (Beijing: Xinhua Publishing House, November 1985), p. 12.
3. Xhongauo Xinwen She, November 28, 1982, in FBIS-China, November 30, 1982, p. K19.
4. Deng's remarks can be found in Appendix 11 of Li Jiaquan, "Formula for China's Reunification," Befling Review, February 3, 1986, pp. 25-26.3
Annex II sets out the provisions for the establishment of the Sino-British Joint Liaison Group. Annex III deals with land leases and arranges for the establishment of a joint Land Commmission. The Exchange of Memoranda deals with citizenship and passport status of persons who are now British Dependent Territories citizens.
Although the recovery of sovereignty over Hong Kong is itself a significant historical step for China, the "one country, two systems" formul a applied to Hong Kong as a special administrative region with a high degree of autonomy is designed with two additional purposes: first, to maintain the prosperity and stability of Hong Kong; and second, to serve as a model for the reunification of the m ainland and Taiwan. As such, it is important to note the range