RESTRICTED FM PARIS
TO TELELETTER FCO TELELETTER
OF 171017Z JULY 91
RESTRICTED
い
MKB CEL / 1
AND TO TELELETTER HONG KONG, PEKING
FROM N CANNON
TO 1 M STONE, HKD, FCO
COPIED TO I POLITICAL ADVISER, HONG KONG
CHANCERY, PEKING
Fi
337
101020
19/1 MDTTAN 8212
1917 ea
Mic Band
18 coglin
са
18/7
SUBJECT: HONG KONG TELNO 22601 CONFERENCE OF CHINESE STUDENT FEDERATIONS
1. ON THE EVENING OF 16 JULY, A GROUP OF SOME 60 CHINESE EXILES CAME TO THE EMBASSY TO PROTEST AGAINST HKQ'S REFUSAL OF ENTRY TO CHEN LIMING AND WANG HUNGBIN, CHINESE DISSIDENTS RESIDENT IN PARIS. THREE OF THE PROTESTERS, LI LU AND FENG CONGDE OF THE 'MAISON CHINOISE DE LA DEMOCRATIE', AND CHEN LICHUAN OF THE FEDERATION FOR A DEMOCRATIC CHINA, WERE ALLOWED INTO THE EMBASSY TO PRESENT A PETITION.
2. THE PETITION ACCUSES THE HONG KONG AUTHORITIES OF A 'BRUTAL VIOLATION OF BASIC HUMAN RIGHTS', DEMANDED AN EXPLANATION OF THE REFUSAL OF ENTRY AND REQUESTED THAT THE CONFERENCE BE ALLOWED TO TAKE PLACE, THE PETITION HAD ONLY 30 SIGNATURES, INCLUDING THOSE OF CHAI LING AND WAN RUNNAN.
3. I SPOKE TO THE DELEGATION, REPEATEDLY MAKING THE POINTS IN PARAS 4 AND 5 OF TUR. THE DELEGATION AT FIRST SOUGHT TO DENY THAT THE CONFERENCE WAS OF A POLITICAL NATURE. THEY THEN ASKED WHETHER CHINESE EXILES WOULD BE ALLOWED INTO HONG KONG IF THEY WISHED TO EXPRESS VIEWS ON HONG KONG'S FUTURE RATHER THAN THAT OF CHINA. I SAID THAT ONLY THOSE WHO WERE HONG KONG BELONGERS COULD ASSUME AN ABSOLUTE RIGHT OF ENTRY TO THE TERRITORY, OTHER REQUESTS FOR ENTRY WERE TREATED ON A CASE-BY-CASE BASIS. THE DELEGATION CONCLUDED BY SAYING THAT THE CHINESE EXILE COMMUNITY VIEWED THIS AS A TEST CASE FOR HKG'S DETERMINATION TO PROTECT FREE SPEECH IN HONG KONG AGAINST CHINESE PRESSURE.
4. THE DELEGATION WERE POLITE AND THE DEMONSTRATORS QUIET AND ORDERLY. LI LU GAVE A BRIEF SPEECH TO A CAMERA CREW (PRESUMABLY FROM A HONG KONG CHANNEL) OUTSIDE THE EMBASSY, THE GROUP THEN
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