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necessary to consult some of the Geographical Departments again as to the territories to which it should be sent.
3.
No.68 informs us that the Hong Kong Government have instructed their representative, who is at present attached to the Punjab Secretariat for the purpose of paying leave salaries to Indian members of the Hong Kong Police and Prisons Department now in India, to contact those officers and ascertain whether they are willing to return to duty. I see no objection to the detailed arrangements described in the latter part of paragraph 2 of the despatch, since no question of racial discrimination is involved. (It will be recalled that the earlier proposals in No.34B were open to this objection - see paragraph 2 of our reply at No.36) It does, however, strike me that the India Office may be somewhat apprehensive about the arrangements described in the first part of paragraph 2 of the despatch, in view of the Government of India's attitude in No.66. There is not a great deal of difference between the Hong Kong Government sending an officer to India for purposes described (a project to which the Government of India refused to agree) and their using for these purposes an officer of their Administration who happens to be already in India. Nevertheless, I do not see what other course was open to the Hong Kong Government but to contact individually the Indian Police Officers concerned, and the procedure they have adopted was not actually precluded by the terms of No.66.
4.
In the circumstances I think our best tactics would be simply to send the India Office a copy of No. 68 for their information, without inviting their comment.
5.
At the same time, if we proceed with the draft savingram, we shall have to bring the same point to the notice of Hong Kong as well, and I suggest this be done as in the draft telegram opposite.
6.
I have also prepared a draft covering letter to the India Office, which is based on the assumption that action on the draft savingram and draft telegram is to proceed. I am sending this minute and the drafts forward through Mr. Acheson in Mr. Mayle's absence on leave.
AnGals walley
20.6.47.
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