"We Shall Return"

To Mao Tse-tung wealthy Hong Kong is a tempting morsel. Presumably Mao has but to declare his appetite, and the Crown Colony's 10,000 Britons, who live in a 391-sq. mi. territory with 2,000,000 Chinese in their midst, would be swallowed up almost overnight. Hong Kong's usual response to this has been to scratch Red China's back and to be as accommodating as possible to the Chinese within its gates.

Fortnight ago, the Hong Kong government abruptly changed its ways, apparently realizing at last that what deters Mao is not a kindly feeling towards the victim, but fear of the consequences. British-led police, in simultaneous middle-of-the-night raids, rounded up leaders of the Communist "Study Group," which had been spreading Red propaganda in Hong Kong's movie studios, charged them with "political activities subversive to peace and order" and chucked them out of the colony. The Far Eastern Economic Review, semi-official organ of Hong Kong's financiers, editorially reflected the new boldness: "Formosa must remain [a citadel] until Peking can be made . . . less aggressive . . ." said the Review. "Chiang Kai-shek's prestige is recovering. He is now looked upon as an ally of considerable value."

The Communists reacted angrily. Last week Canton's Communist radio flatly announced: "Hong Kong is part of Chinese territory." Boasted Playwright Szema Wen-shen, deported chairman of the so-called Red Study Group: "We shall return soon to eliminate all reactionary elements."

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