TNAG-0040-FCO40-76-Border-incidents-with-China-1968 — Page 37

SECRET

-2-

DISTRIBUTED THROUGHOUT THE COLONY ON 27 MAY. ALTHOUGH A FEW WERE

FOUND ALSO ON THE TWO SUCCEEDING DAYS IT WAS BASICALLY A ONE DAY

EVENT. ALL WERE REMOVED BY POLICE. THE MAJORITY OF LOCAL COMMUNIST

ORGANISATIONS HAVE SINCE HELD MEETINGS AND ISSUED STATEMENTS N

SUPPORT OF THE PROTEST.

C) AN ATTEMPT BY THE COMMUNISTS TO DISRUPT PUBLIC TRANSPORT SERVICES.

ON THE EVENING OF 30 MAY A CROWD OF SOME 2,000 'STRIKERS' WAITED

FOR BUSES DURING THE PEAK PERIOD AT A KOWLOON TERMINUS, AS WELL AS

AT BUS STOPS, CAUSING CONGESTION FOR ABOUT ONE AND A HALF HOURS.

THIS TACTIC IS REPORTED TO HAVE BEEN ENDORSED BY A MEETING OF THE

A.S.A.P.S.C. HELD EARLIER IN THE DAY. IT HAS NOT BEEN REPEATED.

DO 39 VISITS BY COMMUNIST DELEGATIONS TO 8 GOVERNMENT DEPARTMENTS

CONCERNING REINSTATEMENT, GIFT RICE, REDUCTION OF ALLOWANCES

BASED ON THE COST OF LIVING, 'ILL TREATMENT' AND RELEASE OF

PRISONERS AND POLICE 'PERSECUTION' OF DRIVERS, AND 22 TO 10

PRIVATE COMPANIES SEEKING REEMPLOYMENT. SEVERAL COMPRISED WOMEN

AND SOME CHANTED SLOGANS. AS THE COMMUNISTS PRIMARY TARGET, THE

KOWLOON BUS COMPANY WAS SUBJECTED ON ONE DAY TO WAVES OF THE

LARGEST GROUPS SEEN SO FAR, ONE PARTY NUMBERING SOME 150.

E) FURTHER MEETINGS BY COMMUNIST UNIONS CONCERNING REINSTATEMENT.

AT SOME OF THESE IT BECAME APPARENT THAT THE LACK OF SUCCESS SO

FAR IS HAVING AN ADVERSE EFFECT ON THE MORALE OF THE STRIKERS.

WHILE SOME OF THE MORE MILITANT RANK AND FILE ARE ADVOCATING

STRONGER TACTICS THE LEADERS ARE STILL EXERCISING CONTROL AID

ONE UNION, AT LEAST, HAS BEEN INSTRUCTED TO RESTRICT THE SIZE OF

ITS DELEGATIONS.

FO AN ANNOUNCEMENT BY THE MOTOR TRANSPORT WORKERS' UNION CATWU)

KOWLOON BRANCH, THAT HENCEFORTH ONLY TAXI DRIVERS WILL BE ELIGIBLE FOR STRIKE PAY. CTELEGRAM 640 PARAGRAPH 1(E) REFERS).

THIS IS THE THIRD UNION TO ANNOUNCE RESTRICTION OF

PAYMENTS (PARA 1(C) FO TELNO 674 REFERS.

(G) THE ANNOUNCEMENT OF FURTHER PLANS FOR EXPANSION BY COMMUNIST

SCHOOLS. IN ADDITION TO THE EXTENSION PROPOSED THIS YEAR BY THREE

SCHOOLS (PARAGRAPH CG) OF TELEGRAM 640) TWO OTHER ESTABLISHMENTS

WILL BE OPENING NEW BRANCHES. ONE OF THESE, WHICH WILL CATER IN PART

FOR SECONDARY SCHOOLSTUDENTS, VILL CE IN AN AREA THAT THE COMMUNISTS

HAVE NO PRESENCE SO FAR IN THIS FIELD. ONE SMALL SCHOOL WAS SERVED

WITH A NOTICE OF DE-REGISTRATION BECAUSE OF A FIRE HAZARD ON THE 30TH

MAY. SUBSEQUENTLY TWO DELEGATIONS OF PARENTS VISITED THE EDUCAT 101

DEPARTMENT ASKING THAT THE SCHOOL BE ALLOWED TO CONTINUE OPERATING.

SECRET

/(H)