CONFIDENTIAL
allow him to do so. On the other hand, if he adopted a
high posture he would amount to an alternative governor
and sooner or later a trial of strength would occur.
Incidentally he would be a sitting duck for any agent
provocateur with a gun or bomb.
13. So far the Chinese Government has never pressed for
an official representative though they have made
occasional references to the possibility. The last one,
by Chou En-lai, in March, was typical. He did not ask
for an official representative in Hong Kong but in an
exchange about Taiwan said it was illogical for us to
maintain the Consulate in Tamsui when the Chinese did
not have a Representative in Hong Kong. But the local
Communists in Hong Kong have been encouraged to claim
in private that representation is now a major Chinese
objective.
14. For my part, I think it arguable that Peking is
fully aware of the situation described in paragraph 8,
and will not push a demand for Representation to the
limit unless and until a decision has been taken gradually
to change the status of the Colony. In this case official
representation would be a logical first step.
15. So I think that so long as we see no advantage in negotiating about the future of the Colony, we must stick
to the present system of contacts and communications and
5. CONFIDENTIAL
/stand