CYPHER CAT.A.
RECEIVED IN ARCHIVES No.31
1 3 NOV 1968
WARKIR
IMMEDIATE HONG KONG
TELEGRAM NO 2175
怔
CONFIDENTIAL
HK
TO FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH OFFICE
12 NOVEMBER 1968
16.
CONFIDENTIAL
ADDRESSED FCO TELEGRAM NO. 2175 OF 12TH NOVEMBER REPEATED PEKING.
YOUR TELEGRAM NO. 1575 : DETAINEES.
HONG KONG NEWSPAPERS CARRY EXTRACTS FROM REAR'S LETTER, BUT WE
HAVE NOT SEEN THE WHOLE TEXT.
2. THE GREAT MAJORITY OF THOSE NOW HELD UNDER DETENTION ORDERS WERE ORIGINALLY ARRESTED UNDER THE DEPORTATION OF ALIENS ORDINANCE WITH A VIEW TO DEPORTATION. IT HAS NEVER BEEN OUR PRACTICE TO PUBLISH THE NAMES OF PERSONS ARRESTED FOR DEPORTATION, AND SIMILARLY WE HAVE DELIBERATELY NOT PUBLISHED THE TOTAL NUMBERS NOR THE INDIVIDUAL
NAMES OF PERSONS DETAINED UNDER EMERGENCY REGULATIONS SEMICOLON IN
THE SECURITY SITUATION AT THE TIME THERE WERE, OF COURSE, GOOD REASONS FOR NOT DOING SO. IN PRESENT CIRCUMSTANCES THESE OBJECTIONS
ARE LESS VALID BUT WE HAVE NOT BEEN PRESSED TO GIVE THIS INFORMATION, ALTHOUGH, IN ANSWER TO PRESS ENQUIRIES, WE HAVE GIVEN THE NAMES OF SOME DETAINEES AFTER RELEASE. ON THE WHOLE, THEREFORE, I WOULD PREFER NOT TO REVEAL THE NAMES OF THOSE STILL DETAINED EVEN AT THIS STAGE, PARTICULARLY AS THEIR IDENTITY IS KNOWN TO THEIR RELATIVES AND FRIENDS, AND TO THE COMMUNISTS THEMSELVES. THEY HAVE, OF COURSE, HAD REGULAR VISITS. THERE ARE NOW 32 LEFT IN DETENTION, 20 HAVING
BEEN RELEASED SINCE EARLY JULY.
3. ONE MIGHT ALSO MAKE THE FOLLOWING POINTS:-
(A) ALTHOUGH THE DETAINED PERSONS HAVE NOT BEEN TRIED IN COURT, THEY
ARE OF COURSE HELD UNDER A LAW WHICH PROVIDES A RIGHT OF APPEAL TO
COMMITTEE OF REVIEW SEMICOLON
A
(B) ONLY ONE NEW DETENTION ORDER HAS SO FAR BEEN MADE ON EXPIRY OF
THE ORIGINAL ORDER SEMICOLON
(C) THEY ARE HELD BECAUSE WE JUDGE THEM TO BE A THREAT TO THE SECURITY OF HONG KONG. GREY, BY CONTRAST, HAS NOT BEEN ACCUSED OF
BEING SUCH A THREAT TO CHINA SEMICOLON
/(D) WE REGULARLY
LAST
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