SECRET
NOTE FOR THE RECORD
6
HONG KONG.
The Secretary of State held an Office Meeting on
25 October to discuss the problems of Hong Kong in the context of Sino-British relations. The Governor of Hong Kong was present.
2.
Sir A. Galsworthy reported on discussions already concluded at official level with the Governor. These had resulted in agreement on the immediate policy to be followed in relations with China over Hong Kong, as set out in a recent submission by Far Eastern Department in the following broad terms:
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"In brief, while we need to avoid doing things which might provoke the Chinese, our object must be to exercise sufficient firmness so that the Chinese reckon that if they press on with any particular troublesome line of action it will either be thwarted by us, or cause such a degree of disruption as to harm their interests. At the same time we should not miss chances of gradual escalation". This was substantially the policy of "firmness without provocation" pursued since the Communists came to pwer in China in 1949.
3.
There had also been agreement on the handling of the more important current problems in this context, with the possible exception of how to procure the release of Mr. Grey of Reuters. Measures for containing the spread of Communist education had been discussed which, if applied in a non-discriminatory manner and presented publicly with care, should not too greatly offend Chinese susceptibilities; the Governor would continue to consult us fully about these. It had been agreed that detainees should be gradually released as part of the process of de-escalation, subject to the need to take full account of security considerations in Hong Kong.
and the
4. Mr. Stewart accepted the broad statement of policy lines on which it was proposed to apply it in the fields of Communist education and release of detainees as being right for the purposes of administering Hong Kong. He was concerned however to know about its implications in the context of our general relations with China, particularly in the matter of the treatment of British subjects. He said that one point of view that was from time to time put to him was that we ought to take tough action against China (e.g. through trade sanctions) to secure the release of British subjects detained there. Officials explained to Mr. Stewart the reasons why counter-action, e.g. against the New China News Agency in London or in the field of trade, was thought likely to be ineffective.
5. The following points were made in discussions:-
a)
To enable Mr. Stewart to counter suggestions for trade sanctions, the Department would rehearse in detail the arguments against such a course of action. It would also submit details of people of other nationalities detained in China, and the efforts their countries have made, with no apparent success, to secure their release.
SECRET
/ b) It was