TNAG-0100-FCO40-136-Hong-Kong-royal-visits-1968 — Page 97

damage confidence (and the economy) of the territory.

Any Chinese reaction would tend to mar the enjoyment

and purpose of the visit. A visit might provide the

Chinese with a means of putting pressure upon us to

achieve other aims of Chinese policy (e.g. withdrawal of

facilities enjoyed by American forces in Hong Kong)

With reluctance we have tended in the past to go along

with the Foreign Office view that a visit by The Queen

would be unwise.

4.

In September last year the Governor wrote to

Sir Saville Garner suggesting that a visit by The Queen October/November/December in the last three months of 1968 to open the Plover Cove

Water Scheme could perhaps be regarded as more acceptable,

in that it would be a visit for a particular purpose and

not in the manner of a general "display of sovereignty".

This letter has unfortunately been mislaid, but a copy is

now available. Although steps have been taken to obtain

the considered views of the Foreign Office, these have not been

received. Our preliminary conclusions (after informal

discussions with the Foreign Office) are that the distinction

drawn by the Governor is not one that theChinese would be

C

likely to recognise; that, given the unpredictability of

hopeful Chinese attitudes, we could be no more helpful now than we

were in 1964 of avoiding the difficulties and dangers then

apparent; and that since the Governor's letter was written

there have been (a) developments in China which must tend

to increase the dangers of Chinese unpredictability and (b)

the Macao incident which provides an illustration of the way

in which Chinese anti-Colonialism ben manifest itself.

5.

However, at tomorrow's meeting of the Royal Visits'

Committee it is suggested that, while airing the arguments

set out above for and against the inclusion of Hong Kong in

Her Majesty's proposed tour, the aim might be to keep the decision

open for the present in the absence of the considered views of

the Foreign Office.

A short note on the Plover Cove Water Scheme is attached.

6.

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