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нка 24318
RE
542
075253
MDLIAN 4281
UNCLASSIFIED
FM HONG KONG
TO PRIORITY FCO
TELNO 2792
OF 210845Z JULY 88
AND TO PRIORITY HANOI
2 JUL 1988
~
INFO PRIORITY SINGAPORE, MANILA, JAKARTA, BADAR SERI BEGAWAN INFO PRIORITY WASHINGTON, CANBERRA, OTTAWA, TOKYO, PEKING INFO PRIORITY UKMIS GENEVA, KUALA LUMPUR, BANGKOK
MIPT: VIETNAMESE BOAT PEOPLE
1.
FOLLOWING IS THE TEXT OF EXTRACT FROM SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST
OF 20 JULY:
-
VIETNAM WILL AGREE TO TAKE BACK ITS BOAT PEOPLE IN THE COMING TALKS
WITH SENIOR HONGKONG OFFICIALS IN HANOI BUT IT WANTS TO SCREEN THEM FIRST.
VIETNAMESE SOURCES IN BANGKOK SAY THE TALKS, WHICH ARE STILL AWAITING CONFIRMATION FROM HANOI, ARE EXPECTED TO REACH A POSITIVE RESULT IN THE FIRST ROUND.
THE SOURCES SAID THERE WOULD BE MORE ROUNDS AFTER THE INITIAL MEETING INDICATING THAT VIETNAM WAS PREPARED TO GO THE WHOLE WAY WITH THE DISCUSSIONS.
HANOI HAS APPARENTLY ALREADY FINALISED A LIKELY FORMAT FOR THE TALKS, WHICH WOULD OPEN WITH HONGKONG SETTING OUT ITS VIEWS ON REPATRIATION
AND THE PROBLEM OF THE BOAT PEOPLE.
THIS WOULD BE FOLLOWED BY AN EXCHANGE OF POSSIBLE NAMES FOR REPATRIATION. HOWEVER THE SOURCES SAID VIETNAM WOULD INSIST UPON
SCREENING THOSE REFUGEES ON HONGKONG'S LIST EVEN IF THEY HAD
ALREADY BEEN SUBJECTED TO A SIMILAR PROCESS BY HONGKONG.
-
ONE POSSIBILITY IS THAT HONGKONG AND VIETNAM COULD FORM A JOINT GROUP TO SCREEN ALL REFUGEES
ONE OF THE SOURCES SAID.
/
IN MID-JUNE, HONGKONG INTRODUCED A NEW SCREENING POLICY FOR BOAT
PEOLE WHERE ALL THOSE FOUND TO BE EONOMIC REFUGEES WOULD BE DETAINED
PENDING REPATRIATION. ONLY POLITICAL REFQGEES WOULD BE RESETTLED TO
A THIRD COUNTRY.
FORD
YYYY
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