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11.
Canberra also told us that Dr Cairns had not raised the
question in Parliament. The only Parliamentary reference to the matter had been made by a Liberal Senator on 30 July in a question about the leak of a confidential telegram from the Australian Embassy in Saigon. However, Dr Cairns had been requested by Amnesty to enquire into the truth of the World Cable Service report in London on 3 August that 14 of the group of 118 had died
in prison since being returned to Vietnam.
Efforts made in Saigon on behalf of those awaiting trial
12.
The Vietnamese statement of 30 July was issued in response
to representations made on behalf of the 118 by H M Ambassador in
Saigon.
13. We asked Saigon to keep us informed on how the prisoners were being treated. However, on 2 August H M Ambassador replied
that this was a difficult task. Unless specifically instructed, he had no grounds for asking to visit the prisoners, and he
thought the only practical way of proceeding was to rely on enquiries made 'at a suitable level'.
14.
Saigon were also asked to do what they could to meet any reasonable requests for help by Mr Sanguinetti during his recent visit, and Mr Sanguinetti was received by H M Ambassador on 8 August. It was subsequently reported that Mr Sanguinetti had sought only the minimum of assistance and had made his own arrangements for an interpreter. His main contacts were made by
International Social Services. A member of Chancery accompanied
Mr Sanguinetti to the airport when he left Saigon and was told that, on the basis of information he had obtained from
unofficial sources, Mr Sanguinetti considered that the official
Vietnamese assurances had been completely invalidated.
15.
Saigon reported on 14 August that according to the
Vietnamese Police Prosecutor a trial might be expected to start
within the next 10 days. Such a trial was expected to deal purely with charges of violating Vietnam's emigration laws, and
those members of the group who were accused of desertion would
face a further trial at a later date.
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