TNAG-0034-FCO40-70-Relations-with-China-1968 — Page 94

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HONG KONG TELEGRAM NO. 440 TO COMMONWEALTH OFFICE

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OF PARAGRAPH 4 OF MY TELEGRAM 344. CONTACT SAID THAT QUESTION OF

FILM STARS HAD NOT BEEN RAISED WITH HIM, BUT A POSSIBLE EXPLANATION

OF CHINESE ATTITUDE MIGHT BE FOUND IN THE TIMING OF THE EXERCISE

IT WAS ON 10TH MARCH THAT HE HAD FIRST PASSED ON TO HIS BRITISH

CON CTS INFORMATION OF THE CHINESE APPROACH. THEN, WHILE CHINESE

WERE WAITING FOR SOME SORT OF RESPONSE, FILM STAR EXERCISE HAD

BEEN MOUNTED. THE CHINESE MIGHT HAVE FELT THAT HONG KONG GOVERNMENT

WERE DELIBERATELY IGNORING THEIR APPROACH AND ATTEMPTING TO IMPOSE

THEIR OWN IDEAS. AS FOR THE RELEASE OF PRISONERS, CATER REITERATED

WHAT HE HAD SAID PREVIOUSLY (PAR GRAPH 401V) OF MY TELEGRAM UNDER

REFERENCE): THAT THE RELEASE OF PRISONERS IN HONG KONG BEFORE THE

EXPIRY OF THEIR SENTENCES WOULD BE IMPOSSIBLE, BUT THERE MIGHT

BE ROOM FOR DISCUSSION OF THE POSSIBILITY OF THE RELEASE OF PRISON-

ERS TO CHINA. CONTACT CERTAINLY APPRECIATED THIS POINT, BUT MADE

NO COMMENT ON IT ON THIS OCCASION.

6.

AMONG OTHER POINTS RAISED IN DISCUSSIONS:

(1) CATER ASKED CONTACT WHAT HE THOUGHT OF RECENT REPORTS THAT

SOME EXTREMISTS WERE BEGINNING TO REGAIN POWER IN PEKING. CONTACT

2.

REPLIED THAT HE HAD NO DOUBT THAT CHOU WAS FIRMLY IN CONTROL,

THOUGH HE HAD TO ENSURE THAT CHIANG CHING AND KANG SHENG WERE

DEFEATED POLITICALLY BEFORE MATTERS COULD BE PROPERLY SETTLED.

CONTACT THOUGHT THERE WERE ALREADY WELCOME SIGNS THAT LIN PIAO

WAS HAVING TO RELY MORE AND MORE ON CHOU EN-LAI'S BACKING AGAINST

KANG SHENG.

(ID) CONTACT ALSO MENTIONED THAT CHENG WEN-CHUNG, AN EXTREMIST

SUB-MANAGER OF THE BANK OF CHINA HAD GIVEN A SPEECH TO LOCAL

COMMUNISTS ON APRIL 2ND TO EFFECT THAT THE LOCAL STRUGGLE MUST

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CONTINUE. CONTACT WAS NOT SURE WHETHER THIS WAS A PERSONAL INITIATIVE

BY CHANG IN DEFIANCE OF LI'S INSTRUCTIONS CPARAGRAPH 3 ABOVE) OR

PART OF A DOUBLE CROSS, CHANG WOULD SPEAK AGAIN ON APRIL 220

SEMICOLON AND CONTACT WOULD ANALYSE WHAT HE HAD SAID VERY CARE-

FULLY, IF CONTENT WAS NOT VERY IMPORTANT HE MIGHT ASK

LI TO ''BRING CHANG INTO LINE'' SEMICOLON IF IT WAS IMPORTANT OR

TROUBLESOME CONTACT MIGHT HAVE TO TAKE UP MATTER WITH PEKING

''DIRECTLY''.

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7. CONTACT

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