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Hong Kong's Policy towards China
activities.
With the rapidly changing situation in South-
East Asia, the value of the Colony as a listening post and
staging point will increase. Hong Kong also depends
heavily on China for essential supplies, especially food and
so is of direct economic value to China; between a third and
a half of China's foreign exchange earnings comes via the
Colony. These earnings play a major role in financing China's
trade deficits with other areas of the non-communist world.
13. Hong Kong's policy towards China has been one of
firmness without provocation"; in particular, the
Government is careful not to cause offence, e.g. by avoiding
official contacts with the Nationalist authorities in Formosa,
and by ensuring as far as possible that the latter do not use
Hong Kong as a base for their subversive and intelligence
activities against the mainland.
Present Policy 14. of local
Communists
COMMUNIST CONFRONTATION
Since the end of the communist inspired disturbances in
1967, the local communists have avoided violence in their
programme of confrontation with the authorities. They are
under firm instructions from Peking to act within the law and
to direct their activities to building a broader political
base in the Colony. They have kept up their criticism of
the authorities using whatever means may have come to hand
and there is every indication that they will continue
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/indefinitely