TNAG-1372-FCO40-1818-Ministerial-visits-from-the-UK-to-Hong-Kong-1985 — Page 85

[SUNAAC]

BACKGROUND

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1.

News Agency Hong Kong Branch has

Since the communist take-over in China in 1949,

in China in 1949, the New China

semi-official

served

as

China's

representation

in Hong

Kong. It

i s

the

principal

channel of

communication

departments,

between the Hong Kong

and Chinese Government

particularly those in Guangdong.

Agency i s always

Hong Kong.

The Director of the

the most senior Chinese official resident in

(The standard New China News Agency Bureau is only a

very small part of its activities.) The Director and Deputy

Directors of NCNA Hong Kong, together with a number of other senior

officials form the umbrella party committee which is responsible for

coordination and ultimate policy control of the large number of

PRC-based organisations in Hong Kong. In practice, the major

financial and trade enterprises (eg BOC and China Resources

Corporation) are autonomous in the conduct of their financial and trading activities. For many years the New China News Agency has been divided into functional departments (eg labour, education,

united front, propaganda, etc) to facilitate the pursuit of the standard communist party objectives of securing the maximum possible

adhesion to Chinese views and persuading non-communist figures to be sympathetic to Peking rather than to Taiwan. This work is carried

out by using communist-controlled trade unions,

trade unions, schools, commercial enterprises and front organisations. Since the cultural revolution, China's desire to participate in and profit from Hong Kong's rapid

economic growth has taken precedence over idealogical objectives. During the negotiations on Hong Kong's future, the NCNA's activities directed towards giving support for China's objectives, and

included the orchestration of the extensive, and at times strident,

propaganda campaign.

The day to day business of managing Hong Kong's relationship with the mainland

the mainland through the NCNA channel

nevertheless continued in the normal way.

were

2.

to are

to

1

Following the signature and ratification of the agreement the

tactics pursued by NCNA have changed in line with China's current

objectives, which

seek

reserve for China the maximum

degree of control over Hong Kong post-1997 compatible with the maintenance of Hong Kong's value to China as an advanced economy and

international financial centre. Changes have been made to the

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