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26th February 1968
82
Thank you very much for your letter of 8th February. I apologise for the delay in replying, but I have had a very careful investigation made into the circumstances of the item, transmitted on the 9th January in "24 Hours", of which you wrote.
Let me start by thanking you for your assistance to the BBC since you have been Governor. In the last few years, as you know, the BBC has given a great deal of attention to Hong Kong. Indeed I think it can be said to be largely through television that the people of this country understand the problems and achievements of Hong Kong much better than before. We have all been given a vivid idea of your situation and the complexities of life in Hong Kong.
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I am particularly sorry therefore that you have felt that there has been cause on this occasion to take exception to this item. On the whole it told a positive story about the achievements of Hong Kong in 1967 - and its attitude to 1968 was hopeful and optimistic. The item ended with Davies saying:
"No, I'm very far from gloomy. After all we've come through 167 in which China - which dominates us, our economic co-operation with China is absolutely essential to the future of Hong Kong, its whole raison d'etre, and during that year China has been putting politics to the fore, and during that year, she stepped back from the confrontation with Hong Kong, she didn't want to take it over, she didn't want to harm it too much. And so this in my mind constitutes the best guarantee we have for the future. I think the Year of the Monkey 1968 is the Year of the Monkey
the signs are set fair."
for the Chinese
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(Cont'd.)