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Double Tenth. He gave copious examples with photographic evidence in support. By this time, all the football matches scheduled for the Double Tenth had been cancelled and his main anxiety related to the possible showing on TVB of a film depicting the life of Chiang Kai-shek. There had been press reports that the managing director of TVB having gone to Taiwan to beg forgiveness for the Mao film, had promised to do penance with a Chiang film on the Double Tenth. However, Li was complimentary about the efforts so far made by the Hong Kong police to damp down KMT enthusiasm and was particularly gratified when he was told that the Chiang Kai-shek film had not been approved for public showing at any time. He was also told that the police would, as always, maintain law and order in an impartial way and while we could not give a guarantee that there would be no incidents, we would do our best to ensure that there were no breaches of the peace.
5.
There is no doubt that the cancellation of the football matches (which was due more to the efforts of the communists themselves through Henry Fok than to us) and our firm stand against the broadcast of any KMT propaganda on HKTVB helped to keep the communists calm. Meanwhile our obvious police alertness also contributed to keeping the day itself trouble free. However, it is equally clear that while the nationalists are definitely more bouyant than usual as a result of Mao's death, the communists seem to be suffering from a distinct insecurity complex. We shall have to continue to watch this new nervousness carefully in view of the latest events in China.
CC
T J David Esq
Hong Kong Department FCO
R R Garside Esq
PEKING
Encl
(C D S Drace-Francis)
SECRET