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F FCO 021230Z MAY 79
TO IMMEDIATE JAKARTA
CONFIDENTIAL
TELEGRAM NUMBER 54 OF 2 MAY
PA
HKK243/1
INFO IMMEDIATE GOVERNOR HONG KONG PRIORITY KUALA LUMPUR SINGAPORE BANGKOK MANILA UKMIS GENEVA WASHINGTON,
FROM CORTAZZI
591
YOUR TELNO 118 AND WASHINGTON TEL 941 (NOT TO ALL) TELEPHONE CONVERSATION FURNESS/MORGAN OF 1 MAY: VIETNAMESE REFUGEES
1. I ASKED THE INDONESIAN AMBASSADOR TO CALL ON 1 MAY TO DISCUSS THE QUESTION OF HONG KONG AND FOLLOWED UP THE DISCUSSION BY WRITING TO HIM ON 2 MAY (TEXT IN M IFT), HE UNDERTOOK TO TELEGRAPH THE CONTENTS TO JAKARTA.
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610
see(611)
2. PLEASE PASS A COPY OF THE LETTER TO DARUSMAN TO REINFORCE YOUR EARLIER REPRESENTATIONS, AND URGE HIM TO TRY TO LET US HAVE A FAVOURABLE DECISION IF POSSIBLE BEFORE 8 MAY. WE SHALL OTHERWISE DE OBLIGED TO SUBMIT TO THE NEW GOVERNMENT HERE IN MUCH LESS CONSTRUCTIVE TERMS THAN WE SHOULD WISH. (FOR YOUR OWN INFORMATION,
IF FURNESS' EXPECTATION THAT THE CENTRE IS LIKELY TO BE ONE MAINLY FOR THE INDONESIANS' REFUGEES, BUT FUNDED BY THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY THROUGH UNHCR, WE WOULD NOT SEE ADVANTAGE IN .. MAKING A CONTRIBUTION TO ITS ESTABLISHMENT OR RUNNING COSTS.) 3. (PARA 2 OF YOUR TELEGRAM UNDER REFERENCE) AS DARUSMAN MUST
BE WELL AWARE HONG KONG FACES SEVERE ACCOMMODATION PROBLEMS, WITH 23,000 REFUGEES ALREADY IN THE TERRITORY, ONLY 6,000 OF WHOM ARE UNDER THE CARE OF THE UNH C R. WE WOULD HOPE THAT A PROPORTION OF REFUGEES COULD BE TAKEN TO THE ISLAND CENTRE FOR PROCESSING OR IN TRANSIT. IT WOULD IN ANY CASE, AS MORGAN POINTED CUT IN TELEPHONE CONVERSATION UNDER REFERENCE, BE WRONG FOR US TO SUPPORT A SCHEME FROM WHICH HONG KONG WAS EXCLUDED FOR THE START.
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SIR A PARSONS
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