may be something less than any of the formulae indicated in para. 3 of the draft.
The general view of the F.O. was that however important the issue of the Kenya Highlands may be to the Colonial Office, the overriding consideration must be the interests of the U.K. in obtaining rights to acquire real property in China. Mr. Ashley Clarke did not see how this general U.K. interest could be in any way
subordinated to the Colonial Office concern about the Kenya Highlands.
I have now consulted Mr. Seel about this, whose views are as follows:-
"From the Kenya point of view, it is probably inevitable that we must accept some provision giving the nominal right to acquire real property in the Highlands on a basis of reciprocity.
If this is in the form shown in para.2. of (134) (which the F.0. regard as the minimum acceptable) I think we could be content with this for the reasons given in the third para. of (139).
If the first alternative suggested in para.3 of A2 is adopted this would be the same from our point of view because the reservation of land in the Highlands follows upon one of "the conditions and requirements" in the Kenya law, viz. the
requirement that transfers of land, between different races required the assent of the Governor and the Council.
If the second alternative in A2 is adopted, conferring the right to hold real property upon Chinese on the same conditions as our Nationals, this is on the face of it more objectionable from our point of view because it obviously gives the Chinese a stronger claim to be treated in all respects as Europeans in the matter of land holding in the Highlands. But it does not do away with the safeguard imposed by the right of veto on transfer.
The difficulties in all this for Kenya
It is that the are explained in (90) and in (139). Secretary of State may, as a result of whatever provision is put in the China Treaty, be drawn, by way of explanation to the Kenya settlers into what would virtually be a re-statement of the "White Highlands policy
This would in present circumstances obviously be undesirable. But we cannot pretend that it is a factor which can outweigh the major considerations on which the whole philosophy of the China Treaty is based. We shall have to consider, if and when the resulting difficulty in Kenya arises in a concrete form, how we can meet it.
In all the circumstances, therefore, I should be prepared to accept the draft A2 were it not that it gives the Ambassador authority to get the best text he can. I think that para. 2 should be amended and that the Ambassador should be instructed to report back if he is not able to get any of the formulae mentioned in para. 3."
No. (139).
As regards the point raised in para. 4 of
This point would have been secured if
the
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