HKB 400/
ECEIVED IN
INDE
YSY
2 4 APR 1990
FIER
A R Paul Esq
MH
CONFIDENTIAL
BRITISH TRADE COMMISSION
HONG KONG.
Gf
53
2414
please
R: RAR
сести
2 April 1990
SC Mr Mcharen
Head of Hong Kong Department
Foreign and Commonwealth Office
Whitehall
London SWILA
Ar ita
Harwell
fis draft.
и
Mijo Marsour Mr Styre
7/4.
Draft reply
please
1/4
Discussed min McHeap (on
Dear Alam
I
kave her
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He saw
VENEZUELAN CONSUL-GENERAL AFFAIR no reply needed pa
1. We have seen almost none of the exchanges between Hong Kong, the FCO and Caracas about the arrest of the Venezuelan Consul-General in Hong Kong. At risk of duplicating what you may already have received from the Hong Kong Government, it might be useful if I report the mood and reactions of the Consular Corps. Although I have no official diplomatic status here, I am accepted both by the government and the consular corps as a consul-general equivalent, and attend all consular corps meetings and functions (albeit with a permanent precendence that puts me last, behind the Greek honorary Consul-General).
2.
The Consuls-General are extremely upset that their Venezuelan colleague was arrested, and stayed under arrest for so long. There have been formal and less formal gatherings of the consular corps over it. All are indignant that a diplomatic representative was arrested. Just about all contend that from such details as are known of the Venezuelan's offence, it was certainly arguable that it was not sufficiently grave to warrant his arrest (as opposed to requesting his withdrawal). Their indignation has no doubt been compounded since the Consuls-General here are in effect in charge of independent posts, even although they nominally are subservient to their Embassies in London, and a significant number have been Ambassadors or full Heads of Mission previously. Almost all become full Ambassadors again subsequent to their posting in Hong Kong.
3. The concern of the consular corps would probably have been voiced more loudly and would have been more targetted if it had an effective Dean. The Dean is the Costa Rican. He calls himself a career diplomat, but is widely believed to be more active in business here than in diplomacy, and for this reason his succession to the Deanship, which was before my arrival, was opposed by a number of Consuls-General including some from western Europe. The latest move of the Dean has been to address the attached note of 27 March to the Governor expressing the concern of the corps about the incident. In the event, so far as I know, no other action was taken by any other Consulate General, although many say they reported it to their capitals in terms hostile to the Hong Kong Government. Several muttered, and continue to mutter, about having their government take up the true nature of their status here, in light of the arrest of the Venezuelan. Now that Ramirez Calles has been sent home, I doubt if we will hear any more of this, but there was a risk for a while
CONFIDENTIAL
/that