Foreign and Commonwealth Office London SW1A 2AH
Telephone 01-
233 5868
Your reference
Our reference
FA 243/1
Date
August 1979
I have been asked to thank you for your letter of
to
have been noted.
庐
about refugees from Indo-China. Your views
Successive British Governments have believed that refugees are a responsibility of the international community, which Britain should help to meet.
In the belief that the Indo-Chinese refugee problem demanded concerted international action, the Prime Minister called for the international meeting under UN auspices, which took place at Geneva on 20-21 July. In all, 260,000 resettlement places were offered and US$ 190 million pledged for the use of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. This demonstrated the strength of international concern.
Lord Carrington told the meeting that Britain had agreed to the request of the High Commissioner that we accept a further 10,000 refugees, in addition to the 4,600 whom we had already agreed to accept; and that we proposed to make an additional £5 million avail- able to help deal with the refugee problem over the next 12 months.
In deciding to make additional resettlement places available in Britain, the Government took account of the strong humanitarian considerations in favour of the refugees. Refugees are not in the same category as immigrants, and the Government continues to adhere to its commitment to strict control of immigration. The Prime Minister has said there will be a statement when Parliament reassembles after the summer recess
the Government's proposals for curbing the present abuses of the system of immigration control.
on
· Your sweetly
Jelva Jeschte-orst,
JS Bosomworth
South East Asian Department