CONFIDENTIAL
HKK 345/2
RECOWD IN REGNSTAY NO. 51
2 MAR DRI
OFFICER
PA
No
cse
913
RECISTRY
Action Taken
AF 913
RECORD OF A MEETING BETWEEN THE LORD PRIVY SEAL AND MR ROBERT PARRY MP
IN THE FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH OFFICE AT 3 PM ON 24 FEBRUARY 1982
Present:
Lord Privy Seal
M A Arthur
P J Williamson
Mr Robert Parry MP
See (124
26
146
1. Mr Robert Parry said that he wished to discuss the case of Ms Vertucci whose visa to stay and work in Hong Kong had not been renewed after she had been there for four years. Ms Vertucci was at that time in the House of Commons and he and his colleagues were very concerned about many aspects of the case. Ms Vertucci had received support from many broadly based organisations in Hong Kong, from Mrs Elsie Elliott and from Catholic organisations all over the world. Ms Vertucci had not committed any offence in the territory, she had been gainfully employed and would not be a burden on public funds. She was a practising Roman Catholic.
2.
There were eight questions which Ms Vertucci had asked Mr Parry to put to the Lord Privy Seal: what were the reasons for the Hong Kong Immigration Department's decision not to renew her visa; the criteria adopted by the Department in deciding whether to grant or renew a visa; the reasons why the Governor-in-Council rejected her petition; the reason why her file classification had been changed from AL to CR; the meaning of CR and its implications; whether she would be allowed to return to Hong Kong as a tourist; whether the Immigration Department reviewed decisions not to allow people to remain in Hong Kong; and how often, and when, she would be allowed to return.
3.
Mr Parry said that he thought the Hong Kong Government were using a sledgehammer to crack a very small nut. He could think of no reason why Ms Vertucci should not be allowed to remain in Hong Kong. Her name had been included in the papers on the Hong Kong Standing Committee on Pressure Groups which had been leaked to the press, but this was in connection with her support for the Yaumati boat people, a cause which Mr Parry himself had actively supported.
4. In reply, the Lord Privy Seal said that the Governor had declined to give reasons for the decision concerning Ms Vertucci. They had never done so and he would not do so either. He realised that this was not satisfactory to Ms Vertucci but we could not depart from present practice. In these circumstances he was not prepared to
/discuss
CONFIDENTIAL