8. In common with other South-East Asian countries, Hong Kong is having to cope with a stream of small boat refugees who continue to leave Vietnam in large numbers and seek refuge in other countries in the region. The Hong Kong Government's policy towards such refugees is to allow all those who make their way to Hong Kong in their own boats to land temporarily until they can be resettled in other countries. Hong Kong is also willing to provide tenporary shelter to any small boat refugees who are picked up at sea by vessels whose first scheduled port of call is Hong Kong.
9. All small boat refugees who are provided with temporary shelter in Hong Kong in this way are looked after by the local representative of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, who meets the cost of their food and accommodation as well as undertaking to arrange for their permanent resettlement in other countries.
10. Despite this assistance from the UNHCR, small boat refugees are placing an increasing burden on Hong Kong; the rate of departure of refugees for permanent settlement elsewhere has not kept pace with the rate of arrivals and it has become very difficult to find suitable accommodation for the increasing numbers. In 1978, only just over 2,000 Vietnamese refugees from Hong Kong were permanently resettled in other countries. By contrast, over 5,100 small boat refugees were given temporary refuge in Hong Kong during 1978, and a further 2,000 in January 1979 alone.
11. In addition, Hong Kong has been forced to accept over 3,300 refugees who arrived onboard the Taiwanese-owned, Panamanian- registered freighter, HUEY FONG, which anchored off Hong Kong on 23 December. The captain of the vessel has now been charged in
/Hong Kong