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(C) CONTINUING PREPARATIONS AND PRESS PUBLICITY FOR THE C.P.G.
NATIONAL DAY C1ST OCTOBER) CELEBRATIONS: PLANS CALL FOR LARGE
FUNCTIONS 'GLORIFYING MAO'. THERE HAS BEEN AS YET NO MENTION OF ANY
ASPECT OF THE HONG KONG 'ANTI-PERSECUTION STRUGGLE 1 BEING
INCLUDED IN THE CELEBRATIONS. MEMBERS OF THE MAJORITY OF PROMINENT
COMMUNIST ORGANISATIONS CAN BE EXPECTED TO SPEND AN EVER INCREASING
AMOUNT OF TIME ON THIS SUBJECT IN THE COMING WEEKS.
CD) A ONE DAY WORK STOPPAGE BY THE 110 EMPLOYEES OF A PRINTING
COMPANYOVER THE DISMISSAL OF TWO WORKERS, ONE OF WHOM IS A COMMUNIST
UNION OFFICE BEARER. UNION OFFICIALS DIRECTED THAT THE STRIKERS
RETURN TO WORK LEAVING THE UNION TO ATTEMPT NEGOTIATIONS WITH THE
MANAGEMENT. THE APPROACH TO THIS ISSUE BY THE UNION, EVEN THOUGH AN
OFFICE BEARER WAS INVOLVED, HIGHLIGHTS THE DESIRE OF LOCAL COMMUNIST
LABOUR LEADERS TO AVOID A MAJOR DISPUTE WHILE THE RETURN TO WORK
CAMPAIGN IS BEING PURSUED.
(E) INCREASING PRESSURE ON 'STRIKERS' TO OBTAIN EMPLOYMENT. MEETINGS
EULOGISING 'STRIKERS' WHO HAVE OBTAINED EMPLOYMENT HAVE BEEN HELD
BY SEVERAL UNIONS AND HAVE BEEN WELL PUBLICISED IN THE COMMUNIST
PRESS. A BRANCH OF THE MAIN TRANSPORTATION UNION HAS ANNOUNCED THE
FORMATION OF AN INVESTIGATION TEAM TO IDENTIFY WORKERS MAKING NO
ATTEMPT TO OBTAIN WORK WHILST A GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES UNION HAS
ANNOUNCED IT WILL INVESTIGATE AVAILABLE WORK AND ALSO DISCOVER THOSE
'STRIKERS' IN NEW EMPLOYMENT WHO ARE NOT ACTIVELY PROPAGATING MAO.
AT A MEETING OF THIS UNION, HELD TO WELCOME MEMBERS RELEASED FROM
PRISON, FIVE MEMBERS WHO HAD SEEN SENTENCED TO POLICE
SUPERVISION AND WHOSE FINGERPRINTS WERE LAWFULLY OBTAINED BY THE
USE OF FORCE, CLAIMED THEY HAD BEEN ASSAULTED BY POLICE:
THIS HAS BEEN THE SUBJECT OF ONE DELEGATION TO POLICE HEAD-
QUARTERS AND HAS BEEN GIVEN WIDESPREAD PUBLICITY IN THE COMMUNIST
PRESS. THE PERSONS CONCERNED HAVE SINCE FAILED TO COMPLY WITH THEIR
SUPERVISION ORDERS.
(F) CONTINUED CRITICISM OF GOVERNMENT IN THE COMMUNIST PRESS: THE
MAIN THEMES HAVE BEEN THE CHUNG WA SCHOOL ISSUE (SEE (A) ABOVE) AND
AND AT THE END OF THE WEEK THE ALLEGED ASSAULT OF UNION MEMBERS BY
POLICE (SEE (E) ABOVE). THE GROUNDING OF A U.S. FREIGHTER, CARRYING
CARGO TO VIETNAM, IN COLONY WATERS WAS GIVEN PUBLICITY AS AN EXAMPLE OF THE USE OF HONG KONG AS A 'BASE FOR U.S. AGGRESSION'.
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