TNAG-0904-FCO40-1114-Immigration-from-China-to-Hong-Kong-1979 — Page 59

GRS 900

COSIDENTIAL

FM HONG KONG 8911402 MAR 79

TO IMMEDIATE F CO

CONFIDENTIAL

1 2 MAR 1979

TELEGRAM NUMBER 350 OF 9 MARCH

INFO IMMEDIATE PEKING

по

INFO PRIORITY HONG KONG GOVERNMENT OFFICE LONDON

See 1.69

HONG KONG TELNO 343: IMMIGRATION FROM CHINA.

1. FOLLOWING YOUR AGREEMENT BY TELEPHONE THAT WE SHOULD ACT AS IN MY TUR, PA TODAY ASKED TAN OF THE NONA TO CALL. (THE SECOND DIRECTOR, LI JUSHENG IS AWAY,) HE SPOKE AS FOLLOWS :

(1) DESPITE A SERIES OF APPROACHES THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE ENTERING HONG KONG FROM CHINA WAS STILL ABNORMALLY AND UNACCEPTABLY

HIGH. THE AVERAGE DAILY FIGURE FOR FEBRUARY WAS 270. SO FAR FOR

MARCH IT HAD BEEN 225. NEARLY ALL CAME ON TWO-WAY TRAVEL DOCUMENTS.

HARDLY ANY RETURNED TO CHINA, DESPITE OUR EFFORTS SINCE 15 JANUARY TO PERSUADE THEM TO DO SO. IT WAS ESSENTIAL THAT THE NUMBER OF

PEOPLE ENTERING HONG KONG BE LIMITED EFFECTIVELY.

(11) WE HAD NOTED THE REFERENCE IN THE WEN HUI BAO ARTICLE OF 14 FEBRUARY TO RESTRICTIONS IMPOSED BY THE HONG KONG GOVERNMENT. AT THE MOMENT SUCH RESTRICTIONS DID NOT, OF COURSE, EXIST. BUT RESTRICTIONS WOULD BECOME INEVITABLE UNLESS SOMETHING WAS DONE

BY THE CHINESE QUTHORITIES WITHIN THE NEXT TWO MONTHS.

111) WE WELCOMED THE CHINESE PROPOSAL TO ISSUE SINGLE JOURNEY PERMITS ON A VERY RESTRICTED BASIS. PROVIDED THAT THIS REDUCED THE NUMBER FOR PERMANENT RESIDENCE TO ABOUT 53 A DAY, THE NEED FOR RESTRICTIONS BY HONG KONG IN RESPECT OF THIS CATEGORY WOULD NOT

ARISE,

IV) SHOULD THE CHINESE AUTHORITIES PREFER IT, WE WOULD BE WILLING TO CONSIDER CO-OPERATING IN A SCHEME FOR BRINGING NUMBERS UNDER CONTROL BY ISSUING A LIMITED QUANTITY OF GUARANTEE OF ENTRY

PERMITS. IT MIGHT BE POSSIBLE TO MOVE TO A SYSTEM UNDER WHICH ENTRY WOULD BE RESTRICTED TO THOSE HOLDING BOTH HONG KONG ENTRY CERTIFICATES AND CHINESE PERMITS. BECAUSE OF THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE

CONFIDENTIAL

/APPLYING