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From: THE RT. HON. SIR FREDERIC BENNETT, D.L.
My Punke
16/4
HKD for draft says reply
by 22/4 please. st..
My des Douglas
PS / Mr Goodlad Ps/pus Special Adviim
live I boter
Mr Hum
Legal Adirin
Plammer News
7
18A.
No. 2, STONE BUILDINGS
LINCOLN'S INN
LONDON WC2A 3XB
Telephone: 071 242 3900.
MAREX
HICC onla
KREGISTRY
7th April, 19931 APR 1993
FICER
PA
Nen det f/4 ke 012/27 (28th)
ные
The promised follow-up of my letter expressing my anxiety about developments in China following my visit there, I think on reflection, I have in the letter just despatched to
you, which you may regard as of inordinate length, dealt so fully with the matters I have raised that I need add little
more about the China/ Hong
Hong Kong
Kong question. However, on
reflection,, on re-reading what I have just written to you, I
think there are two points I did not adequately stress.
The first of these is that having to refer to Chris
Patten's remarks to David Frost saying he would welcome the
resumption of talks, which he was ready to undertake at any time; This has no prospect of success at all. The Chinese have dug in their toes so firmly that any useful exchanges can
now only be undertaken on a sovereign government to government basis, with Hong Kong representatives only acting as advisers. There really is no prospect at all of their accepting Chris
Patten's offer of a resumption of such talks.
First of all, however wrongly, the Governor's name has now become a dirty word in Beijing, at all political levels. Secondly there is certainly a feeling in Beijing, however
mistaken, that any negotiations between Hong Kong and China
introduce an unwanted concept of Hong Kong emerging with a separate identity, looking towards ultimate independence, as an alternative to outgoing British rule and incoming Chinese
rule.,
Some
Western commentators have suggested that what
China fears is that Britain will
That is
after all not hand over the Territory in 1997.
nonsense. The Chinese are perfectly well aware it is quite
out of the question for us to continue our sovereignty there
when the Lease expires. Some Chinese do however, as I have