TNAG-1748-FCO40-2467-Visit-by-Sir-Geoffrey-Howe--Secretary-of-State-for-Foreign-a-1988 — Page 221

CONFIDENTIAL

FILE

(141

HURB 027/3.

FROM:

DATE:

Cc:

CO Hum

Hong Kong Department

19 May 1988

PS/Lord Glenarthur

Mr Gillmore

Mr McLaren

Mr Meyer, News Department

Private Secretary

SECRETARY OF STATE'S VISIT TO HONG KONG: SPEECH

(HKB 040/4)

1. Please refer to Mr Galsworthy's minute of 16 May.

25

2. I submit a revised version of the speech. It follows the outline

suggested by the Secretary of State, salvaging relevant parts of my

original text.

3.

I have, as suggested, put it into a longer and broader perspective.

But the immediate audience for the speech will be local community

personalities (predominantly Hong Kong Chinese): and the wider audience will be the Hong Kong media. They are intensely parochial. While it is obviously right that they should be encouraged to look at developments in

a somewhat wider perspective, this has to be done with some care.

Otherwise

we run the risk of being accused of diplomatic and intellectual over-cleverness

at the expense of little Hong Kong.

CONFIDENTIAL

см

CO Hum