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(h) The effect of closed camps on the subsequent ability of the
refugees to resettle
Answer. No evidence that closed camps make refugees more difficult
to resettle than do open centres. One resettlement country, which recently accepted a special quota of refugees taken only from closed centres, said that closed centre refugees were in some way easier to
resettle, because they are always available in the centres for
interviews and medicals, and are less likely to have fallen foul of
Hong Kong law by committing petty offences than open centre
refugees.
Statistics:
Since introduction of closed centre policy in July 1982, 4054
refugees have been resettled from closed centres and 5894 from open centres. As the proportion of refugees in closed centres increases and that in open centre declines, more departures will inevitably
come from closed centres.
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