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With the compliments of
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TOP SECRET HWB13/5
Reference: GEN/14/368/50
Page No. 1 of 28 Pages,
Copy No. 38 of 40 Copies.
Special Branch,
Hong Kong Police.
Date: 5th March, 1968.
F348
CHINESE COMMUNIST CONFRONTATION WITH HONG KONG GOVERNMENT
ASSESSMENT OF RECENT ACTIVITIES AND FUTURE CAPABILITIES
INTRODUCTION
The Special Branch paper GEN/14/368/16 dated
15th January, 1968, examined future communist policy and
tactics in Hong Kong. From that study it was clear that
all available hard intelligence indicated the Chinese
Authorities in Peking were re-asserting direct control of
communist activities in Hong Kong. Further, that the
present Peking policy was to conduct a long term political
struggle, without the use of violence, aimed at eroding
the position of the Hong Kong Government and increasing
communist influence here, while at the same time enjoying
the economic benefits of the Colony. It was considered
that local militant elements might continue to initiate
isolated incidents but it seemed unlikely that violence
would receive support from local communist leaders here
in the face of direct instructions from Peking to the
contrary.
2.
The paper concluded that the Hong Kong
Government was faced with a long term insidious campaign
during which the communists would endeavour:-
a)
to consolidate their ranks and improve
morale;
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10170, B.P. 117
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b)
c)
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to intensify their indoctrination programme,
making extensive use of the thoughts of
MAO Tse Tung;
to maintain a strong anti-Government
propaganda campaign, staying on the fringe
of the law;
d) the press apart, overtly to comply with the
law, thus avoiding as far as possible,
direct clashes with Government;
e)
f)
to continue and intensify attempts to
subvert and vilify Government Servants,
particularly the Police Force; and
to initiate a concerted campaign to widen
their base of support among the general
public, taking up and exploiting, whenever
possible, grievances in all spheres of
society.
The purpose of this paper is:-
a)
to assess the capability of the communists
to conduct this campaign successfully;
b) to examine the methods so far used in
pursuance of their aims; and
c)
to give some idea of the success, or lack
of success, which they are meeting •
GENERAL
4.
Over the years, and especially since 1949
when the C.P.G. came into power, the local communists
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/have......
19126 9.8, 317
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have spent much time, money and energy building up their
presence in various sectors of the community. They have
sought to ingratiate themselves with members of the general
public, particularly by appealing to their national pride.
This structure has been disrupted in varying degrees by
Government action arising from confrontation and many
members of communist organisations have severed their
connections. The communists have too, by their actions,
isolated themselves from the rest of the community and
in so doing, have created an ugly public image. However,
their loyal supporters are dedicated men who should not
be underestimated; they have been tried and tested and
their loyalty has not been found wanting. Nevertheless,
in general terms, there is little doubt that the last
nine months have taken a serious toll of the strength of the communist
movement in Hong Kong, particularly in the field of labour (Figures of
estimated communist strength are at Appendix 'A'.)
5.
The principal tasks now facing communist leaders are to build on the
nucleus remaining, to recover lost ground and finally to expand. They
realise this revival and expansion will be a long term project, taking a
very considerable time, perhaps years to accomplish to their
satisfaction. In the circumstances, and subject to caveats mentioned
later in this paper, it seems unlikely that they will be prepared to
have a planned head-on confrontation with Government again until they
have obtained a base of public support much wider than that obtaining
prior to
May, 1967.
UNITED FRONT ACTIVITIES
6
The communists are already making renewed efforts
/to.....
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to ingratiate themselves with certain sectors of the
public, particularly the low-paid and under-privileged, in an attempt to
increase their influence and regain a following from people who are not
members of their
organisations.
They are seeking to do so through the medium of a united front campaign
which is being carried out largely by propaganda but sometimes
manifested by practical demonstrations of assistance on the ground.
However, at the present time, the violence of last year is too fresh in
most people's minds for this "smiling
face" campaign to have much success. Nevertheless,
memories tend to be short and if there are practical advantages to be
gained by falling in behind the communists it is quite likely that the
communists may start to regain
some of their lost ground.
7.
The principal issues on which the "smile campaign" have been based so
far have been salinity of
water, devaluation, the offer of free rice from Kwangtung
and assistance to fire victims. The attacks on Government
in respect of water salinity, which were followed by distribution of
"fresh water" in the urban areas by members
of various communist organisations, were designed to
prove to members of the public that the communists were
interested in their welfare. The "fresh water" was
obtained mainly from public stand pipes in areas where
there was little salt content in the mains supply and,
to a limited extent, from C.P.G. vessels arriving from
China. Disappointingly for the communists, public response was poor,
despite continuous publicity in the communist press, thus indicating
that the communist propaganda campaign, at least on this issue, was
having
/little.....
