CONFIDENTIAL
INWARD TELEGRAM
TO THE COMMONWEALTH OFFICE
The Secretary of State)
FROM HONG KONG (0.A.G.)
Cypher
D. 25 July, 1967. R. 25
0825Z
108
IMMEDIATE
CONFIDENTIAL
No. 1107
Priscial
анша
HWA21/1
Addressed to Commonwealth Office
Repeated
??
#2
10
20
On 24 July,
Peking No.445
POLAD Singapore No. 265 and Washington No.237
(S. of S. please pass to all)
and up to present time today (1500 L.T.) no trains arrived from Canton at border. Normally there are two passenger and several goods trains each day. Food supplies are continuing to come into the Colony by sea and road. There has been a substantial increase in the use of road transport to offset the lack of the
rail deliveries.
2.
No explanations have been offered by C.P.G. organisations, but the few travellers from Canton who crossed the border into Hong Kong yesterday (having travelled by bus) surmised that either: -
る。
(a)
(b)
there had been sabotage or a technical break down on the Canton/Shum Chun line; or
confusion in Canton had reached sufficient proportions to prevent the despatch of trains.
Indian couriers delayed in Canton have been told that there will be no trains to Shum Chun "for two or three days". (Peking telegram No. 606 to Foreign Office (not to all) refers). This seems to support paragraph 2(a) above. On the other hand, Canton Radio (but no other provincial station monitored here) on 24 July repeated a broadcast of the People's Daily editorial dated 22 May calling for an immediate halt to violence. This could indicate a general deterioration of the situation there rather than an isolated act of sabotage or a technical failure.
(Passed as requested with advance copies to F.O. F.E. Dept.,
Commonwealth Secretary's Private Office and News Dept.)
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