布政司署
CONFIDENTIAL,
香港下亞厘畢道
* OUR Ref.:
CR 1/2071/79
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RJT McLaren Esq
HKK345/2
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74
GOVERNMENT SECRETARIAT
LOWER ALBERT ROAD
HONG KONG
24 April, 1979
soc 15
-3 MAY 1979 Mji Williamson
Hong Kong & General Department F CO
Pow
• could you please posne this wryenth with MVD - as I recall, the grounds for saying that only consular offices should issue visas were a matter of convention not international law. There is
clearly a strong political case for making an exception here You will remember that, when we had lunch with and, as Dr the NCNA on 21 April, Mr Li Jusheng, the Second Director, mentioned the question of issuing visas in Hong Kong. He said they had been having difficulties with the slow- ness of their present system of issuing visas and were considering setting up a special office to do the job in
THE ISSUING OF VISAS BY THE CHINESE IN HONG KONG
Hong Kong. Their present system is to send all passports across the border to Shum Chun (Shenzhen). This is a clumsy and slow business which has led to many complaints
by businessmen trying to go to China.
2.
At the lunch, I told Mr Li that I thought there was much to be said for anything which speeded up the issuing of visas. I said I would like to think about the matter and we agreed that we would discuss it further.
3.
This is the first time the Chinese have raised directly with us the question of issuing visas in Hong Kong. We have previously heard indirect stories through businessmen that, although they found the present system clumsy and time consuming, they were inhibited from improving it because of the lack of an official office in Hong Kong. On one occasion I was told by a businessman that the Chinese also thought the Hong Kong Government would object to them issuing visas here.
4.
From our point of view there are two strong arguments in favour of making some arrangement for the Chinese to issue visas here. First, it will make life easier for businessmen and tourists. Second, and more important, it will help to remove one of the few remaining practical arguments in favour of having a more official form of Chinese representation.
Wilson says, there should вено
is problem overholding the line with the Vietnamese
$2375
seer
2
24t
/contd...
CONFIDENTIAL