CONFIDENTIAL
HKK 040/5
RECORD OF A CALL BY MR ALF PARSONS, AUSTRALIAN HIGH COMMISSIONER, ON
MR. RICHARD LUCE MP, MINISTER OF STATE: 3.30 PM ON MONDAY 17 OCTOBER
1983
Present
Mr Parsons
Mr Luce
Mr Benson, Minister (Political) AHC
Th
Mr Warren-Gash
Mrs Priest, HKD
1. Mr Luce told Mr Parsons that we were most grateful to have been
record given an informative account of the Australian Foreign Minister's
recent meeting in New York with the Chinese Foreign Minister. He
explained that the next round of Sino-British talks on Hong Kong's future (19-20 October) would be particularly important. We were trying to reach mutual agreement with the Chinese on what were the essential components of Hong Kong's stability and prosperity. Mr Luce said that his recent visit to Hong Kong had pointed up two
essential facts:
(i) the people of Hong Kong were very concerned to preserve
their basic lifestyle and freedoms;
(ii) those of them who had fled Communist China in 1949 had a
deep-seated fear of Communist regimes.
Hong Kong people generally were antagonistic towards the intensive Chinese propaganda campaign on the Hong Kong question.
2. Mr Parsons asked whether HMG intended taking a higher profile on
their own position in response to Chinese propaganda. Mr Luce explained that this would be kept under review. Although we did not wish to breach the spirit of the confidentiality of the talks, we
might have to consider taking a higher profile if Chinese propaganda resumed at the earlier, intensive rates.
3. Mr Parsons wished to raise two specific questions:
(a).
ม
Did the Chinese really care about maintaining Hong Kong's stability and prosperity?
CONFIDENTIAL
/(b)