TNAG-1356-FCO40-1797-Constitutional-development-in-Hong-Kong-1985 — Page 134

4. THE CONVERSATION REVEALED AN EXTRAORDINARY DEGREE OF SUSPICION RANGING FROM THE BELIEF THAT THE BRITISH DE-COLONISATION PROCESS BASED ON DEMOCRATISATION HAD INVARIABLY LED TO INSTABILITY AND ECONOMIC DECLINE IN THE FORMER COLONIES AND A FEAR THAT THE UK WAS ENGAGED IN A SIMILAR PROCESS IN HONG KONG: TO A BELIEF THAT HMG WERE SEEKING TO PUT THE BLAME ON THE CHINESE FORLACK OF PROGRESS

ON PASSPORTS. XU'S REMARKS ON THE LATTER SHOW THAT THE CHINESE

HAVE FAILED TO ACHIEVE EVEN THE SIMPLEST UNDERSTANDING OF WHY

BRITISH PASSPORTS GIVE FREER ACCESS TO LARGE NUMBERS OF COUNTRIES

IN THE WORLD THAN DO CHINESE PASSPORTS.

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5. ANOTHER SUBJECT RAISED BY XU WAS SIR PETER BLAKER'S CONVERSATION WITH ZHOU NAN IN PEKING (MY TELNO 2323) WHERE XU ASSERTED THAT SIR PETER HAD NOT CHALLENGED ZHOU NAN'S STATEMENT

THAT OUR PLANS FOR REPRESENTATIVE GOVERNMENT WERE NOT CONSISTENT

WITH THE AGREEMENT AND THAT HE HAD CHECKED THIS WITH SIR PETER

AND GALSWORTHY AT MY DINNER FOR MR RENTON. (THEY SEEM TO HAVE MISINTERPRETED SIR PETER'S CAUTION ON REPRESENTATIVE GOVERNMENT).

6. SIR S Y AND HIS TWO COLLEAGUES TOOK MR XU THROUGH EACH OF THE ISSUES EXPLAINING THE BACKGROUND TO EACH AND THAT THERE WAS NO SINISTER MOTIVE BEHIND ANY OF THESE MOVES. THEY WILL LET ME HAVE A FULL RECORD OF THE CONVERSATION AFTER THE WEEKEND BUT FROM WHAT THEY TOLD ME LATE LAST NIGHT THEY MADE A VERY GOOD JOB OF EXPLAINING THE TRUE STATE OF AFFAIRS IN A PERSUASIVE MANNER.

7. XU CONSTANTLY REFERRED TO THE NEED TO DISCUSS ALL THESE MATTERS SO THAT THE CHINESE COULD MAKE THEIR VIEWS KNOWN. IN FACT, OF COURSE, THE CHINESE HAVE BEEN KEPT INFORMED AND THEIR VIEWS SOUGHT ON MANY OF THE ISSUES HE RAISED. OTHER ISSUES ARE MATTERS

WITHIN OUR RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE ADMINISTRATION OF HONG KONG AND, WHILE WE COULD WELL EXPLAIN TO THE CHINESE WHAT IS BEING INVOLVED SIR S Y AND HIS COLLEAGUES WERE CAREFUL NOT TO GIVE XU THE IMPRESSION THAT EVERYTHING WE DO MUST BE THE SUBJECT OF

CONSULTATION BEFORE WE DO IT.

8. SHALL BE TALKING TO WILSON AND HIS COLLEAGUES OVER THE WEEKEND ON THE IMPLICATIONS OF THIS DISCUSSION BEFORE THE JLG

DISCUSSIONS NEXT WEEK.

YOUDE

HONG KONG AGREEMENT

LIMITED

HD/HKD HD/FED

HD/PLANNING STAFF HD/PUSD

DEP HD/PUSD

RES D (MR WALKER)

PS

PS/MR RENTON

PS/PUS

SIR W HARDING

MR WILSON

SIR J FREELAND

MR J CROWLEY PUSD

COPIES TO: (VIA ADR)

MR ROBERTS NEWS DEPT MR FIFOOT LEGAL ADVS MR MARTIN ASST STAFF

CABINET OFFICE

MR MALLABY CABINET OFFICE MR DR C CHRISTOPHER

CABINET OFFICE SIR P CRADDOCK NO 10 DOWNING ST. MR WOOD LEGAL ADVISERS

CONFIDENTIAL