TNAG-0904-FCO40-1114-Immigration-from-China-to-Hong-Kong-1979 — Page 93

GRY 90

CONFIDENTIAL

CONFIDENTIAL

FH HONG KONG 1984557 FEB 79

341/1 TO HKK

COPY

3

TO INMEDIATE FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH OFFICE NO

TELNO.285 OF 19 FEBRUARY,

INFO IMMEDIATE: PEKING,

PRIORITY: HONG KONG GOVT OFFICE LONDON.

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PEKING TELNO.224 : IMMIGRATION FROM CHINA.

Se 33

1. I TAKE THE POINTS IN PEKING'S TEL UNDER REF. I AGREE THAT

THERE IS MERIT IN REFERRING TO THE LEVEL OF IMMIGRATION WHICH

WE WOULD FIND TOLERABLE AND IN SHOWING THE CHINESE THAT WE

İNTEND TO GIVE THEM ROOM TO TAKE ACTION IF THEY ARE PREPARED TO

DO SO. I WOULD PREFER, HOWEVER, TO LEAVE MENTION OF A SPECIFIC

DATE UNTIL THE SECOND STAGE OF THE TWO-PART SCENARIO ENVISAGED

IN MY TELNO 279.

2. IN VIEW OF PEKING'S COMMENTS I WOULD LIKE TO REVISE THE

APPROACH TO THE CHINESE SUGGESTED IN PARA 7 OF MY TELNO 279 ON

THE FOLLOWING LINES.

(1)

(11)

(111)

DESPITE REPEATED REPRESENTATIONS THERE HAS BEEN

NO SIGNIFICANT DROP IN NUMBERS. UNLESS NUMBERS ARE

BROUGHT DOWN TO ABOUT 50 A DAY IT IS INEVITABLE THAT

WE WILL HAVE TO INTRODUCE RESTRICTIONS.

!.

BEFORE RESORTING TO THE INTRODUCTION OF RESTRICTIONS WE

WOULD LIKE TO ALLOW A LITTLE MORE TIME FOR ACTIONS BEING

TAKEN BY THE CHINESE AUTHORITIES TO REDUCE THE FLOW TO

TAKE EFFECT. HOWEVER, ABOUT 2 AND A HALF MONTHS IS THE

ABSOLUTE LIMIT WE CAN ALLOW FOR THIS.

IF WE ARE OBLIGED TO INTRODUCE RESTRICTIONS WE WOULD DO

SO EITHER ON THE BASIS OF A DAILY QUOTA OR OF ENTRY

PERMITS AND VISAS.

you

CONFIDENTIAL

/.(IV) IF,

IF, DESPITE

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