8.
Spontaneous evacuation seems already to have begun. The Governor of Hong Kong reported today that about 450 Portuguese nationals, including a large number of women and children, arrived in Hong Kong on 16th January and up to midday on 17th January. Many brought heavy baggage, and they appeared to have made their own arrangements to leave Macao. They were admitted in accordance with the usual immigration procedures and granted seven days stay
in the first instance.
9. The Governor of Hong Kong has suggested that we might impress on the Portuguese Government the need for very careful thought before embarking on any course that would lead to all-out confrontation with Peking. Presumably the Governor has in mind that a Chinese take- over in Macao would increase tension in the area and might result in incréased Chinese pressures against Hong Kong. We do not, however, consider that Peking is likely to change its basic policy towards Hong Kong as a result of developments in Macao, if only because of Hong Kong's high economic value to China. It seems clear that the Chinese are anxious to settle the Macao dispute, naturally on their own terms. The only remaining obstacle, so far as we know, is the Chinese insistence on the Portuguese admitting that they have committed a "crime" against the Chinese (see paragraph 12 below). The Portuguese, not surprisingly, are not prepared to admit this. The attitude of the Ambassador here bears out our view that they would strongly object to any pressure by us on them to accept the Chinese demands on this point. In the circumstances, we think that we should not put this point to the Portuguese.
Background
10.
This situation arose out of rioting which developed in Macao at the beginning of December after the Portuguese authorities had forcibly intervened to prevent unauthorised structural changes being made to a building · housing a communist-owned school. The intervention of the Security Forces resulted in casualties, including
some deaths.
/11.
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