布政司
港下亞畢道
Mr. Hoare Mingoller
Enlin
73).
GOVERNMENT SECRETARIA.**
LOWER ALBERT ROAD
HONG KONG
W OUR REF.:
( in SCR 12/4 ../79 V
YOUR REF.:
23:0 K
1983
Mr. D. F. Murray
H.M. Ambassador
British Embassy Stockholm Sweden
pa.
Resettlement
243/2
.
Dear Mr. Murray,
In my letter to you of 11 March 1983, I promised to write again to let you know the outcome of the visit to us by the Swedish resettlement team in late March,
2.
The team arrived here on 14 March and left us sixteen days later. During their stay they selected 205 refugees, subsequently raised to 206 when one selected family had a child here. I am pleased to say that all 206 have since departed by air in batches of 20 or 30, the last group leaving without a hitch two days ago. It is also gratifying to note that the vast majority of those selected were refugees who had already been stuck in transit camps here for three years (and 47 had been here over four years).
3.
Members of the Swedish delegation were most complimentary about their reception here, and about the work done by the local UNHCR office to present cases to them for selection.
4.
I must once again express to you my thanks for your personal efforts to secure this timely intervention by the Swedes on our behalf. We can only justify the maintenance of our asylum policy locally if there is some sign of a continuing offtake of refugees for overseas resettlement, and in this regard the Swedish initiative has been one ray of light in a thoroughly dismal year so far. The Swedish team intimated to us and to the UNHCR that they would like to come back soon: I need not add that anything you can do to bring this about would be most welcome to us.
Yours sincerely,
!
ста
(D. G. Jeaffreson) Secretary for Security
CC
R.D. Clift, Esq., HKGD, FCO K.F.X. Burns, Esq., SEAD, FCO B.D. Adams, Esq., UKMIS Geneva
S.J. Gomersall, Esq., Washington
HKK 248/2
RECEIVED IN REGISTRY
13 JUN 1983
DESK OFFICES
INDEX
7
REGISTRY Action Taken
AM