CONFIDENTIAL
A. THESE PEOPLE HAD ORIGINALLY APPLIED, AS VIETNAMESE, FOR
VISAS AND HAD BEEN REFUSED:
B. THE RELATIONSHIPS THEY CLAIMED HERE WERE NOT SUFFICIENTLY CLOSE
FOR THEM TO BE ALLOWED ENTRY UNDER PRESENT POLICY CONCERNING FAMILY REUNIFICATION. THEY WOULD NOT HAVE BEEN CRANTED VISAS IF THEY HAD APPLIED TO COME ON ONE OF THE SPECIAL CHARTER FLIGHTS FROM
HO CHI MINH CITY:
C. WE HAVE ALREADY ALLOWED SOME 9,000 PEOPLE FROM VIETNAM (NOT INCLUDING FORMER RESIDENTS OF HONG KONG, NOR PEOPLE FROM LAOS AND CAMBODIA) TO SETTLE HERE: GIVEN THE DIFFERENCES OF POPULATION THIS WOULD BE EQUIVALENT TO ABOUT 1.8 MILLION PEOPLE
GOING FROM VIETNAM TO CHINA:
J. IF THE DETAILS OF THIS CASE WERE TO BECOME PUBLIC, PEOPLE
HERE WOULD BE CONCERNED ABOUT THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE IN CHINA, ORIGINALLY FROM VIETNAM, WHO MIGHT BE ABLE TO ACQUIRE CHINESE TRAVEL DOCUMENTS ALLOWING THEM TO LEAVE FOR HONG KONG.
WCNA TOOK NOTE BUT IMPLIED THAT THE CASE INVOLVED ISSUES WHICH
COULD ONLY BE HANDLED IN PEKING.
* GRATEFUL IF YOU WOULD RAISE THIS CASE AS SOON AS POSSIBLE
WITH CHINESE, ARGUING THAT WHATEVER DOCUMENTS THEY HOLD, PEOPLE WHO HAVE APPLIED FOR VISAS TO HONG KONG SHOULD NOT BE ALLOWED TO LEAVE FOR HONG KONG UNTIL AND UNLESS THEIR APPLICATIONS ARE
APPROVED.
EX WE SHOULD LIKE THESE REPRESENTATIONS TO BE MADE AT THE
*
CAME TIME AS YOU ASK FOR A REPLY TO YOUR EARLIER REPRESENTATIONS
ABOUT ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS ORIGINALLY FROM VIETNAM, THE LATTER QUESTION IS BECOMING INCREASINGLY URGENT: APART FROM THE DIFFICULTIES OF PROLONGED DETENTION IN PRISON (WHICH ALLOWS SOME OF THOSE DETAINED TO RECEIVE VISITS FROM RELATIVES HERE AND TO WRITE TO RELATIVES AND FRIENDS IN CHINA/VIETNAM), A
GROUP OF 163 'BOAT REFUGEES' ARRIVED ON 6 JUNKS ON 10 DECEMBER
AND PRELIMINARY INVESTIGATIONS SHOW THAT THEY ARE LIKELY TO FALL
INTO THE SAME CATEGORY.
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/ 6. IF YOU RECEIVE
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