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9. A decision to take such
be an easy one for HMG.
is difficult, and there is
Nevertheless we believe
resettlement problem,
graver consequences.
continuing
off take
Secretary, and
and
We
a number on a continuing basis will
Resettlement of Vietnamese in this country
a high rate of unemployment among them.
that it is the key to unlocking the
that failure to unlock it will have much
therefore believe that the case for a
should be pressed initially with the Home
and later if necessary in Cabinet Committee. This should
be coupled with a study of what training might most appropriately be
given to Vietnamese destined for this country in an effort to avoid
some of the problems we face with those already here. This might
include examination
of the possibility of Our using the refugee
processing centre at Batan (paragraph 25(a) (iii)
refers).
of the paper
10.
we do not
of the other options for increasing resettlement
believe that regional integration offers any prospect of success:
other regional countries such as Thailand have ruled out absorbing
more. Local absorption in Hong Kong might be a possibility for a
small number, but only if the rate of arrivals
can be drastically
reduced.
Decreasing arrivals
11.
Of the
unacceptable.
is
identified options, towing out to sea
clearly
Screening new arrivals would be more likely to hinder
our efforts to reduce the camp population in the absence of measures
for repatriation. The only identified option which seems to merit
further exploration is repatriation to Vietnam.
Repatriation
12.
For the reasons explained in paragraph 25(a) of the paper,
repatriation on a voluntary basis is unlikely to have much impact on
numbers; there are virtually no volunteers. Paras 17 and 18 of the
and advantages
involuntary
paper
set
out the
drawbacks
of
repatriation. The advantages are obvious: if we could get a scheme
going it would enable us substantially to dispose of the problem.
But it is also clear that there are formidable obstacles to its
being adopted.
The central points are
a that such
scheme
would not
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