TOP SECRET
(vii) Declining value of the Colony to China: either
in the economic field or as a base for subversive
propaganda elsewhere.
(viii) A breakdown of order in China e.g. as the result of
crisis after the death or removal of Mao could leave the
initiative on Hong Kong in the hands of local militants
or of the provincial authorities in Kwantung
(b) Towards maintenance of the status quo
(i) The Colony's economic value to China in British
hands: it could have at the best a very limited value
in Chinese hands.
(ii) The Colony's value as a base for subversive
propaganda and as an outlet to the Western world.
(iii) The Colony is a useful hostage for use against
Britain and could possibly be so used against other
countries.
(iv) The administrative embarrassment of taking over a
largely sullen population and a complex economy which China
could not sustain, with the likely result that a large
part of the population would have to be resettled in China. (v) Fear that a take-over might bring unforeseeable
international repercussions, particularly a reaction from
the United States.
(vi)
Chinese morale: Hong Kong is a safety valve for the
discontented in South China. If hope of escape was dashed, discontent in that area (always a touchy one for Chinese Governments) might become uncontrollable.
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/(vii)
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