CO129-589-2 Sino-Japanese War- interned Chinese soldiers 15-1-1941 - 10-3-1941 — Page 10

Secretary of state

Colonial offici

OUTWARD TELEGRAM 88/15/41 10 4

5-3838/35/41

This Document is the Property of His Britannic Majesty's Government, and should be

(F.178/178/10)

CONFIDENTIAL

2 Ref

kept under Lock and Key.]

fu

Folette F178/178/10 of Jan 20th (to Me Get to ho Ashley Clarke).

Cypher telegram to Sir R. Craigie (Tokyo)

With the Complime

of the

ī

Under Secretary of £0.9 for Foreign Affairs

DEPARTMENTAL NO.1.

4 FEB 1941

t wo

copy

Foreign Office 2nd February, 1917, 3.0 p.m.

No. 109.

Your telegram to Foreign Office No. 414 of 1940 [of March 9th: Chinese soldiers interned in Hong Kong], and your telegram to Hong Kong No. 425.

If the Military Attache has not already spoken to the Director of Military Intelligence, we prefer that he should not do so. We propose, unless you see strong objection, to authorise the release of the interned Chinese soldiers at Hong Kong without again approaching the Japanese authorities on the subject. If necessary the men can be released gradually and ostensibly on

the medical grounds, and since, so far as we are aware, Japanese do not themselves maintain Chinese war prisoners in camps they can hardly expect us to go on doing so indefinitely for their benefit.

2. Do you concur?

Repeated to Governor Hong Kong No. 86, Shanghai No. 113 and Chungking No. 53.

I

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