CONFIDENTI AL
CYPHER/CAT A
IMMEDIATE HONG KONG
527
TO COMMONWEALTH OFFICE
TELEGRAM NUMBER 536
27 APRIL 1968
CONFIDENTIAL.
ADDRESSED CO AS MY TELEGRAM NO. 536 DATED 27TH APRIL RFI PEKING.
518A
LAST
R
PEKING TELEGRAM NO. 348 TO FOREIGN OFFICE : GREY.
518A
532
WHILE I NATURALLY DO NOT WANT TO MAKE IT ANY HARDER FOR HOPSON TO
OBTAIN MORE REGULAR ACCESS TO GREY, I AM MOST RELUCTANT TO START
ANOTHER ROUND OF NEGOTIATIONS WITH NCNA FOR FURTHER 'SPECIAL VISITS'.
A SECOND VISIT SO SOON WOULD TEND TO CONSOLIDATE NCNA'S 'SPECIAL
POSITION' HERE, AND PAY PROPAGANDA DIVIDENDS TO THE COMMUNISTS.
MOREOVER, THE CHINESE MIGHT WELL RAISE THE PRICE OF A FURTHER VISIT
TO GREY AND A SECOND NCNA VISIT COULD ENCOURAGE THE CHINESE TO
INCREASE THEIR USE OF GREY AS A BARGAINING COUNTER. WHILE THE
PREVIOUS VISITS WERE REASONABLY WELL ACCEPTED BY PUBLIC OPINION HERE,
THEIR EARLY REPETITION COULD WELL HAVE A MORE ADVERSE EFFECT.
2. A BASIC POINT, HOWEVER, WHICH MIGHT BE USED TO HELP GREY IS THE
FACT THAT ALL COMMUNIST PRISONERS HAVE HITHERTO ENJOYED THE
'PRIVILEGE' OF REGULAR MONTHLY VISITS FROM FRIENDS AND RELATIVES.
COULD WE NOT ASK, AS A MATTER OF RECIPROCITY, FOR MONTHLY NON-
OFFICIAL VISITS TO GREY, E.G. BY NON-DIPLOMATIC STAFF FROM THE
MISSION WHO ARE AMONG HIS FRIENDS? IN ASKING FOR THESE IT MIGHT BE*
WORTH MAKING IT CLEAR THAT IN HONG KONG SUCH VISITS ARE GRANTED
AT THE DISCRETION OF THE COMMISSIONER OF PRISONS AS PRIVILEGES TO
WELL-BEHAVED PRISONERS WHO ABIDE BY PRISON REGULATIONS ON SUCH
MATTERS AS DAILY WORK (WHICH SEVERAL HUNDRED OF THE COMMUNISTS DO
NOT).
3. WITH REFERENCE TO PARAGRAPH 2 OF THE TELEGRAM UNDER REFERENCE,
ON THE WHOLE WE WOULD HAVE THOUGHT IT BETTER, IF POSSIBLE, FOR
HOPSON TO AVOID DISCUSSIONS ON THE DETAILS OF NCNA COMPLAINTS ABOUT
PRISON CONDITIONS, PRIMARILY BECAUSE THIS COULD LEAD TO AN INDEFINITE
CONTROVERSY.
4. ON OTHER POINTS, THE FOLLOWING ARGUMENTS COULD BE USED:--
(A) LETTERS: PRISONERS IN HONG KONG ARE ALLOWED TO SEND ONE LETTER
CONFIDENTIAL
/A MONTH