Special administrative regions of China
The special administrative regions 'of the People's Republic of China' are one of four types of province-level divisions of the People's Republic of China directly under the control of its Central People's Government. As a region, they possess the highest degree of autonomy from China's central government. However, despite the relative autonomy that the Central People's Government offers the special administrative regions, the National People's Congress and its Standing Committee remain capable of enforcing laws for the special administrative regions.
The legal basis for the establishment of SAR's, unlike the other administrative divisions of China, is provided for by Article 31, rather than Article 30, of the Constitution of China of 1982. Article 31 reads: "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 National People's Congress in the light of the specific conditions".
At present, there are two SARs established by the Constitution: Hong Kong and Macau. These former British and Portuguese territories were transferred to China in 1997 and 1999 respectively, following the Sino-British and Sino-Portuguese Joint Declarations signed in 1984 and 1987, respectively. Pursuant to their Joint Declarations, which are binding inter-state treaties registered with the United Nations, and their Basic laws, the Chinese SARs "shall enjoy a high degree of autonomy". Generally, the two SARs are not considered to constitute a part of mainland China, by both SAR and mainland Chinese authorities.
The provision to establish special administrative regions appeared in the constitution in 1982, in anticipation of the talks with the United Kingdom over the question of the sovereignty of Hong Kong. It was envisioned as the model for the eventual unification with Taiwan and other islands, where the Republic of China has resided since 1949.
Under the one country, two systems principle, the Chinese Central Government is responsible for the diplomatic, military and other state-level affairs of the two SARs. Both two SARs continue to possess their own multi-party legislatures, legal systems, police forces, separate customs territory, immigration policies, left-hand traffic, official languages, academic and educational systems, representation on certain international bodies and representation in international competitions, and other aspects that fall within the autonomous level.
Special administrative regions should not be confused with special economic zones, which are areas in which special economic laws apply to promote trade and investments. The Wolong Special Administrative Region in Sichuan province is a nature reserve and not a political division.
List of special administrative regions of China
There are currently two special administrative regions established according to Article 31 of the Chinese Constitution. For the [|Wolong] Special Administrative Region in Sichuan Province, please see the section Wolong below.| Name | Chinese / | Yale | Pinyin | Postal map | Abbreviation and GB | Population | Area km2 | ISO | ISO:CN | Admin. Division |
 Hong Konglang\|zh|香港not a typo|Hongkonglang\|zh|港CharacteristicsThe two special administrative regions of Hong Kong and Macau each have a codified constitution called Basic Law. The law provides the regions with a high degree of autonomy, a separate political system, and a capitalist economy under the principle of "one country, two systems" proposed by Deng Xiaoping.High degree of autonomyCurrently, the two SARs of Hong Kong and Macau are responsible for all affairs except those regarding diplomatic relations and national defence. Consequently, the National People's Congress authorises the SAR to exercise a high degree of autonomy and enjoy executive, legislative and independent judicial powers, and each with their own Courts of Final Appeal.Currency
At the same time they are members of various international organisations such as WTO, APEC, etc.
Some countries which have a diplomatic relationship with the central Chinese government maintain Consulate-General offices in Hong Kong and Macau. Olympic GamesIn sporting events such as the Olympic Games or Asian Games, the SARs may have their own independent teams. They participate under the respective names of "Hong Kong, China" and "Macau, China", and compete as different entities as they had done since they were under foreign rules, but both SARs are usually allowed to omit the term ", China" for informal use.Defence and militaryThe People's Liberation Army is garrisoned in both SARs. PRC authorities have said the PLA will not be allowed to interfere with the local affairs of Hong Kong and Macau, and must abide by its laws. In 1988, scholar Chen Fang of the Academy of Military Science even tried to propose the "One military, two systems" concept to separate the defence function and public functions in the army. The PLA does not participate in the governance of the SAR but the SAR may request them for civil-military participation, in times of emergency such as natural disasters. Defence is the responsibility of the PRC government.A 1996 draft PRC law banned People's Liberation Army–run businesses in Hong Kong, but loopholes allow them to operate while the profits are ploughed back into the military. There are many PLA-run corporations in Hong Kong. The PLA also have sizeable land holdings in Hong Kong worth billions of dollars. Immigration, nationality, and passportsEach of the SARs issues passports on its own to its permanent residents who are concurrently Chinese citizens, provided that one of the following conditions is satisfied:
There are no laws prohibiting a person from holding permanent residency in both SARs. A person may also hold concurrently hold passports from both SARs provided that they have Chinese nationality and permanent residency in both. Apart from affording the holder consular protection by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, these passports also specify that the holder has right of abode in the issuing SAR. The National People's Congress has also put each SAR in charge of administering the PRC's Nationality Law in its respective realms, namely naturalisation, renunciation and restoration of PRC nationality and issuance of proof of nationality. Due to their colonial past, many inhabitants of the SARs hold some form of non-Chinese nationality. However, SAR residents who are Chinese descent have always been considered as Chinese citizens by the PRC authorities, an exception to this case is Macau, wherein residents of Chinese descent may choose Chinese or Portuguese nationality. Special interpretation of the Nationality Law, while not recognising dual nationality, has allowed Chinese citizens to keep their foreign "right of abode" and use travel documents issued by the foreign country. However, such travel documents cannot be used to travel to mainland China and persons concerned must use Home Return Permit. Therefore, master nationality rule applies so the holder may not enjoy consular protection while in China. Chinese citizens who also have foreign citizenship may declare a change of nationality at the Immigration Department of the respective SARs, and upon approval, would no longer be considered Chinese citizens. SAR permanent residents who are not Chinese citizens are not eligible for SAR passports. Persons who hold a non-Chinese citizenship must obtain passports from foreign diplomatic missions which represents their countries of citizenship. For example, a Russian citizen who has acquired right of abode in Hong Kong and thus holds a Hong Kong Permanent Identity Card would not be considered a Chinese citizen and would continue to hold their Russian passport unless they obtain PRC nationality. For those who are stateless, each SAR may issue its own form of certificates of identity, e.g. Document of Identity, in lieu of national passports to the persons concerned. Chinese citizens who are non-permanent residents of two SARs are also ineligible for SAR passports but may obtain CIs just like stateless persons. |