[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 93 (Friday, June 27, 1997)]
[Senate]
[Page S6790]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




              WISHING THE PEOPLE OF HONG KONG GOOD FORTUNE

  Mr. LOTT. I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the 
immediate of Senate Resolution 105, submitted earlier today by Senators 
Lieberman and Mack.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report.
  The assistant legislative clerk read as follows:

       A resolution (S. Res. 105) expressing the sense of the 
     Senate that the people of the United States wish the people 
     of Hong Kong good fortune as they embark on their historic 
     transition of sovereignty from Great Britain to the People's 
     Republic of China.

  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection to the immediate 
consideration of the resolution?
  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the 
resolution.
  Mr. LOTT. I ask unanimous consent the resolution be agreed to, the 
preamble be agreed to, the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table 
and that any statements relating to the resolution appear at this point 
in the Record.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The resolution (S. Res. 105) was agreed to.
  The preamble was agreed to.
  The resolution, with its preamble, reads as follows:

                              S. Res. 105

       Whereas at one minute past midnight on July 1, Hong Kong 
     will cease to be a colonial possession of Great Britain and 
     will return to Chinese sovereignty;
       Whereas the people of Hong Kong enjoy civil liberties and 
     political freedoms based on the democratic rule of law and 
     the functions of a free market;
       Whereas the People's Republic of China has promised through 
     international agreements and Chinese law to preserve Hong 
     Kong's way of life and to grant the people of Hong Kong 
     substantial autonomy in self-government;
       Whereas the United States is committed through the Hong 
     Kong Policy Act of 1992 to monitoring, advocating and 
     reporting on the continuation of Hong Kong's freedoms under 
     Chinese rule; and
       Whereas the United States enjoys a longstanding commercial, 
     cultural and political relationship with Hong Kong and a 
     developing relationship with the People's Republic of China: 
     Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That it is the sense of the Senate that--
       (1) the people of the United States wish good fortune to 
     the people of Hong Kong as they embark on their historic 
     transition of sovereignty;
       (2) the United States urges the People's Republic of China 
     to honor both the spirit and the letter of its commitments to 
     accord Hong Kong substantial autonomy as a separate 
     administrative region in a China characterized as ``one 
     country, two systems;''
       (3) the executive branch should exercise due diligence in 
     enforcing the terms and conditions of the Hong Kong Policy 
     Act of 1992 and subsequent acts and provisions concerning the 
     protection of civil liberties and the rule of law in Hong 
     Kong;
       (4) the United States looks forward to continuing its 
     close, productive relationship with the people of Hong Kong; 
     and
       (5) the United States hopes to develop a positive, 
     productive relationship with the People's Republic of China 
     based upon shared respect for human dignity and responsible 
     behavior in the international community of nations.

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