faxed
into
On
HKCD 340/8 MC 2919
Publicity
to Mr Hewellyn for
whether it Edward's attended & whether there was
and
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FROM: P F Ricketts
Hong Kong Department
1 $$EP 1993
Ms B-J
DATE: 17 September, 1993
wid.NAT.dbj
Sir J Coles
PRIME MINISTER'S VISIT TO JAPAN:
OF WAR
cc: Mr Hum
By Fax: Chancery,
Tokyo
HONG KONG ANGLE ON PRISONERS
20
1. The Governor's Special Adviser, Edward Llewellyn, has alerted us to the presence in Tokyo of a Hong Kong campaigner for the rights of servicemen who defended Hong Kong in the Second World War (some of whom became Japanese prisoners of war) and their dependents. Mr Jack Edwards (who was himself a POW) apparently plans to hand over a letter to the Prime Minister lobbying for British citizenship to be granted to the wives and widows of these ex-servicemen.
2. The Hong Kong Government and the Governor have argued
strongly for the Home Secretary to use his discretion under Nationality legislation to grant citizenship to members of this group on the basis of a very short stay in the United
Kingdom. We have urged the Home Office at Ministerial level to use their discretion to defuse an emotive issue concering a
very small group. The Home Office take the view that they
have no scope to do what Hong Kong ask.
3.
I attach a line to take and background on this issue.
Milich
PF Ricketts
Mh. Kichalta
Келе
happened.
but it is when
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of thr. Edwards
someone the
joumble that he approached
doing other toys.
The Cole 22