4. In the round table discussion that followed there was some confusing talk about the need for Hong Kong people to be allowed to have some sort of multiple entry visa, if necessary with a time limit set on each particular stay. This struck me as an odd request following protests that there should be no entry clearance system (even in its present optional form), and that other European countries did not require visas. There was also some cross-talk about the right of abode in the UK. On the other side of the coin there was some acknowledgement of the relevance of UK domestic political issues (as evidenced by a particular MP from Leeds) and a reluctant agreement that people of Indian origin had remained in many ex-British Colonies from Fiji to Guyana. No-one seemed to appreciate the position of "the Queen's Chinese" (nobody used the phrase) in Malaysia nor did anyone have a clear picture of the events following the expulsion of East African Asians, particularly from Uganda.
5.
At the lunch, and to a greater extent subsequently, Lord Derwent suggested the need to play the issue long. He was particularly concerned that Hong Kong should not push so hard for an answer that they insisted on getting a firm negative which would be difficult to overturn subsequently. He seemed tempted to conclude that it was enough to have lodged the problem and to have said that it would need to be answered in the future.
6. There was also some feeling round the table that it might be a good idea to get one or perhaps two senior officials from the Home Office to a subsequent lunch, perhaps at the same time as someone more directly involved with Hong Kong than myself. Good luck!
آب کم
J.T. Carefull
Thorold Masefield
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