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CONFIDENTIAL
GR.20 CONFIDENTIAL
FM HONG KONG 230517Z JUN BØ
TO PRIORITY F C O
PA
TELEGRAM NUMBER 717 OF 3 JUNE
Mus
INFO HONG KONG GOVERNMENT OFFICE LONDON, UKMIS GENEVA
- 3 JUN 1980
DESK OFFICER
INDEX
28.6
GISTRY Action Taken
INFO SAVING HANOI
YOUR TELEGRAM 202 OF 6TH MARCH
COPY
AN!
VIETNAMESE REFUGEES
<-
UK RESETTLEMENT PROGRAMME
See
ut
WE ARE SERIOUSLY CONCERNED AT THE SLOW OFFTAKE OF REFUGEES
FROM HK TO THE UK.
2. ONLY 2,924 WERE CALLED FORWARD IN THE FIRST 5 MONTHS OF 1988
AND SO FAR ONLY 5,864 OF THE TOTAL OF 11,000 OF THE UK QUOTA HAS LEFT HERE, THE JUNE ESTIMATE IS ONLY 600 AND WE HAVE BEEN TOLD THAT JULY AND AUGUST WILL BE SLOW MONTHS (CLIFT'S LETTER OF 1ST MAY).
3. THIS MUST BE SEEN AGAINST A BACKGROUND OF ONLY 2,646 DEPARTURES
TO ALL RESETTLEMENT COUNTRIES IN MAY, WHICH WAS THE LOWEST MONTHLY FIGURE SINCE JULY 1979. TO ADD TO OUR CONCERN ARRIVALS
FROM VIETNAM IN MAY WERE 635 PLUS 769 WHO ARRIVED EX CHINA, THE EFFECT OF THIS IS THAT AT THE END OF MAY THERE WERE 39,757 IN HONG KONG COMPARED WITH 40,932 AT END OF APRIL.
4. THE SLOW MOVEMENT OF REFUGEES IS VERY DISAPPOINTING AND COULD BE MISINTERPRETED AS A LACK OF COMMITMENT ON THE PART OF THE U.K.
BECAUSE OF THIS AND OF OUR FEAR THAT THE CHANGE IN THE WEATHER MAY BRING INCREASED NUMBERS OF REFUGEES DIRECT FROM VIETNAM IN
THE NEXT FEW MONTHS, WE WOULD BE MOST GRATEFUL IF VERY SPECIAL EFFORTS ARE MADE IN JUNE AND JULY TO REACH THE TARGET WHICH
WOODFIELD QUOTED TO DAVIES IN MARCH OF 800-1,000 A MONTH.
5. ON CURRENT PERFORMANCE THERE MUST ALSO BE SOME DOUBT WHETHER THE INTENTION TO TAKE THE WHOLE QUOTA OF 11,000 BY THE END OF
1980 CAN BE ACHIEVED WITHOUT SOME CHANGE IN THE RECEPTION AND
HOUSING ARRANGEMENTS IN UK. DAVIES WOULD LIKE TO REVIEW THE
SITUATION WITH YOU AND THE HOME OFFICE WHEN IN LONDON IN WEEK
COMMENCING THE 16TH JUNE.
FCO PLEASE PASS SAVING TO HANO I
MACLEHOSE
THIS TELEGRAM WAS NOT ADVANCED
FILES
PS
SEAD
PS/IPS
HK & GD
PS/MR BLAKER
UND
PS/MR RIDLEY
FED
ECD
PUSD
OID
IPD
NEWS D MAED
PS/PUS
SIR D MAITLAND
MR MURRAY
MR STRATTON
LORD N G LENNOX
ADDITIONAL DISTN.
BOAT PEOPLE
(REPEATED AS REQUESTED)
MR RUSHFORD (LEGAL ADV.) CONFIDENTIAL
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