CO537-4825 — Page 38

ངས་འག

Pl. See on Sidebotham's inte

If

J

I agree with Mr. Sidebotham that it would be fruitless to consider the question whether the recruitment of Assyrians for service in Hong Kong would serve any useful purpose until we have received the Governor's reply to our recent telegram as to the practicability of closing the frontier and as to the size of the forces which would be necessary for that purpose. But I must say that even if this telegram should reveal serious gaps in the security forces which might possibly be filled from recruitment from outside the Colony there would be many obstacles to be overcome before we could assume that the Assyrians would be available for such a purpose. they had already been settled, with their families, in North Borneo, it might be a different matter. But that (even if the project materialises) is a long way ahead. If the Cabinet approves the proposals it has first to be explained to the Governments of Iraq and Syrian and if they are agreeable, to the Assyrians themselves. If the Assyrians are agreeable then nothing can be done on a large scale until the small "pilot" scheme has been tried out. Even therefore if there were no unforeseen obstacles I cannot see this scheme of settlement in Borneo materialising in much under (say) 18 months to two years.

as it is, we could not take these Police to Hong Kong with any promise at all that they would subsequently be settled in North Borneo. It would have to be done on the basis that, after their service in Hong Kong, they would have to return to Iraq and Syria unless, in the meantime, some other place for their settlement had been found.

Even this proposal would have first to be cleared with the Iraqi and Syrian Governments. I very much doubt whether the Foreign Office would be at all favourably disposed because it would (I should say) so complicate the issues as regards the Borneo experiment as to jeopardize the success or that project.

Moreover,

the Foreign Office might well take the line that (if the North Borneo project does not materialise) recruitment for Hong Kong would be placing

/I.M.G.