CONF DENTIAL
✩.224
GR 250
CONFIDENTIAL
FX PEKING 117635Z CCT 79
PRIORITY HONG KONG
AMENDED DISTRIBUTION 12 OCTOBER
TELEGRAM NUMBER 75 OF 11 OCTOBER 79
INFO PRIORITY FCO
Аккаю
BL-ZWLO IN REGEDY NO. 51 15 OCT 1279
INDO
REGISTRY
AlAction Taken
FOLLOWING FOR POLITICAL ADVISER
YOUR TELNO 169: HUA GUOFENG'S COMMENTS ON HONG KONG
1.
HUA'S ANSWER, AS RECORDED BY THE FIRST SECRETARY PRESENT AT THE PRESS CONFERENCE, IS AS IN OUR TELNO 879 TO FC0,
· COPIED TO YOU. NCNA HAVE PRINTED A VERBATIM TEXT OF THE
ENTIRE PRESS CONFERENCE IN THEIR ITEM 100746: THERE IS NO
DIFFERENCE OF IMPORTANCE BETWEEN THE TWO TEXTS WHICH ARE OF
COURSE BOTH TRANSLATIONS FROM THE CHINESE.
2. WE HAVE DISCUSSED THE STORY IN YOUR PARA 1 WITH CHRISTOPHER
PRITCHETT OF REUTERS WHO ASSURES US THERE WAS NO QUESTION OF
THE MFA SUGGESTING QUESTIONS. NOR HAD THE CHINESE BEEN
WARNED IN ADVANCE OF ANY OF THE QUESTIONS TO BE PUT TO THEM. THESE HAD, HOWEVER, BEEN AGREED BEFOREHAND BETWEEN THE JOURNALISTS AT A MEETING AT THE MFA TWO DAYS BEFORE THE CONFERENCE (AND COULD CONCEIVABLY HAVE BEEN OVERHEARD). THE QUESTION WAS REFERRED TO AT THAT MEETING, HOWEVER, ONLY AS A QUESTION ABOUT HONG KONG''. ONLY NIGEL WADE OF THE DAILY TELEGRAPH
AND PHILIP SHORT OF THE BBC HAD ADVANCE WARNING OF THE PRECISE QUESTION. REUTERS HAD CHOSEN THE QUESTION AS ONE WHICH WOULD BE LIKELY TO GET GOOD COVERAGE IN THE HONG KONG
PRESS, WHATEVER THE ANSWER: THEY WERE NOT DIAPPOINTED.
3. THE CHINESE MADE AN ATTEMPT TO RESTRICT QUESTIONS TO
SUBJECTS RELATING DIRECTLY TO HUA'S VISIT AND BILATERAL
MATTERS: THEY MUST THEREFORE HAVE EXPECTD, AND BRIEFED
HUA TO COVER, QUESTIONS ON DIRECT BILATERAL ISSUES SUCH
AS HONG KONG.
CRADOCK
FILES
FED
HK & GD
RESEARCH DEPT
NEWS DEPT PS/MR BLAKER
MR CORTAZZI MR MURRAY
CONFIDENTIAL