[This telegram is of particular secrecy and should be retained by the authorised recipient and not passed on] Cypher/OTP
147 08
MA
DIPLOMATIC DISTRIBUTION
FROM NANKING TO FOREIGN OFFICE
Sir R. Stevenson No. 1358
27th August, 1949.
SECRET
D. 3.09 p.m. 27th August, 1949. R. 4.32 p.m. 27th August, 1949.
Addressed to Hong Kong telegram No. 312 of 27th August, repeated for information to Foreign Office.
Your telegram No. 869 to Secretary of State for the Colonies.
(22)
Influx contemplated in paragraph 2 may well prove in practice to be considerably reduced by restrictions on travelling at present imposed in Communist China, as a result of which the Communist authorities may not (repeat not) be disposed to issue any large number of exit permits for Hong Kong to the Chinese. The situation in this respect may of course change after the capture of Kuantung and the possibility of considerable volume of persons crossing the border despite such restrictions can not (repeat not) be ignored.
2. So long as Communists maintain their refusal to recognise functions of His Majesty's Consuls, I am inclined to doubt whether insistence upon visa would be either politic or effective sanction. Result might only be to increase difficulty of respectable Chinese travellers obtaining requisite exit permits, and may thus adversely affect resumption of commerce and restoration of relations between Hong Kong and the mainland.
3. The situation might however call for reconsideration after recognition or should appreciation in paragraph 1 above prove to be wrong.
4. Above considerations would not (repeat not) of course hold good with regard to large influx of Chinese trying to escape from Communists occupying Canton in which case imposition of emergency restrictions would be free of similar objections.
5. In any event I would suggest that one of the stated reasons for any restrictions of this sort might be to prevent increase of un-productive population of Hong Kong, as this is an argument which the Communists have themselves exploited in justification of their announced policy of reducing the
/number of....
No comments yet.
Private notes are available after approval.