See (62
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MUD 3+5/3
EIVED IN BECKE
1 1 AUG 1993
ри вно visa free access
69
146154 MDHIAN 1650
RESTRICTED
FM HONG KONG
TO IMMEDIATE ECO
TELNO 1311
OF 111041Z AUGUST 93
DEFICE
TOP COPY Q DIST?
INFO PRIORITY ATHENS, BONN, BRUSSELS, THE HAGUE, LISBON INFO PRIORITY LUXEMBOURG, MADRID, PARIS, ROME, UKREP BRUSSELS INFO PRIORITY PEKING
FCO TELNO 196 TO ATHENS (NOT TO PEKING) : SCHENGEN COMMON VISA LIST (CVL): HONG KONG
SUMMARY
1.
GROWING PUBLIC CONCERN AT PROPOSED INCLUSION OF HONG KONG ON CVL. WE URGE SCHENGEN CONSULS-GENERAL TO RECONSIDER: THEY APPEAR ! UNSIGHTED. NO PUBLIC ATTENTION SO FAR ON PROSPECT OF AN EC-WIDE CVL, BUT THIS COULD RAPIDLY BECOME A FOCUS OF ATTENTION.
DETAIL
2. AS WE HAVE REPORTED (FAX VICKERS, SECURITY BRANCH/MS BARNES- JONES, HKD) THE PROPOSED INCLUSION OF HONG KONG ON THE SCHENGEN CVL HAS NOW BROKEN IN THE HONG KONG PRESS AND IS AROUSING CONCERN.
THERE IS A GROWING TENDENCY TO INTERPRET THE PROPOSAL AS REFLECTING A LACK OF CONFIDENCE IN HONG KONG, AND/OR IN THE CREDIBILITY OF BN(0) PASSPORTS.
3
ACTING POLITICAL ADVISER RAISED THIS ISSUE WITH THE SCHENGEN CONSULS-GENERAL (OR IN SOME CASES THEIR REPRESENTATIVES) ON 11 AUGUST. HE SPOKE FROM, AND HANDED OUT, A SPEAKING NOTE (TEXT FOLLOWS BY FAX TO MS BARNES JONES, HKD, FCO) BASED LARGELY ON THE POINTS IN PARA 6 OF TUR. HE EMPHASISED THAT HE WAS REINFORCING THE LOBBYING WHICH WAS ALREADY BEING CONDUCTED BY BRITISH EMBASSIES IN
SOME SCHENGEN CAPITALS. HE URGED THE SCHENGEN GOVERNMENTS TO RECONSIDER THEIR DECISION (IF A DEFINITIVE ONE HAD BEEN TAKEN) TO INCLUDE HONG KONG ON THE CVL, AND INSTEAD TO ALIGN THEIR POLICY ON THE CURRENT PRACTICE TO THE MAJORITY OF SCHENGEN COUNTRIES: THIS PRACTICE OF VISA-FREE ACCESS WORKED WELL, AND TRAVELLERS FROM HONG KONG HAD AN EXCELLENT RECORD OF GOOD BEHAVIOUR.
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