TNAG-1625-FCO40-2239-Relations-between-Hong-Kong-and-China-1987 — Page 98

British Embassy

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11 Guang Hua Lu Jian Guo Men Wai

Peking People's Republic of Chínă NOV 1987

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Telex 22191 Cable Prodrome Peking Telephone 521961/2/3/4/5 °

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R N Peirce Esq. DPA

Hong Kong

Your reference

Our reference

Date

13 November 1987'

PROVINCIAL REPRESENTATIVE OFFICES IN PEKING

1.

I cannot quite recall how the question arose, but I have now been in touch with a provincial representative office, that of Shanxi, to ask about its work and how it was organised. I talked to the head of the "Beijing Office of the People's Government of Shanxi Province (Shanxi sheng zhu beijing banshichu)" a Mr Wang Jing, who holds the concurrent rank of Deputy Secretary General of the People's Government of Shanxi.

2.

He said that the office had been originally set up in the 1950's, had been closed in 1967 like all the other representative offices because Jiang Qing disapproved of them, and had been reopened in 1979. It had a staff of 200 persons organised into one office and three sections :

(a)

General office (bangongshi) responsible for administrative matters.

(b)

Foreign Affairs Section (Waishi chu). This dealt with foreign travel for officials from Shanxi, ensuring that visas were procurred, booking international flights and so on. It was also responsible for making the necessary arrangements for foreign official visitors to Shanxi (meeting them at the airport, arranging accommodation and sightseeing in Beijing, arranging travel onward to Shanxi etc).

(c)

The Economic Cooperation Section (jingji xiezuo chu) responsible for economic liaison with companies and enterprises both foreign and domestic, acting as a bridge between them and Shanxi, and providing information.

(d)

The Reception Section (jiedai chu). This was responsible for the meeting and greeting of Shanxi's visitors to Peking. It ran three hossals (jiaodai suo), an 18 bed one, near the office, one of 100 beds in Dazhalan and a 'third grade guesthouse' near Xuanwumen with 150 beds, which had been approved for putting up foreign visitors.