!
RESTRIC PED
HKK 243/1
Gwar
a.m
RECEIVED IN REGISTEM NO. 51
A JUMS 16
DESK OFFICER
INDEX
PA
TRY
REFUGEES ON BOARD MV ROACHBANK
по
86.6
де
1
903
Pruble Ceerely
1. The Home Office say they have been planning on the assumption that the Roachbank refugees would eventually have to be brought to this country, and that they could make arrangements to receive them within a few days of a ministerial decision that they should be accepted.
2. If the refugees are accepted by the UK there would be two ways of getting them here:-
a)
b)
To fly the refugees direct to this country from Taiwan; To arrange for the Roachbank to sail with the refugees to Hong Kong and fly them to the UK from there.
3.
The Hong Kong Government say that as Hong Kong was not the Roachbank's first port of call, and the Hong Kong Government have refused other requests for the Colony to be used as a staging post in such cases, there would be a public outcry if the Roachbank brought the refugees to Hong Kong.
4. In the absence of diplomatic relations with Taiwan, the Bank Line are confident that they could make arrangements, through thei- local agents, for the refugees to be brought to the UK from Taiwan. They say they have established that the Taiwanese authorities woul allow the refugees to be landed provided they were in direct transit.
5.
Arrangements would have to be made for aircraft to be charters to pick up the refugees from Taiwan. UNHCR normally prefer refugees to travel on scheduled flights (they get a 50% reduction) but they agreed to pay for charters in the Wellpark case and would no doutţ do so again. We are checking. We are also looking into arrangemen for chartering aircraft. The Bank Line have said that they could sz this if necessary.
1 June 1979
RESTRICTED