sverte Italians from their chemical industry, in Peking to sew the future up
with the help of "loadsalira" from their government. O me, O mi.
10. Third, while the Embassy staff are coping personfully, they do appear a
little thin on the ground given the potentialities of the country. One
cannot help but think of the scale of the enterprise at other posts,' like
Tokyo. Are the days gone forever when Peking could boast all at the same
time a Fretwell, a Hurd, an Evans and a Donald, plus much more? Have all
the young Sinologists gone to the city? None of my business, but it does
strike a reasonably experienced itinerant like me as a bit rum. At the
margin, Alan Donald is anxious to broaden the expertise within the Embassy
with a seconded ODA officer, probably at First Secretary level. We shall
see what we can do to help.
11.
And so from China to kong Kong, which illustrates just what the
combination of Chinese hard work and entrepreneurial skill is capable of
once those forces are allowed to flourish. It seems to me likely to become
an increasingly explicit model for the rest of China particularly the
coastal cities like Shanghai. It is hard for the amateur to detect any
supposed deterioration in confidence: the city hustles as busily as always,
and ever more fanciful and daring buildings scrape the stars.
12.
My main purpose in going to Hong Kong was to find out for myself about
the Vietnamese boat people. In addition to spending a full morning visiting
some of the camps (the detention centre at Hei Ling Chau and refugee camps
at Tuen Mun and San Yick) I was able to discuss the situation with both the
Governor and the Chief Secretary.
13.
We have two major objectives to meet. First, we need to have a clear
idea about the timetable for dealing with detainees and refugees, and to set
our own agenda to the extent possible. Secondly, we need to be able to
demonstrate to actual and potential critics that we are treating both groups
fairly and reasonably. As far as the timetable is concerned, we are
three-fifths of the way there. We have agreement on screening procedures;
we have increasing liberalisation of refugees (who are now in the process of
being let out of the camps to work or to attend schools); and we have UNHCR
CONFIDENTIAL
/agreement on