CO537-5132 — Page 37

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Communism as the paramount power in China, the impact of this

development among the Overseas Chinese communities, and the

necessity for H.M. G. to attempt to enter into reasonable

relations with the Chinese People's Republic. As an instance

●f the difficulty which this development oreates may be cited

the fact that almost the whole of the Overseas Chinese press in

South-East Asia is now toeing the Chinese Communist Government

line and refusing to accept material from British sources. It

may nevertheless be hoped that, by covert or indirect means, a

considerable volume of propaganda on the lines laid down in

paras 2

P

5 above may be directed at these communities and that,

if it is effective, the effect will be transmitted in part to

China itself.

8.

Towards the indigenous populations of South-East Asia

the task is theoretically easier: we must hammer into them the

essential opposition of Soviet imperialism to Asian nationalism

and seek to invoke the latter in the cause of resistance to

Communist encroachment. The Soviet Union has played into our

hands in this task to some extent by declaring its violent

hostility to the Governments of India, the Indonesian Republic, Burma and Siam. Nevertheless, the task is by no means easy, because the peoples involved are still largely unaware of the

Russian factor. Communism to most of them now means little

:'

more than Chinese Communism, while Russia to some of them

means a power which vaguely is understood to support national aspirations against European domination.

9.

The natural hostility of these peoples to Chinese expansionism will be a factor in stiffening their resistance

to Communism as such, but, in the light of our strong interest in good inter-racial relations in colonial territories, we cannot direct propaganda, even covertly, to stimulating this hostility.

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An important part of this propaganda should where

possible consist of the communication of information to

Governments/