672
GOVERNment SECRETARIAT
WER ALBERT ROAD
HONG KONG
布政司署
港下亞畢道
нека
本署檔號 OUR REF.
* YOUR Ref.:
1118 IBY, 197979.
INCLA
PA
RA
71
You will remember that, on 22 January this
year, I held a meeting with some 18 missions represented
in Hong Kong to explain the problems we were then facing with Vietnamese refugees and to appeal for governments to help with greater offers of resettlement places.
At that time the Huey Fong had just arrived in Hong Kong with over 3,000 refugees on board. I explained that these arrivals, added to nearly 5,000 refugees already awaiting resettlement at the end of 1978, constituted a serious problem.
Since then the situation has become much worse. We now have over 24,000 refugees awaiting resettlement. They are arriving at a rate of over 6,000 a month and we can see no signs of the flow diminishing. Indeed, the contrary is the case. The rate of departures has been disappointing. So, with some notable exceptions, have offers of resettlement. Since the beginning of this year, over 20,000 refugees have arrived. Less than 3,000 have left on resettlement.
With this letter I am enclosing a table which gives the full statistical breakdown of arrivals and departures. I will arrange for similar statistics to be sent to you each month. I hope you will feel able to draw these figures to the attention of your government on a regular basis. I hope too that they will stimulate further offers of assistance to deal with a problem which, for Hong Kong, is becoming an increasingly intolerable burden.
I am sending a similar letter to the other Heads of Mission who attended the meeting on 22 January and to the local representative of the UNHCR.
(D C Wilson)