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little effect.
Additionally, there is evidence that the
in
communists themselves were unhappy about their inability, for reasons
not yet clear, to establish a comprehensive system of distribution. The
salinity issue is now, fact, fast dying out, having seemingly gained
little or
nothing for the communists.
8.
The devaluation of the local currency, linked with claims of increased
unemployment and a rise in the cost of living, has been a major
propaganda theme in recent weeks. These attacks have been interspersed
with general criticism, including deliberate misrepresentation of
Government's policy in various fields, particularly with regard to
resettlement and relief for victims of natural disasters. Such issues
will no doubt remain a feature of communist propaganda, to be repeated
from time to time. They illustrate how the communists will support, and
if necessary misrepresent, any subject which they consider will improve
their public standing.
9.
At present the main communist effort is centred
around the offer of 5,000 tons of rice from China for free distribution
to "compatriots" in Hong Kong. Originally this rice was scheduled to be
given to unemployed workers and to genuinely needy families. massive
propaganda campaign was launched to attract registration of potential
recipients. There is some recent indication that this campaign may not
have achieved the success desired in that the categories of people
entitled
There is to register have been considerably widened.
little doubt that if this rice is imported into the
Colony its distribution will be accompanied by powerful propaganda
designed to show the local communists in the
/best.....
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best possible light and to illustrate to the local
populace the concern which the "Mother Country" has for
them. Nevertheless, it is considered unlikely that
this gift, in itself, will attract many new supporters
to the communist cause, because there is a general
awareness that their aid invariably has strings.
CONSOLIDATION
10.
Proceeding hand in hand with this united front
activity is a concerted movement within communist
organisations in all spheres to consolidate their ranks
through political indoctrination. Study classes,
exhibitions of "the application of MAO's Thoughts" and
variety shows have become a regular feature of all
communist organisations' activities since December, 1967.
Visiting groups to China by their members have also been
resuscitated, during which they attend political meetings
and discussion sessions. While this campaign of constant
indoctrination may possibly strengthen the beliefs of the
politically committed and produce a group of fanatics who
will be prepared to undertake any allotted tasks to
further the communist cause, it is unlikely that it will
do much to win over any new adherents, unless fence sitters
can be persuaded that more practical support is forthcoming
from China. There are, in fact, indications that some
members of communist organisations, particularly the older
employees, are already tiring of this incessant
indoctrination. But these malcontents represent only a
minority of the communists and generally speaking, morale
in communist organisations has been steadily rising.
This can be attributed, in part, to the reduction in
Government action against communist organisations sinoe
/cessation.....
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cessation of the violent phases of confrontation.
11.
Another step being taken by the communists is
an attempt to demonstrate to the public that they no
longer have anything to fear from Government. "Sing
song" and picnic groups to the N.T., where revolutionary
songs are chanted, and very minor and short lived
demonstrations are being staged for propaganda purposes.
While participants in these activities are possibly in
technical breach of the law they are not committing
serious offences.
These groups call attention to
themselves in a potentially dangerous manner and create
a difficult problem for the police.
12.
At the same time events of the last few months,
and particularly in recent weeks, such as the payment of
fines by the suppressed newspapers, indicate that local
communist leaders are not prepared to press for a direct
clash with Government, and will back-down when it becomes
clear that a firm stand is being taken. In this way
they ensure that the morale of their rank and file does
not run the risk of further defeats and that Government
is prevented from taking legal action against them.
13.
It is apparent that the confidence of the
communist supporters is steadily growing, despite the fact
that, so far, their united front activities do not appear
to have achieved much in the way of material success
The improved morale in local communist circles together
with continued MAC Thought indoctrination and anti-
Government propaganda will constantly present the danger
of outbreaks of incidents, despite the wishes of the
communist leadership to avoid the use of violence,
/LABOUR......
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20170 6.F. DIT
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LABOUR
14.
In an urban society a communist movement, to
be effective, must have a powerful representation in
the trade union field. In Hong Kong the communists
spent years building up their representation in public utilities,
transport and other key industries as well as in Government. In many of
these areas, the communist
union was the only channel of representation open to
employees.
These unions, well organised and capably run
by a band of dedicated full-time officials, had the
objective of attaining sufficient strength in vital areas
to paralyse the Colony if and when required. With the
onset of confrontation it appeared to many of the
communist leaders, particularly in the labour field,
that their moment of glory had arrived. Nevertheless,
when they called on their supporters to stop work they
were bitterly disappointed in that, on an average, about
half their members in many of the vital areas ignored
their call and continued working, despite intimidatory
threats and actions. When the people who did stop work
were dismissed the communists lost, virtually over-night,
a powerful machine (figures at Appendix 'B'). For example,
of the claimed communist union membership of some
6,400 employees in Government, only 1,632 answered the
call to stop work and at present it is estimated that
of those remaining, only 325 are participating in union
activity. These represent less than 1.7% of the
19,415 low-paid employees in the Government Departments
affected by work stoppages. Communist union
representation in public transport, the utilities and
the dockyards showed an oven greater loss. Pre-
confrontation the communists had a claimed support of
/more.....
