TNAG-0032-FCO40-68-Relations-with-China-1968 — Page 250

FCO40 Hong Kong Department Records 聯邦事務部香港部檔案 All

SECRET

CYPHER CAT A

PRIOTY HONG KONG TO COMMONWEALTH OFFICE

TELNO 882

SECRET

12 JULY, 1968

Th Che is HWA 9/12

нов

PEKING TELEGRAM NO. 648 : POLICY IN HONG KONG.

670

I SUGGEST THE MAIN FEATURES OF THE CURRENT PHASE OF CONFRONTATION

ARE:

(A) THE CPG AT A HIGH LEVEL HAVE ALREADY INSTRUCTED INFLUENTIAL

LOCAL COMMUNIST LEADERS TO DROP VICLENCE AND CONCENTRATE ON BROADEN-

-ING THE BASE OF COMMUNIST SUPPORT. THIS ATTEMPT TO WIN OVER

ADHERENTS IS OF COURSE A POLICY OF MANY YEARS STANDING AND IS

OBVIOUSLY ONE WHICH WILL NEVER BE ABANDONED. TO THIS LIMITED

EXTENT WE ARE ALREADY BACK TO NORMAL, WITH CONFRONTATION IN HONG

KONG LARGELY OVER FOR THE TIME BEING: BUT THE PROPAGANDA ATTACK

IS MORE OVERT AND MORE BITTERLY PROSECUTED THAN PRE-1967, AND

(B) WHATEVER WE DO, ACTIVE CONFRONTATION COULD START UP AGAIN AT

ANY TIME IF THE BALANCE OF INFLUENCE WITHIN THE CPG SHIFTS.

(C) THE POLICY IN (A) HAS GENERALLY SPEAKING BEEN SUCCESSFULLY

IMPOSED AND, PARTLY AS A RESULT, MORALE IN LABOUR CIRCLES PARTIC-

-ULARLY IS LOW: BUT THERE REMAINS A HARD CORE OF THE MILITANTLY

MINDED. THIS MILITANT HARD CORE WILL ALWAYS SEEK TO MAKE TROUBLE,

AND ARE CERTAINLY NOT INTERESTED IN ANY ACCOMODATION WITH US EXCEPT

WHOLLY ON THEIR OWN TERMS. THE AUTHORITY OF THE MODERATE LEADERS

IN THE CPG AND HERE 13 NOT 30 COMPLETE THAT THEY CAN ENTIRELY

DISCLAIM THE MILITANTS. THEY CANNOT AVOID SOME BENDING TO

MILITANT VIEWS, NOS AVOID GIVING THEN SOME OSTENSIBLE SUPPORT. IT

13 INDEED ARGUABLE THAT THE COMMUNIST LEADERSHIP HERE IS AT PRESENT

REALLY QUITE GLAD TO SEE US OCCASIONALLY TAKE A FIRM LINE WITH

THESE PEOPLE.

531

(D) THE PRESENT POOR STATE OF SINO-BRITISH RELATIONS, WITH ALL THE

ILL-EFFECTS WHICH FLOW THEREFROM, RESULT ESSENTIALLY FROM A

COMPOUND OF CHINESE FEELINGS OVER LACK OF SUCCESS IN HONG KONG →

SEMICOLON THE GENERALLY OVER-EXCITED EMOTIONAL ATMOSPHERE AN

CHINA SEMICOLON THE NECESSITY TO TAR US WITH THE

BRUSH

RECE

OUR

LAST

RSF

693

SECRET

AMERICAN

Усили

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