TNAG-2361-FCO40-3432-Visit-by-John-Major--UK-Prime-Minister--to-Hong-Kong--Septem-1991 — Page 100

CONFIDENTIAL

CONFIDENTIAL

FM HONG KONG

TO IMMEDIATE F C O

TELNO 2701

OF 29111OZ AUGUST 91

INFO PRIORITY BTC HONG KONG, UKREP JLG HONG KONG, PEKING

045545

MDADAN 4536

YOUR TELNO 1535: VISIT OF PRIME MINISTER: PUBLIC RELATIONS

1.

OUR ASSESSMENT IS THAT LOCAL REACTION WILL BE GENERALLY POSITIVE, AND THAT THIS WILL BE REFLECTED IN THE LOCAL MEDIA. HONG KONG JOURNALISTS WILL SEEK COMMENTS FROM VARIOUS PROMINENT INDIVIDUALS INCLUDING THOSE YOU MENTION. OUR OWN BRIEFING OF EDITORS AND COMMUNITY LEADERS WILL REINFORCE THIS. IN OUR CONTACTS WITH BRITISH CORRESPONDENTS STATIONED HERE, WE WILL DO OUR BEST TO UNDERLINE HONG KONG PEOPLE'S POSITIVE REACTION. AS WE NOTED IN OUR TELNO 2617, THE MORE WE HAVE TO WORK ON IN THE WAY OF POSITIVE STATEMENTS FROM THE CHINESE THE BETTER.

2. WE ARE LESS CONFIDENT OF BEING ABLE TO DEFLECT VISITING BRITISH JOURNALISTS FROM A NEGATIVE PORTRAYAL IF THAT IS WHAT THEY ARE SET ON. THERE IS ONLY A VERY SHORT TIME AVAILABLE. HOPEFULLY THEY WILL NOT ALL COME WITH CLOSED MINDS THOUGH SOME RECENT EDITORIALS ARE NOT ENCOURAGING. WE WILL OF COURSE DO EVERYTHING POSSIBLE TO GET THE VISITORS TO LOOK ABOUT THEMSELVES AND LISTEN TO A RANGE OF VIEWS, PARTICULARLY FROM THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY.

3. ACTING GOVERNOR HAS ALREADY SPOKEN TO EXECUTIVE COUNCIL MEMBERS TO ENCOURAGE THEM TO MAKE POSITIVE PUBLIC COMMENTS ON THE VISIT. OTHERS SUCH AS SELINA CHOW, STEPHEN CHEONG, MARTIN BARROW, Q W LEE, LI KA-SHING, SIMON MURRAY, VINCENT LO AND VICTOR FUNG, CAN BE RELIED UPON TO MAKE HELPFUL COMMENTS. WE SUSPECT THAT ATTEMPTS TO SPOONFEED THE BRITISH CORRESPONDENTS (E.G. BY FIXING INTERVIEWS WITH OBVIOUSLY SUPPORTIVE INDIVIDUALS) ARE UNLIKELY TO PRODUCE THE DESIRED RESULTS. THEY WILL OF COURSE SEE HOW THE VISIT IS COVERED IN THE LOCAL MEDIA, WHICH, THOUGH INDIRECT, MAY HAVE A BENEFICIAL EFFECT.

4. OUR ASSESSMENT IS THAT MR MARTIN LEE WOULD BE CRITICAL ALTHOUGH NOT NECESSARILY ENTIRELY NEGATIVE. HIS VIEWS WOULD BE SHARED AND ECHOED BY THE UNITED DEMOCRATS AND OTHERS. BUT THE BODY OF OPINION ABOVE SHOULD BE ABLE TO BALANCE SUCH VIEWS.

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