One country, two systems
"
One country, two systems" (;
Jyutping: jat1 gwok3 loeng5 zai3;
Yale: yāt gwok leúhng jai), is an idea originally proposed by
Deng Xiaoping, then
Paramount Leader of the
People's Republic of China (PRC), for the
reunification of China.
In
1984,
Deng Xiaoping proposed to apply the principle to
Hong Kong in the negotiation talks with
British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher over the future of Hong Kong when the lease of the
New Territories (including
New Kowloon) of Hong Kong to
Britain was to expire in
1997. The same principle was proposed in the talks with
Portugal over
Macau.
The principle is that upon reunification, despite the practice of "
socialism" in
mainland China,
Hong Kong and
Macau, which were formerly colonies of the
United Kingdom and
Portugal respectively, can retain their established system (British and Portuguese respectively) under a high degree of autonomy for at least fifty years after reunification to a very large extent.
The establishment of these regions, called
special administrative regions (SARs), is authorized by Article 31 of the
Constitution of the People's Republic of China, which states that the State may establish SARs when necessary, and that the systems to be instituted in them shall be prescribed by law enacted by the
National People's Congress in light of the specific conditions.
The SARs of Hong Kong and Macau were formally established on
July 1,
1997 and
December 20,
1999 respectively, immediately after the
People's Republic of China (PRC) assumed the sovereignty over the respective regions.
Framework
The two SARs of
Hong Kong and
Macau are responsible for their domestic affairs, including, but not limited to, the
judiciary and
courts of last resort,
immigration and
customs,
public finance,
currencies and
extradition.
Diplomatic relations and
national defense of the two SARs are, however, the responsibility of the
Central People's Government in
Beijing.
Hong Kong continues using
English common law. Macau continues using the Portuguese
civil law system.
Implementation
In
Hong Kong, the system has been implemented through the
Basic Law of Hong Kong, which serves as the mini-constitution of the region, and consistent with the
Sino-British Joint Declaration. Similar arrangements are in place with
Macau.
Under the respective basic laws, the SARs have a high degree of autonomy and enjoy executive, legislative and independent judicial power, including that of final adjudication. They formulate their own monetary and financial policies, maintain their own currencies, formulate their own policies on education, culture, sports, social welfare system, etc. within the framework of the basic laws.
As stipulated by the basic laws, while the Central People's Government of the PRC is responsible for foreign affairs and defence in relation to the SARs, representatives of the Government of the SARs may participate, as members of delegations of the PRC, in diplomatic negotiations that directly affect the Regions, and in other international organizations or conferences limited to states and affecting the region. For those international organizations and conferences not limited to states, the SARs may participate using the names in the form of "Hong Kong, China". As separate economic entities, both SARs of
Hong Kong and
Macau are members of the
World Trade Organization.
Hong Kong is also one of the member economies of
APEC.
The basic laws also provide constitutional protection on various fundamental
human rights and freedoms. Specifically, the
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights is given a constitutional status through the basic laws.
Some international observers and human rights organisations have expressed doubts over the future freedom of expressing political opinions, and on the pledge of high degree of autonomy in Hong Kong. They considered, for example, that the proposals on
Article 23 of the Basic Law in 2003 (which was withdrawn due to mass opposition) might have undermined freedoms. Some also criticized that Beijing's influence on the democratic developments in Hong Kong could undermine the pledge of a high degree of autonomy.
Nonetheless, the governments of the People's Republic of China and Hong Kong both consider that the principle has been successfully implemented, quoting official reports of both the
United Kingdom and the
United States. Public polls have also shown that among the various areas of governance, the public is most satisfied with the degree of freedoms enjoyed.
The 14th
Dalai Lama,
Tenzin Gyatso, has expressed interest in using "One Country, Two Systems" for governing Tibet. He has said that under such a system he would be willing to return to Tibet from exile. The government of the People's Republic of China, however, see this system as inapplicable to Tibet because "Tibet is already a part of China" and fears that "One Country, Two systems" will be used as a gateway to formal
Tibetan independence. [
1]
This system has also been proposed by the PRC government for
Taiwan, but the
Republic of China (ROC) government has refused this offer. (It was also claimed that the system was originally designed for Taiwan.) Special provisions for the ROC military have also been proposed. The concept of "One country, two systems" tends to be highly unpopular in Taiwan, with polls consistently showing 80% opposition and only about 10% support . All of the major parties in Taiwan, including those that lean toward
Chinese reunification have come out strongly against "One country, two systems." One of the few Taiwanese who have publicly supported "one country, two systems" is novelist
Li Ao.
Although the "One country, two systems" guarantees to leave Hong Kong's
economic and
political systems unchanged for 50 years after the British handover in
1997, the
Mainland Affairs Council on Taiwan has cited 169 cases in which they claim the PRC has breached Hong Kong people's right to self-rule and severely intervened in the judicial system as well as freedom of speech.
Since the accession of Hu Jintao, the PRC has stopped promoting immediate reunification via "one country, two systems" (though it remains official policy) in favor of stepwise economic integration and political exchanges.
This approach was emphasized during the
2005 Pan-Blue visits to mainland China.
A mention of the "one country, two systems" framework was conspicuously absent in the
Anti-Secession Law of the People's Republic of China.
*
Political divisions of China*
Special Administrative Region*
Basic Law of Hong Kong*
Hong Kong law*
Legal system of Hong Kong*
Basic Law of Macau*
Legal system of Macau*
Kingdom of the Netherlands - a similar arrangement
*
"One Country, Two Systems", HKSAR Government web site
