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therefore, seem undesirable in the extreme to postpone the coming into force of the amended 1950 Ordinance until next year, and meanwhile to take what amounts to provocative action in the newly acquired areas (which up to the present, we gather from the Governor's Savingram, have only been visited by an occasional naval patrol.) From the legal point of view it is important that the amended Ordinance should come into force before we become involved in any controversy with the Chinese. It is bad enough to amend the definition of territorial

waters some 50 years after the Convention was drawn up, but it would look very much worse to amend it after a dispute with the Chinese had arisen.

5. In the present unsettled state of the area adjoining Hong Kong, while some islands are still in Nationalist hands, and others have only just been captured by the Communists, it is clear that incidents are likely to arise. Indeed, we know from Hong Kong telegrams Nos.659 and 692 that such incidents have arisen in the very area which the Governor proposes actively to patrol. Even at the risk of considerable dislocation of the Colony's legislative programme, we feel that we must press you to request the Officer Administrating the Government to bring into force at the earliest opportunity the amended Interpretation Ordinance, 1950, and ask him not to extend police patrolling in the South West area until this has been done. May we please be informed when the amended Ordinance has been introduced?

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