CONFIDENTIAL
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1
30 June-1 July, but accepted in private that it was probably
impossible.
6. The Indonesians have stated that they will not accept any
further Vietnamese refugees (although we believe they will do so,
would
if boats/sink if pushed out to sea again). 47,000 are now there.
As many of the refugees are of Chinese ethnic origin, the
Indonesians, who recall the role of their own Chinese community
during the attempted coup d'etat in 1965, are especially reluctant
to receive them.
7. The Indonesian Government has set aside a Refugee Processing
Centre' on Galang Island (South of Singapore), and are in touch with
the UNHCR on its feasibility. The Centre will have a capacity of
only 10,000 and will be for people already allotted resettlement
places outside South East Asia. It will not, therefore, deal with
the major problem; the Indonesians have, indeed, started to decant
on to the same island refugees who have already landed on their
shores. It is unlikely, despite Malaysia's claims in paragraph 4
above, that the Indonesians would provide an island for a large
refugee centre; they are seriously worried by the security threat of the small centre already existing on Galang.
8. The Philippines' policy is to turn away refugee boats before
these can land, but refugees who succeed in landing have so far been
allowed to remain.
9.
The policy may now be under review, as the Philippines do not
wish to seem to be more accommodating than their ASEAN neighbours,
thereby running the risk of being a "soft option" for refugee boats.
The Foreign Minister has stated that the problem is an international
one and warned that the Philippines might cease to accept refugees
should the burden become too great to bear.
/10.