CONFIDENTIAL
MKD 243/15
*/ $1. let me see
any response from
NOTO in this
Daw Charles
N
HKD
(153)
Foreign and Commonwealth Office
London SW1A 2AH
17 October 1988
711
ма
the W13/0 NYAR
PA
Mike
This has come sot. On
Cir 18
Vietnamese Boat People in Hong Kong: Talks with Vietnam
Your letter of 5 September recorded the Prime Minister's agreement that we should contribute to UNHCR funding of modest reintegration assistance for boat people returning to Vietnam from Hong Kong.
FCO, Hong Kong Government and Vietnamese officials held a second round of talks in London on 11-12 October. The main elements to emerge from the meeting were the following:
(a) the Vietnamese assured us that they were determined to stop departures from Vietnam by boat;
(b) the two sides agreed on the need for comprehensive arrangements for all arrivals who, under Hong Kong's new policy, do not qualify as refugees for
resettlement;
(c) the two sides agreed to make an early start with the return of those (now over 350) who have already asked to go back to Vietnam;
(d) the two sides agreed that UNHCR was the appropriate agency to arrange a humanitarian
repatriation programme, which would include modest reintegration assistance;
(e) we confirmed that we were ready in principle to contribute to such a programme through UNHCR.
This result marks a step forward towards an overall agreement. The key position is Vietnam's acceptance of the need for comprehensive arrangements. We made it clear to the Vietnamese that all those who did not qualify for resettlement elsewhere would have to go back. The Vietnamese understood this. While they are still prepared to take back only volunteers at this stage, they accepted that this problem wil have to be dealt with step by step.
CONFIDENTIAL
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