TNAG-2236-FCO40-3215-Hong-Kong-and-China-subversion-and-student-demonstrations-1991 — Page 197

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MDHIAN 0189

REQUESTS OF THE CHINESE SIDE. THE CHINESE SIDE AWAIT A REPLY FROM THE BRITISH SIDE.

ENDS.

3.

COUNSELLOR UNDERTOOK TO REPORT THE CHINESE DEMARCHE AND THEN TOOK ZHAO THROUGH THE LEGAL ARGUMENTS AND OUR POSITION ON THE STATUS OF WU MENGWU SET OUT IN TUR. COUNSELLOR SAID THAT HE FOUND VERY SURPRISING ZHAO'S STATEMENTS THAT THESE ANTI-CHINESE ACTIVITES WERE INSEPARABLE FROM THE ACQUIESENCE AND CONNIVANCE OF HKG AND THAT HKG CONNIVED AT AND SUPPORTED ANTI-CHINESE ACTIVITIES ON THE ONE HAND WHILE ON THE OTHER SHIRKING ITS RESPONSIBILITY ON THE GROUNDS THAT THOSE ACTIVITIES HAD NOT VIOLATED THE LAWS OF HONG KONG. HE WOULD BE GRATEFUL FOR ANY EVIDENCE THE CHINESE COULD PROVIDE TO SUBSTANTIATE THESE CLAIMS AND ALSO FOR CONFIRMATION THAT THE CHINESE GOVERNMENT WAS NOT ACTUALLY SUGGESTING THAT HONG KONG GOVERNMENT SHOULD NOT ACT IN ACCORDANCE WITH ITS OWN LAWS. COUNSELLOR SAID THAT WE STOOD BY OUR COMMITMENT THAT HONG KONG WOULD NOT BE USED AS A BASE FOR SUBVERSION OF CHINA. WE HAD ALSO POINTED OUT ON MANY OCCASIONS THAT EVERYONE IN HONG KONG WAS EQUAL BEFORE THE LAW AND SO LONG AS THEY ACTED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE LAW HKG HAD NO POWER TO INTERFERE IN THEIR ACTIVITIES. IF HKG SAID IT WAS UNABLE TO ACT AGAINST PEOPLE WHO HAD NOT BROKEN THE LAW THIS WAS NOT SHIRKING RESPONSIBILITY BUT WAS A PLAIN FACT. HKG HAD TAKEN ACTIVE STEPS TO ENSURE THE STATUE WAS NOT AVAILABLE ON 4 JUNE AND TO PROVIDE ADEC TE PROTECTION FOR THE NCNA BUILDING IN HONG KONG.

4.

ZHAO SAID HE COULD NOT ACCEPT COUNSELLOR'S EXPLANATIONS ABOUT THE ANTI-CHINA ACTIVITIES MENTIONED IN THE DEMARCHE. THE CHINESE SIDE BELIEVED THE STATUE OF THE GODDESS OF DEMOCRACY COULD NOT BE REGARDED AS AN ORDINARY COMMODITY. IT HAD BEEN "SED BY SOME OVERSEAS FORCES AS A POLITICAL TOOL AND WAS THUS NOT ORDINARY COMMODITY AND NOT WITHIN THE SCOPE OF LAWS ON THE IMPORT AND EXPORT OF ORDINARY COMMODITIES. HE REPEATED CHINA'S SOLEMN REQUEST THAT HKG TAKE MEASURES TO PREVENT THIS ANTI-CHINA TOOL FROM COMING ASHORE IN HONG KONG. NOR COULD ZHAO ACCEPT COUNSELLOR'S EXPLANATION OF WU MENGWU'S STATUS. CHINA BELIEVED THAT HIS ACTIONS HAD PROVED THAT HE WAS A POLITCAL ACTIVIS COMING TO HONG KONG TO CARRY OUT SUBVERSION OF THE CHINESE GOVERNMENT. IF HE WAS ALLOWED TO DO THIS IN HONG KONG THIS W 3 COUNTER TO THE SPECIFIC COMMITMENTS MADE BY THE BRITISH GOVERNMENT.

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