CO129-584-7 Vacancies for revenue officers 12-8-1940 - 7-11-1940 — Page 4

DRAFT ON

13029/A/40.

CYPHER TELEGRAM

TO

O.A.G.

HONG KONG.

Sent 20th October 1940.

12. 20 hrs.

IMMEDI ATE.

No.589 Secret.

6 4

Your telegram No.653.

I note that it was not intended to remove

ril

immediately all restrictions connected with Burma Road agreement and I had assumed from your telegram No. 611 that full restrictions would in fact be retained at least for the present. I had approved that course in my telegram No. 574. Regrettable misunderstanding appears to have arisen from statement reported in your telegram No. 649 which clearly denoted immediate withdrewal of restrictions except on munitions proper. Moreover method of public statement did not, I suggest, take into account my request that such relaxations as night at any time be decided upon in interests of colony should be effected as unobtrusively as possible.

$

As regards pressure of Japanese Consul General to obtain locally in Hongkong statement of British policy, your correct reply, in view of obvious political importance to Anglo-Japanese relations of issues involved, would have been to recommend that the Japanese Goverment should address enquiries to His Majesty's Ambassador at Tokyo (to whom H.M.G. had in fact sent instructions).

In my telegram No. 581 I indicated ther it would Se inappropriate to give Japanese Consul General special information as to the operation of the restrictions and this should be borne in mind in future, In view of the disturbance which chie incident has caused to already delicate situstion, I have slso to ask that any intention of modifying or rem:ving these restrictions should be referred to me (repeuting to is Majesty's Ambassador at Tokyo) before any action is taken or local publicity permitted.

Addresesi to Governor Hongkong, repeated to Tokyo

1.35, Shanghai No. 1125, Chungking No.132.