RS 440
CONFIDENTIAL
CONFIDENTIAL
=34+1|
HKK 341
RECEIVED IN REGNTRY NO. 51 2 2 0 1979
PA
REGISTRY Aqion Teken
DESK OFFICER
INDEX
Fa PEKING 198903Z OCT 79
TO IMMEDIATE FCO
TELEGRAM NUMBER 926 OF 19 OCTOBER
AND TO IMMEDIATE HONG KONG.
MIP TI IMMIGRATION FROM CHINA.
Мо
+
20€
3+x/207
206
1..
FIRST SECRETARY CALLED ON ZHENG YAOWEN OF WESTERN EUROP→ EAN DEPARTMENT MFA ON 19 OCTOBER TO DISCUSS LEGAL AND ILLEGAL
211A
IMMIGRATION TO HONG KONG. HE SPOKE ALONG SIMILAR LINES TO..
APA HONG KONG IN HIS MEETING WITH TAN OF NONA ON 2 OCTOBER, HANDING OVER COPIES OF THE MATERIAL PASSED TO TAN ON THAT OCCASION
AND SUPPLEMENTING IT WITH THE LATEST FIGURES FROM WEEKLY STATISTICS AND THOSE SUPPLIED IN TELECON ORR/SULLIVAN ON MORNING
OF 19 OCTOBER.
2. ON LEGAL IMMIGRATION ZHENG PROMISED TO PASS ON THE INFORK-
ATION AND TO SEE WHAT COULD BE DONE TO BRING NUMBERS DOWN FURTHER.
HE COULD OFFER NO EXPLANATION WHY THE DOWNWARD TRENC IN
THE FIRST SIX MONTHS OF THE YEAR HAD APPARENTLY COME TO AN END.
HE ACCEPTED THAT THE MAIN PROBLEM WAS WITH THOSE TRAVELLERS
WHO IN PRINCIPLE WERE ONLY VISITING HONG KONG BUT WERE NOT IN
FACT RETURNING TO CHINA.
3. ON 15 OCTOBER ZHENG HAD INTIMATED TO ACTING HEAD OF CHANCERY
THAT IN RESPONSE TO OUR REPRESENTATIONS ON 5 SEPTEMBER (OUR JELNO.69 TO HONG KONG), IT COULD BE CONFIRMED THAT IT WAS
NOT CHINESE POLICY TO ISSUE EXIT PERMITS TO PASSPORT HOLDERS
WITHOUT VALID VISAS FOR ONWARD DESTINATION. PEOPLE WHO COULD
NOT OBTAIN VISAS BUT HAD PROMISES WOULD BE INSTRUCTED TO
APPROACH OUR EMBASSY FOR TRANSIT VISAS: THOSE ARRIVING AT THE BORDER WITHOUT VALID DOCUMENTATION COULD BE RETURNED.
WHEN ASKED, ZHENG HAD SAID THAT WE WOULD BE FORMALLY NOTIFIED OF THIS RESPONSE.
I
CONFIDENTIAL