IT was 98 years ago today when British and Chinese officials met in Beijing and signed an innocuous-looking document of 10 paragraphs. Britain already held Hong Kong Island and Kowloon through two earlier treaties, so they could hardly foresee the far-reaching consequences of the 99-year lease they took out on the New Territories. Officials signed and sealed four copies in English and four in Chinese of the Convention Between the United Kingdom and China Respecting an Extension of Hong Kong Territory on June 9, 1898. 'It has for many years past been recognised that an extension of Hong Kong territory is necessary for the proper defence and protection of the colony,' the treaty stated. 'The area leased to Great Britain . . . includes the waters of Mirs Bay and Deep Bay, but it is agreed that Chinese vessels of war, whether neutral or otherwise, shall retain the right to use those waters. 'This convention shall come into force on the first day of July, 1898, being the 13th day of the fifth moon of the 24th year of Kuang Hsu.' To mark Hong Kong's birthday as the area we now recognise, a fung shui expert and an astrologer offer their insights into our final year as a British territory.
