WR 495

CONFIDENTIAL

CONFIDENTIAL

HKE 243/1

RECEIVED RA·

DESK

INDEX

по

Y NO.

16 MAY 1979

C

REGISTRY Actor Takon

FOL

FM JAKARTA 150915Z MAY 79

TO IMMEDIATE F C O

TELNO 134 OF 15 MAY

INFO IMMEDIATE HONG KONG

(left)

654

INFO PRIORITY PARIS (FOR MURRAY) UKMIS GENEVA KUALA LUMPUR

SINGAPORE BANGKOK MANILA AND WASHINGTON

เล

see679

YOUR TELNOS 63 TO JAKARTA AND 278 TO HONG KONG: JAKARTA CONFERENCE

ON THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A PROCESSING CENTRE FOR VIETNAMESE REFUGEES,

1. I SPOKE WITH DARUSMAN BEFORE THE JAKARTA MEETING ON REFUGEES

OPENED, HE IS NOW ACTING AS MOCHTAR'S SPECIAL ADVISER UNTIL HIS

DEPARTURE FOR BERNE. DARUSMAN TOLD ME THAT THE MEETING OF THE

ASEAN STANDING COMMITTEE WHICH HAD JUST ENDED HAD TOUCHED ON THE

INCLUSION OF HONG KONG IN THE SPECIAL PROCESSING CENTRE PROJECT.

ALTHOUGH ASEAN REPRESENTATIVES WERE SYMPATHETIC OVER HONG KONG'S SPECIAL PROBLEMS, THEY WERE RELUCTANT TO INCLUDE HONG KONG IN THE. SCHEME LEST THEY SET UNWELCOME PRECEDENTS (MACAU AND, HOWEVER FAR- FETCHED, CHINA). I REPEATED THAT THIS WOULD BE AWKWARD FOR US AND THAT MY INSTRUCTIONS (YOUR TELNO 63) LEFT ME NO ALTERNATIVE TO MAKING A LESS THAN POSITIVE INTERVENTION DURING THE MEETING. I SAID THIS WOULD BE A PITY SINCE IT WOULD PROBABLY REPRESENT ONE OF THE FIRST PUBLIC STATEMENTS MADE ON BEHALF OF OUR NEW GOVERNMENT.. TO A COLLECTIVE MEETING OF ASEAN REPRESENTATIVES. WHILE I

ACKNOWLEDGED THE RATHER REMOTE

POSSIBILITY OF A PRECEDENT WHICH

ASEAN WOULD PREFER TO AVOID, BOTH HMG AND THE HONG KONG GOVERNMENT WERE WILLING IN PRINCIPLE TO CONTRIBUTE TOWARS THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A PROCESSING CENTRE SO LONG AS HONG KONG WAS NOT EXCLUDED. DARUSMAN AGREED, BUT SAID THIS COULD ONLY BE ARGUED OUT AFTER THE JAKARTA MEETING ENDED. 1 THEREFORE PRESSED DARUSMAN TO ENSURE THAT MOCHTAR AND THE ASEAN REPRESENTATIVES DID NOT SLAM THE DOOR IN MY FACE AT THE MEETING., AND THAT I FOR MY PART WOULD LIMIT MY INTERVENTION TO OFFERING THE CARROT OF FINANCIAL

CONTRIBUTIONS IF HONG KONG WERE INCLUDED IN THE SCHEME.

CONFIDENTIAL

12.iN

IN

Share This Page