TNAG-0113-FCO40-149-Detainees-and-prisoners-following-19671968-disturbances-1969 — Page 163

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Lord Shepherd on 9 January;

Foreign Affairs in Peking by

Mr. Cradock on 11 February;

at an interview at the Ministry of

our outgoing Charge d'Affaires,

and at the initial interview of his

successor, Mr. Denson, with the West European Department of

the Ministry on 8 March. On the last occasion the Chinese

told Mr. Denson categorically that Mr. Grey now had access to

his own library on the first floor of his house.

Visits

7.

Mr. Long may raise the question of a further exchange of

visits (by the Charge d'Affaires in Peking to Mr. Grey and by

representatives of the New China News Agency in Hong Kong to

the eleven imprisoned news workers). Clearly we cannot rule

out a further exchange of this kind. But the following points

have to be borne in mind:-

(a)

Each

We wish to keep such exchanges within bounds.

visit by the N.C.N.A. representatives in Hong Kong

to the convicted news workers provides the communiste

with a propaganda victory; suggests that we are ready

to discriminate in favour of certain categories of

prisoner;

and reinforces in quasi-consular standing

of the N.C.N.A. in Hong Kong.

(b) A further visit to Mr. Grey will inevitably generate

In the

a new wave of public concern for his plight.

glare of publicity it will be harder to m-ke the discreet

arrangements proposed by the Governor for shortening the

sentence of the eleventh news worker.

(c) We shall do Mr. Grey no service if we visit him before

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