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Isn't that the difference between sovereignty and self-governance? HK is self-governing in a lot of ways, but it's not a sovereign state, so it exists at the me
by mwfunk 10y ago
Isn't that the difference between sovereignty and self-governance? HK is self-governing in a lot of ways, but it's not a sovereign state, so it exists at the mercy of China. I don't know to what degree HK's independence is guaranteed by international treaties vs. agreements that are purely internal to China. If there's no international agreement with entities outside of China to honor HK's independence, surely the Chinese government could overrule the local government when it sees fit (like the US Federal government taking precedence over state governments when there are conflicting laws and interests).
- FabHK 10y agoIANAL, and it's complicated - there was the UK-China "handover" treaty that guarantees the 50 yrs of autonomy, starting from the 1997 handover. But note that I'm not disagreeing with the original poster or you: it might well not be sovereign. My point was that having mainland police acting on HK soil is problematic, as it stands, no matter what the status with respect to sovereignty is.