4
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170 G.P. 317
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more than 10,000 out of 29,000 workers in these spheres.
Over 9,500 people were dismissed in June, 1967, following
their refusal to resume work and active communist union
members employed in these areas are now estimated to be less
than 300. From these figures it is clear the communists
are not in any position to take concerted action from
within Government or vital industries. They do, however,
still retain considerable strength in some sectors of industry,
particularly in textiles, the metal industry, shipping and distributive
trades. However, the amount of
actual support that these unions would obtain should they
wish to strike on purely political grounds is open to
considerable doubt, particularly in the light of the poor
response to the strike call in other areas in June, 1967.
15.
increases
The union members who refused to stop work are
currently being subjected to pressure from their former
workmates to return to active participation in union.
affairs. One means of inducement is the claim by the
communist unions that they are agitating for wage
on behalf of members and so far demands have been submitted
by representatives from unions of Government employees and
some unions in the transport field. The communists'
efforts to take the lead in asking for wage increases are
however, being forestalled in some instances by similar
demands by right-wing unions or by awards being made by
management before demands are, in fact, presented.
the efforts of the communists to attract back to the
unions former members who severed connections during
confrontation are, so far, meeting with very limited
success, the slow trickle of former members willing to
return, is likely to continue, and possibly increase,
/if....
While
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if no alternative channels of labour/management
discussions are established. Many firms are establishing joint
consultative machinery to fill the vacuum left by
the dismissal of communist union members and there is
little doubt that this will go some way towarde foiling the
efforts of the communists.
16.
The workers who are currently in receipt of
strike pay from the communist labour movement are
probably presenting the communist leaders with their
biggest headache.
It must now be apparent to them that
they have no hope of reinstatement.
The local communist
movement cannot continue, on an indefinite basis, to
pay out nearly $5,000,000 a month in strike pay and it
is unlikely that China will be prepared to foot the bill
much longer. There are already reports that some strikers
have been instructed to find themselves work, and this
has caused considerable discontent amongst those affected, which could
become widespread amongst communist supporters if the "return to work"
move became general. The strikers
are the hard-core nucleus of the communist labour movement
and any attempt to get them to return to work, without
the compensation they have been promised by their leaders,
may have a serious effect upon their morale.
17.
Although the ability of the communists to stage
effective strike action has diminished considerably,
they can, if they so desire, create and maintain an air
of tension, by laying on demonstrations at will using
only a handful of supporters.
While the tactics they used
in the early days of confrontation of paying hoodlums
to create trouble, may not be so effective in the
immediate future, in that these sections of the population
/now.......
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now have a greater respect for the forces of law and
order, the possibilities of minor incidents escalating
quickly because of the participation of non-communist,
semi-criminal elements must grow as time goes by and
memories fade.
EDUCATION
18.
The communist schools in Hong Kong originally
aimed at producing graduates to go to China for higher education. This
policy changed from 1959 onwards when
more and more of the graduates from the schools turned
to the local employment market. Since then, the schools
have followed a more or less normal local school
curriculum and there has been a steady expansion in
the facilities they provided for education. The cheap
places offered by the schools and the good organisation
and discipline they maintained, proved attractive to
many parents and consequently the school authorities had
no difficulty in filling their places. Just before
confrontation some 46 schools were assessed by Special
Branch to be communist controlled with a total student
enrolment of 19,598. Plans were in hand by a number
of the schools to provide an additional 2,000 places.
19.
Students from communist schools were not used a
great deal for subversive activity in the early phases
of confrontation. However, during the later stages they
came into increasing prominence, particularly with
regard to the planting of bombs, both hoax and real.
The schools abandoned their normal curriculum and
concentrated on political studies. They withdrew
their entries from the Hong Kong Chinese School
/Certificate...........
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Certificate examination and eliminated their normal
school examinations and tests. During confrontation
there was a fall off in the enrolment in communist
schools, particularly in the vocational and evening
classes and while it is possible that some of this fall
off was accounted for by people who did not wish to go
out at nights, there is little doubt that at least some
of the students who stayed away did so because their
parents no longer wished to have them educated in
communist schools. The latest indications are, however,
that the communists are having some success in building
up their primary and kindergarten sections,
20.
The main effect of confrontation on school