The British Hong Kong Area and the Portugese Macao Area will be returned during the next time to the P.R.C. While in Hong Kong the returning date is in June 1997, Macao is returned to the P.R.C. on the 23th of Dec. 1999 at midnight. With this dates not only the DXCC interested have two more deleted cuntries, but also the IOTA hunters will become two more deleted IOTA numbers, but will become two new one.
With both governments, the P.R.C. declared a special area for the next 50 years, till both will become a fixed part of China. That will be used also for the fronting islands.
When Hong Kong will be returned, the today used IOTA Number AS-006, must be deleted - compare AF-055, when South Africa returned the Guano Island group to Namibia - and the now Chinese Hong Kong islands, must become a part of the new number AS-NEW (letter b. GuangDong Province East). This number is not referenced today, but must be referenced after.
The same must be used for AS-075. Also this number must be deleted and must be transfered to AS-NEW (letter c. GuangDong Province West).
But there is also another possible way. This way is to let the status as known today for the next 50 years, when both areas are retuned finaly to China. But with the deleting of both countries from the DXCC list, both areas must become - compare rules of the IOTA - one of the described new-refernce numbers.