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a capacity of 10,000 each, and one with a capacity of 50,000 in the Philippines, probably in Bataan. Japan has offered half the cost; other funds are coming from the general UNHCR budget.
11.
They are to hold refugees who are eligible for resettlement (mainly in USA) but whose departure awaits administrative arrange- ments in the resettlement country. Our concern has been to ensure access for refugees in Hong Kong. The centres were an ASEAN initiative designed to ease the pressure on Malaysia, and the ASEAN states have maintained that only their refugees should have access. But in Geneva on 15 October Mr de llaan stated that refugees from Hong Kong would also have access.
FIRST PORT OF CALL
12. The UK is the only major maritime country which does not automatically accept for resettlement refugees rescued by its merchant ships. Our quota is designed to help Hong Kong. We favour the principle that such refugees should be accepted into temporary asylum at the first scheduled port of call after rescue and processed like other boat refugees. Tiong Kong, Singapore and most South China Sea ports now seek a guarantee from the flag state, although both Japan and South Korea have allowed landings from Uk vessels without one recently. The USA has offered 500 places for refugees rescued by "flag of convenience" ships.
OT FOR USL7
13. When we issue guarantees (in recent cases usually concerning Singapore) we do not specify whether these come within our quota. The Cabinet decision of 12 July was that they should, but for presentational purposes Hong Kong wishes to represent the 10,000 as all coming from Hong Kong. This problem will have to be faced when the quota nears exhaustion.
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