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CONFIDENTIAL
4.
considering urgently, in light of recent worrying increase in rate of new arrivals in Hong Kong, what more we and others might now do to try to resolve problem. No decision yet taken on scale of further resettlement in UK.
Vietnam
some
economic
I hope that you will feel able to agree to our using a defensive brief on these lines. I should add that we shall not be asking the UK delegation only to continue to press for further resettlement assistance for Hong Kong. Our Ministers recognise that we must also continue our search for other solutions, however remote the prospects of early success. It is increasingly clear that two of the main resettlement countries
the USA and Australia are trying to justify their growing reluctance to take more refugees from Hong Kong on the grounds that many of those now
from arriving
be may
coming more for
than
political reasons.
There is of course
foundation for this argument, but in the absence of any viable and acceptable means of returning "non-refugees" to Vietnam it is no help at all to Hong Kong that resettlement countries should adopt this stance. Ministers have therefore agreed that we should endeavour to begin joint consultations with the main resettlement countries and UNHCR to explore whether any sort of consensus exists on the problem of the continuing outflow from Indochina; and if it does, what possible solutions can be identified to meet it. It is plain that these consultations will not produce any early panacea to the problems that Hong Kong and other places of first asylum now face, but it may eventually ofier other avenues, besides resettlement in the west, which we can explore, perhaps approaches to the Vietnamese authorities.
5.
course
through
Our
collective
As a first stage, we have arranged for FCO members of the UK delegation to EXCOM to meet with
with US, Australian and Canadian this issue. counterparts separately to explore their thinking on Clinton Leeks of this Department is going to Geneva to take part in these meetings. We shall of
Office Home keep the abreast of any developments in these and subsequent discussions. But in this context it is all the more important that we should be
to questions on able to deploy a positive line in response
further attitude towards
assistance for Hong Kong. that bearing this in mind you will be able to agree to the line proposed above.
own
Yours suicidly, Buchany
A M Layden
Hong Kong Department
HMG's I hope
CONFIDENTIAL