CONFIDENTIAL
1
(a) to obtain firm official commitments regarding the number of
refugees to be accepted from the island; and
(b) to obtain specific financial commitments from governments to
allow the establishment of the centre.
Would you please hold yourself ready to attend? We shall not of
course be able to send you specific briefing until a new Government
takes office, but the Department is sending you, general background.
material by the bag.
5.
Meanwhile we would like you to approach the Indonesians
urgently about Hong Kong participation in the scheme, speaking at
whatever level makes the best impact, on the following lines:-
(a) The omission of Hong Kong from the proposals will cause us real
This is an international refugee problem, not just
i
difficulty.
confined to ASEAN countries, and should be tackled as such;
(b) Hong Kong with Thailand and Malaysia are the three major South
East Asian destinations for refugees and Hong Kong has the
least room;
(c) despite our logical and constitutional concern to relieve
Hong Kong and despite our own immigration commitments we have
taken practical steps to help the Thais and Malaysians;
(d) the UK is a major financial contributor to UNHCR for Indo-China
refugees.
6. You should say that we propose to take up the offer in Saleh's
letter of 20 April to include another official in your delegation
whom we think would be best able to advise from his own experience
on the Hong Kong aspects. (The second paragraph of Saleh's letter
states "It is up to each participant country whether to delegate
another government official to attend besides their respective
Ambassadors".)
You may at discretion add that if the question of
Hong Kong's participation in the island scheme cannot be settled in
advance of the 15/16 May meeting then we consider it would be a fit
subject for discussion at that meeting.
17.