CONFIDEN HAL

S400

CONFIDENTIAL

FM WASHINGTON 011660Z MAY 79

عبد KK#

- 2 MAY 1979

31

Ло

TO PRIORITY FCO

No 122.5

ELEGRAM NUMBER 941 OF 1 MAY

INFO ROUTINE JAKARTA

UKMIS GENEVA

KUALA LUMPUR BANGKOK

GOVERNOR

HỒNG KÔNG

see G10

58

MURRAY'S TELELETTER OF 24 APRIL TO HMA JAKARTA: VIETNAMESE REFUGEES.

1. WE HAVE SPOKEN TO OAKLEY (DEPUTY ASSISTANT SECRETARY FOR SOUTH EAST ASIA AT THE STATE DEPARTMENT), WHO WILL BE ATTENDING THE JAKARTA MEETING, AND CUSHING (DEPUTY DIRECTOR, OFFICE OF REFUGEES).

BOTH EXPRESSED UNDERSTANDING FOR OUR CONCERN ABOUT THE EXCLUSION OF HONG KONG FROM THE ISLAND SCHEME, BUT DID NOT COMMIT THEMSELVES TO TAKING ACTION WITH INDONESIANS ON OUR BEHALF.

2. OAKLEY SAID THAT THE INDONESIAN CENTRE WOULD ONLY TAKE 10,000 REFUGEES INITIALLY, AND ITS MAJOR IMPACT WOULD BE PRIMARILY PSYCHO- LOGICAL. THE AMERICANS HOPED THAT IT WOULD BE FOLLOWED BY OTHER LARGER CENTRES, AND THERE WERE SIGNS THAT THE PHILIPPINES MIGHT BE PREPARED TO ESTABLISH A CENTRE, AGAINST THIS BACKGROUND, HE SUGGESTED THAT OUR BEST COURSE WOULD BE TO AVOID PRESSING THE CASE FOR INCLUDING HONG KONG TOO HARD, AND THAT AT THE JAKARTA MEETING OUR TACTICAL OBJECTIVE SHOULD BE TO KEEP OPEN THE POSSIBILITY OF HONG KONG'S INCLUSION, IN THIS WAY, IT MIGHT BE POSSIBLE TO SECURE THE SYMBOLIC PRESENCE OF A FEW REFUGEES FROM HONG KONG IN THE INDON- ESIAN CENTRE, AND THE POSSIBILITY OF INCREASING THE NUMBERS TO BE SENT TO FUTURE CENTRES WOULD REMAIN OPEN.

3. THE AMERICAN INTEREST IS TO GET A CENTRE ESTABLISHED AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE TO RELIEVE THE PRESSURE ON MALAYSIA AND INDONESIA, (CUSHING ADMITTED, SPEAKING PERSONALLY, THAT THEY WOULD RATHER HAVE A CENTRE, WHICH WAS LESS THAN PERFECT IN THAT HONG KONG WAS EXCLUDED, THAN NO CENTRE AT ALL). THE AMERICANS? WILL INGNESS TO HELP US WITH

WILLINGNESS

THE INDONESIANS IS LIKELY TO BE CONDITIONED BY THIS OVERRIDING PRE- CCCUPATION. THEY WILL NONETHELESS BE CONCERNED AT THE POSSIBILITY

/ THAT

WE AND

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