GRY 90
CONFIDENTIAL
CONFIDENTIAL
FH HONG KONG 1984557 FEB 79
341/1 TO HKK
COPY
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TO INMEDIATE FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH OFFICE NO
TELNO.285 OF 19 FEBRUARY,
INFO IMMEDIATE: PEKING,
PRIORITY: HONG KONG GOVT OFFICE LONDON.
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PEKING TELNO.224 : IMMIGRATION FROM CHINA.
Se 33
1. I TAKE THE POINTS IN PEKING'S TEL UNDER REF. I AGREE THAT
THERE IS MERIT IN REFERRING TO THE LEVEL OF IMMIGRATION WHICH
WE WOULD FIND TOLERABLE AND IN SHOWING THE CHINESE THAT WE
İNTEND TO GIVE THEM ROOM TO TAKE ACTION IF THEY ARE PREPARED TO
DO SO. I WOULD PREFER, HOWEVER, TO LEAVE MENTION OF A SPECIFIC
DATE UNTIL THE SECOND STAGE OF THE TWO-PART SCENARIO ENVISAGED
IN MY TELNO 279.
2. IN VIEW OF PEKING'S COMMENTS I WOULD LIKE TO REVISE THE
APPROACH TO THE CHINESE SUGGESTED IN PARA 7 OF MY TELNO 279 ON
THE FOLLOWING LINES.
(1)
(11)
(111)
DESPITE REPEATED REPRESENTATIONS THERE HAS BEEN
NO SIGNIFICANT DROP IN NUMBERS. UNLESS NUMBERS ARE
BROUGHT DOWN TO ABOUT 50 A DAY IT IS INEVITABLE THAT
WE WILL HAVE TO INTRODUCE RESTRICTIONS.
!.
BEFORE RESORTING TO THE INTRODUCTION OF RESTRICTIONS WE
WOULD LIKE TO ALLOW A LITTLE MORE TIME FOR ACTIONS BEING
TAKEN BY THE CHINESE AUTHORITIES TO REDUCE THE FLOW TO
TAKE EFFECT. HOWEVER, ABOUT 2 AND A HALF MONTHS IS THE
ABSOLUTE LIMIT WE CAN ALLOW FOR THIS.
IF WE ARE OBLIGED TO INTRODUCE RESTRICTIONS WE WOULD DO
SO EITHER ON THE BASIS OF A DAILY QUOTA OR OF ENTRY
PERMITS AND VISAS.
you
CONFIDENTIAL
/.(IV) IF,
IF, DESPITE
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