· CONFIDENTIAL
CHINA ON THIS SCALE WERE POSSIBLE ! NOTED WHAT THE MINISTER HAD SAID ABOUT NEASURES ASING THEN AGAINST ILLEGALS BY THE CHINESE BUT THEY CLEARLY WERE NOT PEING EFFECTIVE. HATEVER THE COUSE OF THE FLOOD VERY URGENT ACTION WAS MECESSARY TO CONTROL 17. THE PRESENT SITUATION VÀO NOT COMPATIBLE WITH WHAT HUANG HUA SAID IN LONDON IN OCTOBER AND DENG SAID IN MARCH BOUT TAKING EFFECTIVE MEASURES TO DEAL WITH THE PROBLEM OF MOVEMENT INTO HONG KONG. THE HONG KONG AUTHORITIES HAD ALREADY STRENGTHENED THEIR PATROLS AND WOULD DO SO FURTHER. STRONGER MEASURES ON THE CHTHESE SIDE VERE NOV URGENTLY NEEDED. ONCE OVERALL IMMIGRATION, BOTH LEGAL AND ILLEGAL, WAS BROUGHT UNDER CONTROL WE WOULD BE PREPARED TO DISCUSS ARRANGEMENTS TO ENABLE GENUINE VISITS TO BE PAID TO FRIENDS AND RELATIVES IN HONG KONG WHILE AT THE SAME TIME CISURING THAT THE VISITORS RETURNED AND DID NOT STAY ON AS AT
PRESCUT.
I MANDED OVER A DOCUMENT GIVING THE RELEVANT FIGUSES ON LEGAL AND ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION AND SAID I HOPED THE
INISTER OULD UNDERSTAND THE SERIOUSNESS WITH WHICH THE PROBLEM WAS REGARDED IN BOTH LONDON AND HONG KONG. PERHAPS THE TIME FOR TALKS HAD PASSED. IT WAS NOV A TIME FOR URGENT ACTION. 1 REMINDED HIM HOW SINO-HONG KONG RELATIONS. HAD ISPROVED GREATLY OVER THE LAST YEAR AND HOW IT WAS IN OUR COMMON INTEREST THAT THE HONG YONG ECONOMY SHOULD FLOURISH THIS MALING A GREATER CONTRIBUTION TO CHINA'S MODERNISATION.
BUT IF THE FLOOD CONTINUED AT THE PRESENT RATE HONG KONG WOULD FACE THE MOST SEVERE ECONOMIC PROBLEMS, WHICH IN TURN WOULD BE TO CHINA'S DETRIMENT.
ZHANG COMMENTED ON VIETNAMESE REFUGEES THAT CHINA HAD ALREADY ACCEPTED 220,000, A LARGE PART OF THEM OF VIETNAMESE RATHER THAN CHINESE RACE, I REMINDED HIM THAT IF IMMIGRATION INTO HONG KONG CONTINUED AT THE PRESENT RATE IN 1979 ALONE THERE WOULD BE OVER 400,CS IMMIGRANTO COMING INTO THE COLONY, A VERY MUCH SMALLER TERRITORY THAN CHINA.
7.
ZHANG THEN REITERATE THAT THE CHINESE DID NOT WISH TO ALLOW A GREAT INFLUX INTO HONG KONG TO ADD TO OUR DIFFICULTIES.
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