TNAG-0348-FCO40-384-Costs-of-extra-services-provided-by-armed-forces-of-UK-in-Ho-1972 — Page 67

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CONFIDENTIAL

6. From early July 1967, after a particularly serious

border incident, the Army had taken over responsiblity

for the defence of the border with the police in support

There had been a number of incursions by groups of

people from China over the border into Hong Kong. On

one particular occasion, numbers of Chinese had intruded

into British territory, torn down the then existing

border fence and other obstacles and had ended up by

holding prisoner within our territory a British Briga-

dier and a number of Gurkha soldiers.

At that time

conditions in China, as a result of the cultural

revolution, were such that there was a serious risk

that large numbers of Chinese fleeing from China might

either try to burst over the frontier, or alternatively

and in order to embarrass the British troops on the

border, might be driven over it. The border fence in

existence at that time was quite useless for the pur-

pose of helping to control any incursion of the kinds

mentioned above or indeed of any other kind. Accordingly

the Governor and the military authorities in Hong Kong

agreed on the erection of the new fence well back from

the frontier and in a position where any incursion could

be held without intervention from China's armed forces

their Violating

on the border, short of a violation of British territory

resorting

or resort to the use of fire-arms.

7. In the light of the above circumstances, the

Foreign and Commonwealth Office do not share the view ex-

pressed by the former Commonwealth Office that the fence

was simply a measure to control illegal immigration.

They share the Hong Kong Government's view that it was,

/in fact

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CONFIDENTIAL