TNAG-1019-FCO40-1269-Relations-between-Hong-Kong-and-China-1981 — Page 96

CONFIDENTIAL

5. IT IS EVIDENT FROM THESE LATEST NCNA REPRESENTATIONS THAT PEKING TAKE A SERIOUS VIEW OF THE FILM AND THAT THEY ARE PROBABLY

MAKING AN EFFORT WORLD-WIDE TO PREVENT IT BEING SHOWN. LI ALSO IMPLIED THAT THE SUBJECT MIGHT WELL BE RAISED DURING THE SECRETARY OF STATE'S VISIT AS AN EXAMPLE OF AN INCOMPRHENSIBLE

CHANGE OF POLICY BY HONG KONG.

7. IN VIEW OF THE ABOVE AND THE FACT THAT SUCH A FILM WOULD NOT NORMALLY BE SHOWN HERE IF ITS MESSAGE HAD BEEN CORRECTLY INTERPRETED, WE HAVE DECIDED THAT THE PERMIT SHOULD BE REVOKED WITH EFFECT FROM TOMORROW. A CLAUSE IN THE PERMIT PROVIDES FOR THIS POSSIBILITY.

8. IN REPLYING TO PRESS QUERIES WE WILL SAY THAT WHEN THE FILM WAS ORIGINALLY PASSED IT WAS TREATED AS AN ENTERTAINMENT DRAMA BASED ON WELL KNOWN HISTORICAL FACTS. BUT IT HAD SINCE BECOME APPARENT THAT THE FILM HAD POLITICAL OVERTONES WHICH WERE LIABLE TO EXPLOITATION, AND THUS FELL WITHIN A CATEGORY NORMALLY BANNED IN THE CIRCUMSTANCES OF HONG

KONG.

9. PA WILL TELL NCNA THAT THE LICENCE IS BEING REVOKED IN VIEW OF THEIR REPRESENTATIONS AND OUR OWN REVIEW OF THE FILM.

10. IT SEEMS UNLIKELY THAT THIS WILL BE RAISED WITH THE S OF S IN PEKING, BUT IF IT IS I SUGGEST HE REPLIES THAT THE FILM HAS BEEN BANNED IN RESPONSE TO CHINESE REPRESENTATIONS, BUT THAT HE SHOULD ADD ROBUSTLY THAT HE IS A LITTLE SURPRISED CHINA SHOULD BOTHER OVER SUCH PIN-PRICKS FROM THE FADING

FORCE OF THE KUOMINTANG.

MACLEHOSE

LIMITED

HK vGD

FED INFO. D NEWS.D PS

PS|LPS

PS/MR RIDLEY PS/PUS

SIR E HOUDE MIL DONALD MR URE

2.

COPIES TO:

HONG KONG GOVT Office LONDON

CONFIDENTIAL