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F 6835/1147/10.
Dear Paskin
POKSIGN OFFICH, S.W.1.,
21st September, 1945.
82
Please refer to War office telegram to Commander- in-Chief, Hong Kong No. 72635 of September 9th about the admission of a Chinese Consul General to Hong Kong.
2. We have been considering here the point raised in paragraph 4 of thet telegram, namely whether in present circumstances it is desirable to maintain the stipulations suggested for the admission of a Chinese Consul General. e now feel th t it would be tacti- cally undesirable to do so and that the Consul General should be admitted without any conditions. reasons for this view are as follows.
Our
3. The Chinese would, in these modern days, resent any suggestion that their consular representative in Hong Kong might indulge in activities which are, in fact, outside the legitimate scope of a Consul's functions. Furthermore, any attempt to impose conditions would, we feel, if persisted in, invite similar action by the Chinese in regard to our own applications to open Consulates in China.
4. We think that the simplest method of dealing with the gutter woula be to agree unconditionally to the application to open a Consulate-General at Hong kong, when it is received, but to be prepared to as for the Consul General's withdrawal should he in fact indulge in any of the activities contemplated in the stipulations mentioned in the ar Office telegram, or the ground that such activities are outside the legitimate scope of a consular officer's functions.
5. We hope you can agree to this, and that an
J.J. Paskin, Esq., M.C.,
Colonial Office.
early/
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