SECRET
basis to be activated some years hence if necessary.
said that the United Kingdom's difficulties were understood
and that they were not asking for automatic right of
entry as they had before 1962.
He
4. I explained the complexities of the Nationality issue. It was very difficult to iron out all the anomalies.
But I fully understood their concerns and undertook to
discuss with you the problems of providing some reassurance
for Hong Kong.
5.
I am in no doubt about the seriousness of the
problem. The Governor has put it starkly. There could be resignations of a number of senior people; weakened
morale in the public service could make government very
difficult. It might thus be increasingly difficult for him
to retain the services, let alone the loyalty, of the
people on whom he most depends and this would affect
confidence. Indeed, I have just received through the
Governor a petition from the locally engaged members of
the Hong Kong Adminstrative Service Association expressing
serious concern about their position.
6.
Hong Kong's concerns are at once psychological and practical. The nationality scheme has, of course, been
with us for some time and since the Green Paper came out
in Hong Kong people have made their misgivings known. They no longer question the Bill as a whole. But with its presentation to Parliament has come a fear that if there was a change of status they would be abandoned to their fate.
One side of the question is their status and that of their
children in United Kingdom and international law if the
Dependent Territory on which their new nationality will be
based were taken over by China. But more worrying is
the lack of a safe haven, particularly for those (unofficials
as well as officials), who have served the British loyally,
often in sensitive positions. Even though the Nationality
SECRET
/Bill