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is being directed the Bank of China and the
communist-controlled Federation of Trade Union H.Q.
and the Workers Club; and
(b) to bring the Commando Carrier "Bulwark" to
Hong Kong.
Both these requests were approved.
Attacks on our posts in Macag, Poking and Shanghai.
12.
Soon after the disturbances began in Hong Kong, the British
Consulate in Macao was the target of repeated demonstrations and
the staff have been compelled to vacate their quarters for a
hotel.
13. After the Peking statement of 15th May similar demonstrations
wore mounted against our offices in Peking and on the 16th May
the office in Shanghai was invaded by a mob and sacked, On the
22nd May the Charge d'Affaires in Peking was informed that the
Chinese Government considered that the 1954 Agreement was annulled
and demanded that the Shanghai office should be closed within
24 hours.
The apparent parallel with Macao
14. There is an apparent parallel with events in Macao which
have been widely studied in pro-communist circles in Hong Kong.
There too the crisis began with a local dispute (in the case,
however, badly handled by the police) which led to "demands"
by local pro-communists which were endorsed later by the
Chinese authoritics. The Portuguese reacted by trying to
appease the local pro-communists who only stepped up their
demands. Internal and external pressure was applied, including
the implicd threat of Chinese military action, until the
Portuguese backed down and accepted the Chinese demands in
The Chinese were entirely intransigent and seemed
determined to enforce their will and to demonstrate that the
Portuguese were remaining in Macao only on sufferance and
subject to them falling in with Chinese wishes on all points.
full.
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