TNAG-0029-FCO40-65-Relations-with-China-1968 — Page 66

Sir D. Allen

CONFIDENT IAL

PRISON VISITS

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Peking telegrams nos. 239 and 240 reporting a meeting

between the Chargé d'Affaires and an official of the Chinese

Ministry of Foreign Affairs indicate that there has been a

misunderstanding about the categories of prisoners to be included

as "patriotic journalists" in the context of additional prison

visits in Hong Kong. N.C.N.A. in Hong Kong had presented a

list of 21 persons which, beside the 2 N.C.N.A. correspondents

and 12 journalists, included 5 labourers and 2 newspaper sellers

employed by a communist newspaper in Hong Kong (Hong Kong

workers".

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telegram No. 363). The Chinese argue that the term translated

as "journalist" in fact means literally in Chinese "newspaper

We should therefore agree to grant additional visits

to all the 21 persons listed. The Chinese have also supported

a request of N.C.N.A. in Hong Kong for the number of visitors

to each prisoner to be no less than three, not two as we had

proposed. We have to decide whether to agree to what the

Chinese ask.

Recommendation

2. I recommend that subject to the views of the Governor of

Hong Kong, we agree that visite should be allowed to all the

persons listed by N.C.N.A. and that three visitors be allowed

to each prisoner. I submit a draft telegram on these lines

drafted by the Commonwealth Office.

CONFIDENTIAL

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