Hong Kong Question Explained

The Hong Kong Question is the question regarding the political status of the city of Hong Kong in several points in history.

It can be used to refer to:

• Allied Wartime conferences - In 1943, during WWII, the United Kingdom signed a new treaty with the Republic of China to settle their territorial disputes (Sino-British New Equal Treaty). During the negotiations of the treaty, Chiang Kai-shek wanted to include the future of Hong Kong into the discussion, and suggested that the entire city be returned to the Republic of China upon the end of the war.^[1] Then-British PM Churchill utterly refused, and threatened to abandon the treaty altogether if the Chinese were to insist on the issue. The Chinese delegation reluctantly relented, and the issue was not mentioned at the final treaty.^[2]
• End of Japanese Rule - August 15th, 1945, the Japanese officially announced an unconditional surrender, ending the Japanese occupation of Hong Kong. The question over the political future of the city once again resurfaced, but with the Nationalists' apathy due to its focus on combatting against the Communists, and British insistence on control over a major port center in the Far East, the debate was never severe, and the British re-established control over the city following the Japanese surrender.^[3]
• Handover of Hong Kong - The 1998 "Convention for the Extension of Hong Kong Territory" was an agreement for the British to control the New Territories for 99 years, meaning that it would end after June 30th, 1997. As continued British control over the perpetually-ceded Hong Kong Island and Kowloon Peninsula alone would be impractical, they understood that any agreement would decide on the status of the city collectively as a whole. In the 1970s, the British began discussions with the Chinese government over the status of the city once the treaty expired, resulting in the Sino-British Joint Declaration. This agreement saw the British relinquish control over the city after 1997, but the Chinese promised to maintain autonomy in the city for 50 years.^[4]
• End of "50 years without change" - Article 5 of the Hong Kong Basic Law allowed the people of Hong Kong the right to autonomy for 50 years following the city's handover, which is set to expire in 2047. Questions remain over the future status of the city once the 50 years expires, with many fearing that the city could be assimilated into the rest of China through widespread and violent force.^[5]

Treaties involved

• Treaty of Nanking
• Convention of Peking
• Convention for the Extension of Hong Kong Territory
• Sino-British New Equal Treaty
• Sino-British Joint Declaration

Related topics

• One Country, Two Systems
• Hong Kong Basic Law
• Emigration from Hong Kong
• Hong Kong Autonomy Movement
• Hong Kong Independence
• Localism in Hong Kong

Notes and References

1. Web site: Foreign Relations of the United States: Diplomatic Papers, Conferences at Malta and Yalta, 1945 - Office of the Historian . 2023-09-28 . history.state.gov.
2. Web site: Treaty Series No.2 (1943) . https://web.archive.org/web/20120930133049/http://www.fco.gov.uk/resources/en/pdf/treaties/TS1/1943/2 . 2012-09-30 . 2023-09-28 . Foreign and Commonwealth Office.
3. Web site: Foreign Relations of the United States: Diplomatic Papers, 1945, The Far East, China, Volume VII - Office of the Historian . 2023-09-28 . history.state.gov.
4. Web site: The Joint Declaration . 2023-09-28 . www.cmab.gov.hk.
5. Web site: Wong . Brian . Hong Kong’s Looming 2047 Question . 2023-09-28 . thediplomat.com . en-US.