CONFIDENTIAL
116
布政司署
香港下亞
畢道
本署檔號 OUR REF.:
SCR 6/2091/55
來函檔號 YOUR REF.:
R J
McLaren Esq
Hong Kong & General Department F C/O
GOVERNment SECRETARIAT
LOWER ALBERT ROAD
HONG KONG
10 July 1978
17/7. HKK 243/1
RECEIVED IN REGISTRY NO. 51
17 JUL 1978
DESK OFFICER INDEX
PA
RESTRY
Action Ter
IMMIGRATION FROM CHINA: THE VIETNAM ANGLE
So
As you can imagine, we have been watching arrivals at Lowu carefully in case our present immigration problems should be exacerbated by Overseas Chinese refugees from Vietnam being allowed to come to join relatives here. So far none have appeared, although Immigration Department recently had an enquiry from a Hong Kong resident who claimed to have three brothers in Canton who had recently returned from Vietnam. In fact, our policy for those coming on the special flights from Vietnam has been highly restrictive in view of the potential numbers involved: except in special circumstances only wives, husbands, children under 21 and elderly parents with no one else to support them are accepted. This enquirer was therefore discouraged from pursuing an application for an entry permit.
2.
We noted with concern a recent Associated Press story by a Japanese journalist (copy attached), who quoted an official in Kunming as saying that China would allow refugees who wished to go to the US, France and Hong Kong to make contact with their relatives abroad and leave China "after the 'necessary procedures' had been taken". I took the opportunity of a call by the Director of NCNA on 5 July to refer to this story and emphasised that the correct procedure for any refugees thinking of coming to Hong Kong was for them to get their relatives to approach Immigration Department. I added that the conditions applied by Immigration Department were inevitably stringent and that of the 20,000 or so people who had applied to come from Vietnam only just under 5,000 proved to be eligible. Mr LI Chu-sheng seemed to take these points well but did not make any comments.
3.
A few days earlier, however, we were able to establish an encouraging precedent concerning a Vietnamese traveller from China, even though this was not strictly a refugee case. On 30 June a young woman crossed at Lowu on a Vietnamese passport which had been issued by the Vietnamese Consulate in Canton on 15 June (the day before it closed).
/contd..
CONFIDENTIAL