TNAG-0943-FCO40-1162-Future-of-Hong-Kong-1980 — Page 231

0.

CONFIDENTIAL

bases by the British imperialists for their aggressive action

in t Far East".

23. Although it became clear that the status of Hong Kong, and

the New Territories in particular, remained an "outstanding"

issue, the new Chinese Government made no direct or formal

claim for the return of either Hong Kong as a whole or of the leased territories. Continuing to regard the Colony as a vestige

of British imperialism in China, the Chinese Government

throughout the 1950s nevertheless recognised Britain's de facto

responsibility for the territory and made references to the

"British administration in Hong Kong". Indeed, during a private visit to Feking in October 1955, the Governor of Hong Kong,

Sir Alexander Granthan was received by the Chinese Premier, Zhou Enlai (Chou An-lai). Zhou used the meeting, which was also

British attended by the/Charge d' Affaires to discuss the restoration of through traffic between Guangzhou (Canton) and Kowloon and to

reiterate Chinese requests for the appointment of a Chinese

government representative in Hong Kong. No Governor of Hong Kong

thereafter visited Peking until Sir Hurray MacLehose in March

1979.

24 Chinese officials have claimed the right to comment on, and

to protest at, the way in which the Hong Kong Government handles

its affairs. On 10 October 1956, a Nationalist Chinese day of

celebration, riots broke out at a resettlement estate

in Kowloon. There followed considerable destruction of property,

58 people died and 600 were injured before the police were able

to bring the situation under control. On 13 October Zhou Enlai delivered a strong oral protest to the British Chargé d'Affaires, Mr O'Neill, and told journalists in Peking that the Chinese

Government would "not allow such disorders on the doorstep of

China". Mr O'Neill was again summoned to the Chinese Ministry

of Foreign Affairs on 19 October when Vice-Foreign Minister, Zhang Hanfu (Chang Han-fu), issued a protest and a number of demands for the protection of Chinese residents in Hong Kong. Zhang insisted that the Chinese Government reserved the right

to make further demands in the future. ¡ING rejected the Chinese criticism of the way the situation had been handl.d by the

Hong Kong authorities, and made note of the failure by the Chinese Covernment to offer any explanation or apology for the violation of british territory on 6 and 9 October when Chinese troops had penetrated into Hong Kong, fired on persons trying to escape from China and carried back some of those they had killed or wounded on Hong Kong territory.

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