CONFIDENTIAL
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presided over by Li Peng.
Smuggling had been declared one of
the 10 criminal areas for special attention and a national anti-smuggling group headed by Vice-Premier Tian Jiyun had been set up.
Subsequently a leading anti-smuggling group in
Guangdong was also set up, headed by Vice-Governor Zhang
Gaoli. Another crackdown had been instituted in November and
27 more boats were seized in Ao Tou and Sun Liao. Thus a total of about 200 boats were seized last year, leaving about 100 at large. 10 members of the Guangdong security forces were killed in these operations.
4.
Chen Wenli described, during the meeting and subsequently over dinner, some of the methods employed by smugglers to hide their boats when the security forces were around. He said that the engines were taken off and the hulls were variously hidden at sea under water, on beaches under the sand, under the cages of fish farms, and in Macau. When the smugglers judged that the coast was clear, the boats returned.
5.
Chen said that when they were instituting a crackdown, several dozen Chinese patrol vessels were at sea. But he admitted that when a crackdown was not being undertaken, there were no regular patrols.
6.
A full-time system of patrolling is clearly necessary on the Chinese side, although it would no doubt cost a lot of money. You may think it worth emphasising this point again during your visit to Guangdong.
Incursions
7.
I repeated what you had said to Lu Ping about the problem of command in Deep Bay, and asked if this could be
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