TNAG-0415-FCO40-461-Review-of-narcotics-problem-in-Hong-Kong-1973 — Page 78

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that one possible function for which they would be peculiarly suited would be as a link in the chain for intercepting drug At a preliminary view cargoes once they had left Thailand.

we see substantial difficulties in the idea of searching Thai trawlers on the high seas. But we are encouraged by successes in the Irish context in stopping illegal cargoes once they have entered territorial waters. Presumably a large part of your difficulty at the moment is that you do not know what to search. But if, acting on information received through the liaison officers in Thailand (and the recent seizure in Vietnam may provide useful leads on this), we could establish surveillance on given voyages by particular trawlers I imagine that the task

We take of your preventive service would be greatly eased. the point that the drugs might be transferred to junks outside Hong Kong territorial waters but there might still be a possi- bility of discreet surveillance which would enable the junks to be pinpointed and boarded as soon as they came within your grasp. At any rate the possibility seems worth exploring along with the idea of searches on the high seas.

Judy On the other proposals in your papers, you will see from the record of our meeting that the Home Office have agreed to For the rest, investigate the acetic anhydride possibility. including proposed discussions with the Americans, I think the first thing is to get clear our plans for participation in the ad hoc committee. As you will see, we have wondered whether it would be in your and our interest to try to get the Committee to agree to Train taking Folph or one of Rolph's staff with him as an adviser. Rolph's paper merely envisages that you should brief the committee fully when it visits Hong Kong. But there might conceivably be advantage in your being more directly associated with the whole work of the committee, including the drawing up of the report. We were not wholly certain, however, either whether you would want this and be will- ing to pay the costs or whether it would be acceptable to the other members of the ad hoc committee. Clearly if participation by a Hong Kong officer reduced our own effectiveness as unbiased outsiders, there could be arguments for the Hong Kong Government keeping in the background and advising us less obtrusively in the preliminary stages. In the long run the important thing is that the sub-commission, if it is set up, should have the right members and the right programme, On the other hand, in the last analysis, our claim to participate in South East Asian discussions does rest on our possession of Hong Kong, although Moreover, we do not stress this for obvious Chinese reasons.

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