JA4AXK
PARLIAMENTARY QUESTION BY MR KEITH, MP
1.
Mr Best has shown great interest in refugee matters, and is Chairman of the British Refugee Council's Committee for Refugees
from Indo-China. He last visited refugee camps in Hong Kong in
January 1985. Mr Best secured an Adjournment Debate on South East
in (Refugees)
Asia
matters
raised
May
in the
adjournment debate that
to several of
in spoke
the
he referred
questions, and
another
family reunion cases. He asked
1985, when
present
month,
on
seven questions on refugees in February.
2.
The present question refers
a report by Refugee Action,
one of
of Vietnamese the voluntary agencies handling resettlement refugees in the UK. Lord Chitnis, the Chairman of Refugee Action, visited Hong Kong in February and signed the report, which repeats criticisms of the principle of the closed refugee camps in Hong Kong
and the
runs them.
tabled way Hong Kong question for debate in the Lords on 14 May on the subject.
3.
He
has
an
unstarred
attracted The report has
in UK, and no media attention in UK, little in Hong Kong. There is some resentment in Hong Kong at its sarcastic treatment of the Voluntary agencies' work. The report is
factually
wrong
in
several
respects
and draws
conclusions by selective reference to statistics.
contentious