}}
13.
PARA 12A: AGAIN, WE SUGGEST THAT THIS PREDICTION SHOULD MAKE
IT CLEAR THAT ANY DISTUREANCES WILL RESULT FROM THE REFUGEES PERCEPTION THAT THEIR RESETTLEMENT CHANCES ARE SHRINKING TOWARDS ZERO: IT WOULD NOT ARISE FROM THE CLOSED CENTRES THEMSELVES. HAVING SAID THAT, WE DO NOT (NOT) DISAGREE THAT FRUSTRATION AND RESENTMENT AT BEING ABANDONEDDY THE RESETTLEMENT COUNTRIES COULD LEAD TO THE SITUATION YOU PREDICT. TAKEN WITH THE RESENTMENT FELT BY THE LOCAL COMMUNITY TOWARDS, WHAT THEY FEEL IS MORE PRIVILEGED TREATMENT OF VIETNAMESE REFUGEES, THIS COULD BE CAUSE FOR CONCERN.
19. PARA 12B: WE SUGGEST THAT THE TWO POINTS IN THIS PARAGRAPH BE SEPARATE ITEMS.
20. PARA 12E: WE SUGGEST THAT YOU ADD: THIS MIGHT ARISE EITHER FROM A WISH TO RESOLVE A CONTENTIOUS ISSUE, WHICH DRAWS ON HONG KONG'S RESOURCES, OR FROM A WISH FOR THE UK TO DEMONSTRATE ITS COMMITMENT TO HONG KONG PRIOR TO 1997, BY HELPING TO SOLVE ONE OF ITS PROBLEMS.
21. PARA 15: WE FEEL THAT YOU SHOULD REFER TO THE JANUARY EXCO DECISION ON REPATRIATION AND SCREENING. THIS IS NOW
HONG KONG GOVERNMENT POLICY, PROVIDED THAT WE ARE SATISIFIED THAT
THE VIETNAMESE REFUGEES WOULD NOT BE MISTREATED ON THEIR RETURN.
22. PARA 17: WE FIND THE REFERENCE TO AVOIDING A HIGH PROFILE CONFUSING. IF INVOLUNTARY REPATRIATION WERE TO BE INTRODUCED, WE WOULD REQUIRE THE CO-OPERATION AND CONSENT OF THE VIETNAMESE GOVERNMENT. FOR IT TO BE EFFECTIVE, THE MAXIMUM AMOUNT OF PUBLICITY
WOULD BE REQUIRED: WE WOULD SEEK IT AND THE QUOTE VOCIFEROUS OBJECTION FROM THE REFUGEE LOBBY UNQUOTE IN UK WOULD, IN ITS OWN WAY, HELP. WE SUGGEST THAT IT BE POINTED OUT THAT WE THINK THAT
ONLY TWO OR THREE AIRCRAFT OR ONE SHIP JOURNEY WOULD BE REQUIRED
FOR THE MESSAGE TO BECOME CLEAR IN VIETNAM. WE ALSO FEEL THAT THIS
IS AN ARGUMENT IN FAVOUR OF SUCH A COURSE, RATHER THAN AN ARGUMENT
AGAINST. ACCORDINGLY, WE FEEL THAT THIS SHOULD GO IN PARA 16.
V
23. PARA 23B: HONG KONG HAS ABSORBED 14,500, RATHER THAN 14,000.
WE FEEL THAT ANY LARGE SCALE LOCAL ABSORBTION WOULD INDEED RESULT
IN AN INCREASE IN ARRIVALS, BECAUSE WE FEEL THAT HONG KONG'S
HUMANITARIAN ADHERANCE TO THE COUNTRY OF FIRST ASYLUM CONVENTION
IS BEING EXPLOITED BY OTHER COUNTIRES IN THE REGION.
LOCAL ABSORBTION WOULD GIVEN THEM ADDED ENCOURAGEMENT.
24. WE FEEL STRONGLY THAT THE FLOW MUST BE STOPPED, NOT (NOT)
SLOWED, BEFORE WE COULD BEGIN TO THINK ABOUT LOCAL ABSORBTION. WE ARE SURPRISED THAT, ALTHOUGH YOU ACCURATELY REFLECT LOCAL SENTIMENT REGARDING FURTHER ABSORBTION OF REFUGEES, YOU SEEMINGLY
FEEL THAT IT CAN BE ICONRED. WE FEEL THAT THIS CAN ONLY SE
CONSIDERED UNDER THE STRICT UNDERSTANDING THAT IT WOULD APPLY ONCE
AND FOR ALL AND THAT IT WOULD BE LINKED TO AN INTERNATIONAL EFFORT, IN WHICH UK WOULD PLAY A PART, TO RESETTLE WHAT WOULD THEN BE A FIXED NUMBER OF VIETNAMESE REFUGEES IN HONG KONG. WE ACCEPT THAT THIS WOULD MEAN THAT HONG KONG WILL HAVE TO ACCEPT THOSE UNWANTED
BY OTHER COUNTRIES.
CONFIDENTIAL
125