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(which they surprisingly virtually ignored) and, turning into
Albert Road, stopped opposite the main gates of Government House.
Throughout their progress they would shout in unison selected
extracts from the thoughts of MAO. At Government House itself,
representatives of the groups were initially permitted to enter
to present petitions, all on approximately the same theme - demanding
that the four demands be met. As they became more unruly and
demanding, the gates of Government House were eventually closed;
a desk for petitioners to hand in their petitions was provided and
special parking facilities were arranged for the rather more
bourgeois communists who could not face the walk and were conveyed
in modern capitalist motorcars to present their petitions and demands.
8.
The shouting of MAO's thoughts outside Government House
became the accepted order of things for several days, with, in
addition, the festooning of posters over the gates and the walls
at the entrance to the grounds. As far as possible every effort
was made to avoid a clash or an incident which could be construed
by the left-wing as provocation, thus starting a disorder from
which a "martyr" or "martyrs" could have resulted. Attempts to
cause such incidents were unsuccessful despite the grave
provocation offered by the demonstrators. In one instance a MAO
group cheer leader stood so close to a Police Officer, shouting the
thoughts of MAO, that he was virtually standing on the officer's
feet.
It was only when the officer produced a loud hailer, which
he carefully placed over the face of the chanter and told him to
"go away" at full volume, that the demonstrator moved!
9.
While this type of demonstration was going on in
Hong Kong, both the Government and the Communists were constantly
looking towards China and reking, wherein the key to the future
of the confrontation most certainly lay. On 15th May Peking showed
its hand by coming out with an official statement from the Foreign
Ministry "urgently and sternly protesting against bloody violence
of British authorities in Hong Kong;
solemnly pledging strong
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