XI.
VIETESE REFUGEES
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76.
During 1986 major
efforts were made to speed up the
refugees in camps
in Hong Kong.
resettlement of Vietnamese
relaxed
was
Following the decision by Her Majesty's Government in September 1985 to accept some 500 refugees from Hong Kong for family reunion in the United Kingdom under
criteria, a diplomatic campaign
mounted by Her Majesty's Government, supported by the Hong Kong Government, to persuade other countries to offer more resettlement places to Hong Kong. Many countries responded possitively, including Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway and Sweden. For
its
the part
Hong Kong
Government
to decided
refugees on Chinese origin for local settlement.
77.
250 accept
more
In response to a request made by the United
the United Nations High
Commissioner for Refugess, the Hong Kong Government also agreed, in February 1986, to establish a transit centre in Hong Kong, to help
the resettlement facilitate
of refugees rescued at sea under the
International Rescue at Sea Resettlement Offers scheme.
78.
no
war in Vietnam However, eleven years after the end of the
there is still
to the durable solution in sight to the problem of the continuing exodus of refugees. During 1986 the number of Vietnamese refugees arriving in Hong Kong doubled compared with 1985.
This was
the
first time
increased
that the rate of
the since
in arrivals
the territory
implementation of the quote closed
had
centre
unquote policy in July 1982. Much of the benefit from an improved
by the Large was thus cancelled out
Further, arrivals new
in Hong Kong.
rate of resettlement in 1986
increase in the number of although some (3,700) refugees were resettled from Hong Kong in 1986 this level is unlikely to be maintained in 1987. Majesty's Government and the Hong Kong Government resettlement thus
brought a fall of
in the Vietnamese refugee population to the
end of the year. But
The efforts of Her
remained to be resettled.
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