TNAG-1156-FCO40-1436-Visits-by-FCO-Ministers-to-Hong-Kong-1982 — Page 207

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FM PEKING 0807382 JAN 82

TO PRIORITY FCO

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ник очь 13

02613

ज 51. Par 18/1

TELEGRAM NUMBER 17 OF 9 JANUARY

INFO PRIORITY HONG KONG (PERSONAL FOR GOVERNOR)

FOR CLIFT

LPS VISIT: MEETING WITH JI PENGFEI: FUTURE OF HONG KONG

1. AT HIS MEETING WITH VICE FPEMIER JI PENGFEI ON 5 JANUARY

THE LPS RECALLED THAT YOU BROUGHT UP THE SUBJECT OF THE FUTURE

OF HONG KONG DURING YOUR VISIT LAST YEAR. MR ATKINS SAID THAT

IN A COMPARATIVELY FEW YEARS' TIME ALL THE LAWS AND POWERS

WHICH AT PRESENT EXISTED IN HONG KONG WOULD COME TO AN END IF

NOTHING WAS DONE. THIS QUESTION WAS ALREADY THE SUBJECT OF MUCH

DISCUSSION IN HONG KONG. THE LPS BELIEVED THAT IT WAS THE WISH OF BOTH SIDES THAT CONFIDENCE IN HONG KONG BE MAINTAINED. WE

WERE GIVING MUCH THOUGHT TO TTIS SUBJECT AND THE LPS BELIEVED

HE SHOULD DRAW THE MATTER TO THE ATTENTION OF PREMIER ZHAO THE

FOLLOWING DAY.

2. VICE PREMIER JI SAID THAT THERE WERE STILL 15 YEARS TO GO.

IT WAS AN IMPORTANT QUESTION AND THE CHINESE WERE NOW THINKING

OF STUDYING THE MATTER SOON. A DECISION ON HONG KONG SHOULD NOT OF COURSE WAIT FOR 15 MORE YEARS. HE COULD ASSURE THE UK SIDE

THAT IN THE FUTURE CHINA WOULD PRESERVE THE INTERESTS OF

''EXISTING INDUSTRIALISTS AND BUSINESS CIRCLES''. HOW THIS

SHOULD BE DONE WAS A MATTER WHICH WOULD SOON BE PUT UNDER STUDY.

3. JI SAID THAT DOMESTICALLY CHINA NOW ADVOCATED AN OPEN DOOR

FOLICY. THEY HAD ESTABLISHED SPECIAL ECONOMIC ZONES IN SHENZHEN

AND ELSWHERE. RELATIONS BETWEEN HONG KONG AND THE MAINLAND

WERE DEVELOPING WELL. INVESTORS SHOULD NOT WORRY. THEY WOULD

STILL BE ABLE TO MAKE MONEY IN HONG KONG. CHINA WOULD NOT TAKE

MEASURES SUCH AS THOSE TAKEN IN THE EARLY YEARS OF THE REVOLUTION

WHEN THEY HAD CONFISCATED PROPERTY. THEY WOULD NOT CONFISCATE CAPITALISTS' ASSETS IN HONG KONG. IN THE FUTURE THE TWO SIDES COULD CONDUCT TALKS OM THIS MATTER AND EXCHANGE VIEWS.

4. MIFT CONTAINS REPORT OF LPS DISCUSSION ON HONG KONG WITH PREMIER ZHAO.

See

see

CRADOCK

LIMITED

HD/HKGD

HD/FED

PS

PS/LPS

PS/PUS

MR GOODISON

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