HK1 ACH
CONFIDENTIAL
Whice fue
joleć
Je
224
283/5.
RECORD OF CALL ON MR LUCE BY MR POUL HARTLING, UNITED NATIONS HIGH
COMMISSIONER FOR REFUGEES: 5 JUNE 1985, 9.50 am
Mr Luce
PS/Mr Luce
Mr Hartland Swann,
SEAD
Mr Galsworthy, HKD
Ms Walker, HKD
Mr Hartling
Mr Gordon-Lennox, Executive Assistant
to UNHCR
Mr von Arnim, UNHCR representative in
UK
1. Mr Hartling said that it was a timely moment, so soon after his
visit to Hong Kong and publication of the SCORRI report, to see
where we should go next and whether UNHCR could be of any help in
solving Hong Kong's refugee problem. Boat people were now more or
less forgotten, but there were still 34,000 awaiting resettlement,
of whom about a third (11,000) were in Hong Kong. Although it was
suggested by some people in Hong Kong that a few of them might
eventually be allowed to settle there, resettlement elsewhere
remained the only hope for the majority.
2. Mr Luce explained that the Government would not be in a position
to give a formal reply to SCORRI until July. He mentioned that the
Tamil problem was bound to add to the political difficulties of
dealing with the Hong Kong problem: 2000 had already come to the UK
(and many to Germany and other countries).
3.
Mr Luce said that there was very strong feeling in EXCO and the
Hong Kong community as a whole in favour of continuing to deter
refugees from travelling to Hong Kong. Some would like the Hong
Kong Government to turn refugees away; but that would be politically unacceptable in the UK. Mr Hartling said that Hong Kong
had a very good tradition of never sending refugees back and always
giving asylum. But he was well aware of the strength of feeling in
Hong Kong, particularly among local Chinese administrators, who
generally disliked the Vietnamese. Mr Luce confirmed that it was
not our intention to send refugees back. But there was still the
problem of the closed camps: we believed some form of deterrence needed to be maintained, coupled with increased resettlement.
CONFIDENTIAL