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THAT SUSTAINED DEVELOPMENT COULD ONLY BE ENSURED IF SOCIALISM WAS BUILT IN ACCORDANCE WITH CHINA'S OWN CONDITIONS. PROGRESS COULD NOT BE MADE BY COPYING THE SYSTEMS OR METHODS ADOPTED BY OTHER COUNTRIES OR BY FOLLOWING THEORETICAL MODELS. THE MAJOR GUIDELINE HAD BEEN INTRODUCED IN 1978: SEEK TRUTH FROM FACTS. MR. GUMMER WOULD ALREADY HAVE LEARNED OF THE GREAT CHANGES IN AGRICULTURE BROUGHT ABOUT SINCE THEN BY FOLLOWING THIS GUIDELINE.

3. MR. GUMMER SAID THAT IT WAS BECAUSE THE BRITISH GOVERNMENT HAD BEEN GREATLY IMPRESSED BY THESE AND OTHER POSITIVE CHANGES THAT WE WANTED TO IMPROVE OUR RELATIONS WITH CHINA. HE THEREFORE WISHED TO MENTION AN ISSUE WHICH WAS OFTEN RAISED WITH HIM BY PEOPLE IN BRITAIN. AS WU MIGHT KNOW, HE WAS VERY ACTIVE IN THE CHURCH OF ENGLAND AS AN ELECTED LAY REPRESENTATIVE. IN THIS CAPACITY HE WAS OFTEN APPROACHED ABOUT THE POSITION OF ROMAN CATHOLICS IN CHINA. A MORE OPEN RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN CHINA AND THE ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH WOULD BE VERY HELPFUL. PEOPLE IN BRITAIN FOUND IT DIFFICULT TO ACCEPT THAT SO MANY CATHOLIC PRIESTS SHOULD BE KEPT IN DETENTION. THE CONTINUATION OF THIS SITUATION WAS A REAL BARRIER TO CLOSER RELATIONS BETWEEN CHINA AND THE WEST. WOULD IT NOT BE POSSIBLE FOR CHINA TO TREAT ITS ROMAN CATHOLICS BETTER AND IMPROVE ITS RELATIONSHIP WITH THE ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH ?

4. WU REPLIED THAT THE CHINESE GOVERNMENT HAD SOME RELATIONS WITH ROME. THE FACT THAT THEY WERE NOT NORMAL WAS NOT CHINA'S FAULT. CHINA'S CONSTITUTION PROVIDED FOR FREEDOM OF RELIGION AND THERE WERE SEVERAL MILLION CATHOLICS AND MANY PROTESTANTS IN CHINA. CHINESE POLICY WAS THAT CHINESE CATHOLICS COULD HAVE CONTACTS WITH ROME ONLY ON RELIGIOUS MATTERS. THERE WERE TWO SPECIFIC PROBLEMS. FIRSTLY ROME HAD TO RECOGNISE THE ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH IN CHINA AS THE ONLY CHURCH FOR CHINA AS A WHOLE: IT WAS NOT ACCEPTABLE TO TREAT THE ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH IN TAIWAN AS AN INDEPENDENT ENTITY. SECONDLY, IT WAS NOT ACCEPTABLE FOR ROME TO ASK THE ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH IN CHINA TO DO THINGS WHICH WERE AGAINST CHINESE LAW IN PARTICULAR, CHINA'S CATHOLICS MUST CHOOSE THEIR OWN PRIESTS. IN SHORT, THERE COULD BE CONTACTS BETWEEN ROME AND CATHOLICS IN CHINA, BUT ROME COULD NOT FORCE THINGS ON THE CHINESE CHURCH. THERE HAD BEEN TALKS ABOUT THESE MATTERS FOR A LONG TIME BUT THEY HAD NOT BEEN RESOLVED.

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5. MR. GUMMER SAID HE COULD UNDERSTAND WHY THESE TALKS WERE CONTINUING. BUT IN THE MEANTIME THERE WERE MORE THAN FIFTY PRIESTS AND BISHOPS IN DETENTION. IN BRITAIN AND IN THE REST

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