En Clair
HONG KONG TO COMMONWEALTH OFFICE (D.T.D.)
nnumbered
20 October, 1967
UNCLASSIFIED
33
Press.
201600.
Attention Glover.
Embargoed for release 0900 G.M.T.
Following is full text of radio and television talk to people of Hong Kong by Minister of State for Commonwealth Affairs Lord Shepherd this Friday evening:
"Tomorrow I shall be leaving for Singapore and then on to London. I have spent some eight stimulating and very valuable days in [? gp omitted]: and I would like to be able to give a few brief impressions of Hong Kong.
"When I arrived last Friday I spoke of need of change. There were some who thought that perhaps I came with a magic wand but as you remember I referred to change that was all around. It is right to reflect upon progress of Colony. Some twenty years ago we had a small population dependent upon trade.
"Today we have some 3,700,000 persons living here. Hong Kong is today a thrusting dynamic industrial port. It has been diversified from simple cotton weaving to sophisticated electronic production. We give employment to some one and a half million people. Hospitals like Queen Elizabeth Hospital which I visited the other day is envy of World. And we see from our statistics a dramatic improvement in health of our people. There are some one million children at school - nearly a quarter of our entire population. On 26 October there will be a ceremony to mark one millionth person to be resettled in this Colony. As you know a new programme of housing was announced yesterday.
"Hong Kong depends upon exports. Exports of our Colony have risen this year by some 16 per cent. I would suggest that this in itself represents change.
Governor
DEPARTMENTAL DISTRIBUTION
C.O.
H.K.D.
I. & G.D. News Dept. D.T.C.D. J.I.P.G.D.
J.I.R.D.
Sent 12222/20 October Recd 12002/20 October
.53
LIWD 22/27
O.L.A.
O.P.A.
F.0. 88888
F.E.D.
No comments yet.
Private notes are available after approval.