CONFIDENTIAL
Peking telegram No. 1 to Foreign Office
2
I reminded Mr. Hsueh once again of earlier NCNA visit he said official had been accompanied by reporters' families so visits were unofficial.
8.
At the end of the interview I put forward on a personal basis proposal that problem could be solved by an exchange of Grey and Hsueh P'ing, if Chinese were prepared to accept Hsuch P'ing and to allow Grey to leave the country. Mr. Hsuch said he would pass this proposal on to higher authority but said that he personally considered that they were unlikely to agree to it. So many people had been killed and arrested in Hong Kong that it was impossible to settle problem so lightly.
9.
This is first time Chinese have drawn this distinction between an officially sponsored NCNA visit and unofficial visits allowed so far. This may be a sort of ex post facto justification of their failure to grant us access to Grey in turn for unofficial visits. I doubt if they expect us to grant all their requests. Whether they proceed [gp. undec.] requests for visits from prisoners themselves remains to be seen. The whole operation looks more like a propaganda build-up for a campaign about prisoners' conditions in Hong Kong which would also be used to counter any publicity and may be initially about treatment of Grey. There may also be an implied threat that if Chinese requests are not met conditions of Grey's confinement may be made more severe "Please see my immediately following telegram".
10.
I should be grateful if Hong Kong would keep me closely informed by immediate telegram of further developments.
Foreign Office pass Immediate Hong Kong No.
Sir D. Hopson
[Repeated as requested].
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