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Draft Report
SIR ARTHUR GALSWORTHY said that it was easier to state the problem than to devise a solution for it. In the past we had withdrawn from many dependent territories at the wish of their inhabitants, but the overwhelming majority of the population of Hong Kong wished us to stay. They were not prepared to think seriously about the termination of the lease of the New Territories in 1997 and seemed of imagine that before then we should have been able to reach some accommodation with a more moderate Chinese government, enabling us to retain the Colony. Judging by experience with Gibraltar and the Falkland Islands there would be great difficulties in Parliament over any suggestion that we should withdraw before the lease had lapsed. Whenever we did withdraw, we should have to face the very difficult question of discharging our responsibilities towards the popula- tion of Hong Kong, and in particular towards those who had served us loyally. The question of withdrawal was especially difficult because this was the first occasion on which we would be handing over the inhabitants of a
Even if public formerly British territory to a Communist government. opinion here was prepared to accept this, there would be extreme difficulty in disengaging ourselves. The Chinese would undoubtedly do their utmost to humilitate us in order to avenge the "unequal treaties" and would want
Although we had recently to make Hong Kong work for the benefit of China. been able to reach an accommodation with China on minor questions, there was no possibility of our negotiating a withdrawal with the present Peking Government. We therefore had no choice at present but to stand firm, while hoping that a less immoderate regime would come to power in China and that it would gradually be realised in Hong Kong itself that the territory's future lay as part of, or in some kind of association with, China. This might not be for as much as another ten years, when people would have to take decisions on investment for the future and similar problems. It was to be hoped that by then some Hong Kong Chinese of standing would be prepared to talk about the future with the Chinese authorities and perhaps do much of the detailed negotiation with them. But it was impossible to foretell what conditions would be about that time and it was therefore not feasible to be more precise in formulating the
recommendations of the paper.
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