་་་
CONFIDENTIAL
9815
(V)
2.
THAT THE UK SHOULD RELAX ITS FAMILY REUNION CRITERIA IN RESPECT OF VIETNAMESE IN CAMPS IN COUNTRIES OF TEMPORARY A SYLUM. THIS MEANS THAT THE UK WILL BE ACCEPTING FOR RESETTLEMENT SOME 500 VIETNAMESE REFUGEES WITH RELATIVES IN
THE UK. ALMOST ALL WILL BE FROM CAMPS IN HONG KONG. DEPENDING ON RESPONSES FROM OTHER COUNTRIES TO THIS INITIATIVE, WE SHALL ALSO CONSIDER ACCEPTING FURTHER LIMITED NUMBERS FROM HONG KONG. HONG KONG WOULD SIMILARLY BE PREPARED TO CONSIDER ABSORBING INTO HONG KONG A LIMITED NUMBER OF ETHNIC CHINESE FROM THE CAMPS THERE, IF THIS FORMED PART OF A CONCERTED INTERNATIONAL EFFORT ON
RESETTLMENT.
WILL SHORTLY BE APPROACHING YOUR GOVERNMENT FORMALLY ABOUT THIS HOPE YOU WILL CONSIDER VERY CAREFULLY WHETHER THERE IS ANYTHING FURTHER YOU CAN DO TO HELP: WE FEEL THAT A POSITIVE US RESPONSE WOULD GREATLY ENHANCE OUR CHANCES OF PERSUADING OTHER COUNTRIES TO ASSIST.
FOR YOUR OWN BACKGROUND, THE FOLLOWING IS A SUMMARY OF THE RESPONSES IN THE WHITE PAPER TO SCORRI'S RECOMMENDATIONS RELATING TO HONG KONG:
(I)
(II)
HMG HAVE DECIDED TO ACCEPT FOR RESETTLEMENT SOME 500 REFUGEES WHO HAVE RELATIVES IN THE UK BUT WHO WOULD NORMALLY FALL OUTSIDE OUR IMMIGRATION CRITERIA FOR FAMILY REUNION CASES. MOST OF THESE REFUGEES ARE IN CAMPS IN HONG KONG THOUGH THERE ARE A FEW CAMPS IN OTHER SOUTH EAST ASIAN
COUNTRIES.
HMG WILL PRESS OTHER COUNTRIES AS ACTIVELY AS POSSIBLE, BOTH BILATERALLY AND MULTILATERALLY IN ORDER TO MAXIMISE THE IMPACT OF THIS DECISION.
(III) IN ADDITION TO THE FAMILY REUNION CASES, HMG ARE PREPARED TO CONSIDER ACCEPTING FURTHER LIMITED NUMBERS OF REFUGEES FROM HONG KONG. A DECISION ON THIS WILL BE TAKEN IN THE LIGHT OF THE WILLINGNESS SHOWN BY OTHER RESETTLEMENT COUNTRIES TO RESPOND TO HONG KONG'S NEEDS AND OF ALL THE CIRCUMSTANCES AT THE TIME.
(IV) THE HONG KONG GOVERNMENT WOULD ALSO BE PREPARED TO CONSIDER
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