CONFIDENTIAL
037
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MDLOAN 1
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3. We do not think that this is the right context in which to raise the wider issue of freedom of information in Hong Kong itself, given that the Hong Kong transmitter serves China rather than Hong Kong.
4.
On the question of maintaining adequate World Service coverage of the area, Hong Kong itself is served from the Singapore relay station, so the accessibility of the World Service in Hong Kong will be unimpaired. The Hong Kong station transmits mainly to northern China. Plans for a new station in Thailand remain on course, though more preparatory work still has to be done before final project approval can be obtained from the Treasury. Only at that stage, still several weeks away, shall We be able to sign the Government-to-Government agreement for the construction of the station which we have negotiated with the Thais. The present target completion date is late 1996.
5. Because it is a sensitive issue for the Thais, we wish to avoid drawing particular attention to the new station's role in broadcasting to China. While we have never sought to conceal this role, it is important that we should not present the Thai station as a substitute for Hong Kong targeted essentially at China. The Line we shall take in public, if asked specifically about the Thailand station, is that it is part of the continuing global audibility improvement programme and will have the capability to serve many areas, including China and the Subcontinent. We shall also point out that large areas of China are covered by the Singapore relay and by transmitters now being used by the World Service in Russia and Japan.
6. For Bangkok: TURS and other related telegrams are being repeated to you.
HURD
YYYY
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