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Flagg.
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CONFIDENTIAL
Reference.......
Mr. Denson
Mr. Murray
The Hong Kong Annual Report
The
We have already given our agreement to the text of the section of the Hong Kong Annual Report on the recent campaign against the Hong Kong Government, but Peking have come up with a number of objections (Peking telegram No 77). I have flagged the pages where they would like to see alterations. Governor of Hong Kong has agreed to make some amendments, but has said that anything further would arouse adverse comment in Hong Kong and would, in any case, entail a complete recasting of the Report which is about to be printed.
12. I have some sympathy with Peking's desire not to impede the recent improvements in the situation in Hong Kong, or the recent signs of improvement in Sino-British relations by what appears in the Report, but I think there is a limit to the extent in which we ought to suppress the truth in order to avoid hurting the feelings of the Chinese, or causing them to change teir policy to Hong Kong. The plain fact is that the Chinese have already made a major change of policy by deciding that the campaign of violeside was a failure, and by calling it off. In my view, they are unlikely to be caused to revert
Nor do to the old policy by what appears in the Annual Report.
I believe that a repetition of what is well known to be the truth, would in itself have any bad effects on Sino-British relations in a way that a serious incident in Hong Kong almost certainly would.
13. Hong Kong have already gone some way towards meeting Peking's wishes; further in fact than I would myself think [necessary. I think we should now agree with Hong Kong that the
I attach a draft Report should be published in its present form. telegram.
Mr. Mussay
Sch
سنا
(D. C. Wilson) 30 January, 1968
و
agree.
Final clearance will
be necusung
with
Commonwealth office
before the Telegram issues.
Jan Denson
CONFIDENTIAL
31
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