TNAG-0743-FCO40-947-Relations-between-China-and-Hong-Kong-1978 — Page 282

COMMISSIONER, LONDON

CONFIDENTIAL

132+

634

cretary for Security, Hong Kong c.c. Political Adviser, Hong Kong

ng Kong & General Dept. FCO

21/220C

HKK 020 RECENCO

Y NO. 51

5

1978

OFFICER

22nd September,

NDCX

PA

REGISTRY Action Teken

ра

1

INVITATIONS TO COMPUKIST FACTIONS

The arrival of your circular of 13 September coincided with a development in London about which you may be interested to hear.

2

Victor Chann, my Senior Liaison Officer, was invited yesterday by one of his restaurant owner contacts to attend a reception on Sunday 24 September organised in the name of "All circles of the Chinese Community in the UK", to celebrate National Day and to welcome the new Chinese Ambassador to Britain. (The reason for holding the reception on 24 September is presumably because the Embassy usually holds its receptions for Chinese and other guests on 1 October and the choice of a Sunday guarantees a higher level of attendance from restaurant owners and workers from all over Britain).

3

The significance of this invitation is that it is the first time that one of my staff has been invited by the organisers of such functions (of which a number have been held to celebrate National Day and to welcome Chinese touring teams and cultural groups), and it is an indication of attempts being made by the pro-China group amongst Hong Kong Chinese residents in U.K. to make friends with other organisations and individuals who are influential in the Chinese community. An earlier indication of this new policy was the attendance by the two leaders of this group at the inauguration ceremony of the current term of office bearers of the Chinese Chamber of Commerce at which I recently officiated.

4

Neither FCO nor I see any reason why Victor Chann should not attend this function, and he has accordingly accepted the invitation. It is interesting that although the invitation came indirectly through a personal contact, Mr. Chann has been left in no doubt that the formal invitation will be issued from the organisers direct. One of the implications of his attendance at this function may be the need for us to include the organisers of this reception in our list for invitations to future functions in this Office. We will consider the need for this in the light of the extent to which other neutral organisations in the Chinese community extend similar invitations. If the "thaw" continues, we also may be asked to extend some of the services provided by this Office to other Hong Kong Chinese organisations in U.K. to clubs organised by this group

(e.g. subsidies and textbooks for Chinese classes).

Labe

(D.C. BRAY),

COMMISSIONER

ICE/SVS