W(B)L 51-7433
NOTHING TO BE WRITTEN IN THIS MARGIN
Registry No.
HWB 13/22
DRAFT Letter
SECURITY CLASSIFICATION
To:-
"Top Secret.
Secret.
Confidential.
Restricted: Unclassified.
PRIVACY MARKING
In Confidence
(64
241)on Vol A.
38
(но
19
J.E.A. Miles, Esq.,
British High Commission, P.O. Box 1812,
Custom House Quay, Wellington,
New Zealand.
Type 1 +
Mr.
CFO
Telephone No. & Ext.
Department
8 January 1961)
I am replying to your letter No. 2-WEL-280/35/1
of 14 December about adverse publicity on Hong Kong.
I am sorry if you have been awaiting a follow-up
to our telegram No. 1954 of 7 September to Hong Kong.
In fact, our subsequent exchanges with them on this
subject have been confined to one Saving despatch
which we sent them on 18 October, and a copy of which
I now enclose. You will note from it that any changes
in the schedule of P. & 0, visits to Hong Kong appear
to have been due to events in the Middle East rather
than to the situation in the Colony. We similarly
got little change out of our enquiries about B.O.A.C.'s
attitude, apart from the fact that this too was
apparently due to technical considerations rather than
to the disturbances in Hong Kong.
In
As regards your second paragraph, in the light of You
whate say, I suspect that the reasons for the
statement made in the last sentence of Hong Kong
telegram No. 1355 can be traced back (at any rate so
far as the position in New Zealand is concerned) to the
somewhat inaccurate picture of the situation in Hong
Konga
which was conveyed by press reporting in this
country at the time.
The Hong Kong Government has
So far as possible
[that
since taken steps to ensure that an accurate account of
the situation in the Colony is made known overseas,
particularly where their own trade connexions are
concerned. We are, however, passing on to Hong Kong
the suggestion in paragraph 5 of your letter.
/4.
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