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Vietnam while resettlement opportunities were drying up.
This would cause difficult political problems to which solutions would have to be found. Options were being examined and the concept of closed camps as a part of the "Humane Deterrence policy" would have to be seriously considered. Voluntary repatriation also needed to be considered. Against this background, S for S asked what were the UNHCR's plans to implement their undertaking to resettle the caseload in Hong Kong and what was their assessment of the overall problem.
8.
Mr Symser replied that he understood the problems in Hong Kong and that accounted for the visits paid by Mr Hartling, the High Commissioner and also his own visit. Generally the Vietnamese resettlement operation was a major humanitarian achievement. So far as Hong Kong was concerned 75,000 out of the 85,000 who had come to Hong Kong, had been resettled. However we were now in the run down phase when all similar operations experienced the sort of difficulties which S for S had outlined.
9.
Mr Smyser said that UNHCR's objective was to create a new psychological climate in which illegal departures would be discouraged. The Orderly Departure Programme was an important contribution to creating this atmosphere. Mr Smyser thought that the Vietnamese might eventually agree to a voluntary repatriation scheme. The Vietnamese Government must have acquiesced in the arrangements made to repatriate some Laos and Khmer refugees from Thailand. The Vietnamese had generally adopted a more constructive approach in their recent dealings with UNHCR.
10.
Mr Rizvi said that the meeting had taken stock of developments and the UK representative had made a statement showing their concern about the hardcore cases in Hong Kong. None of the participants had shown any willingness to reverse the trend towards reducing or ending resettlement. Caseloads had gone down practically everywhere. Countries were now turned their attention to voluntary repatriation, Orderly Departure Programme and unaccompanied minors. The High Commissioner felt that resettlement need not be the only solution to the refugee problem in Indo-China. The figures of exodus from Indo-China had been low for the last month which was also lower than that of last year.
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