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101140 MDHIAN 8564
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FM UKMIS GENEVA
TO IMMEDIATE FCO
TELNO 172
OF 300947Z MARCH
INFO IMMEDIATE HONG KONG
(113)
(114)
3 OMAR1387
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TC
a
HONG KONG TELNOS 1012 AND 1013: VIETNAMESE BOAT PEOPLE: REPATRIATION
1. WHILE WE UNDERSTAND THE PRESSURES IN HONG KONG TO FIND AN EARLY
SOLUTION TO THE VBP PROBLEM AND A QUICK RUN-DOWN OF THE CAMP POPULATION, WE ARE NOT CONVINCED THAT WE CAN ESTABLISH THROUGH THE MANDATE OF THE STEERING COMMITTEE, SET UP UNDER SECTION 8 (B) OF THE DRAFT CPA, AN EARLY TRANSITION FROM VOLUNTARY TO MANDATORY REPATRIATION OF NON-REFUGEES.
2. ON THE BASIS OF REFUGEE REPATRIATION EXERCISES ELSEWHERE, A SIX MONTH PERIOD AFTER THE INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE DOES NOT SEEM ADEQUATE TO ASCERTAIN WHETHER THE AGREED INITIAL EMPHASIS ON VOLUNTARY REPATRIATION IS LIKELY TO BE SUCCESSFUL. UNHCR CERTAINLY ENVISAGE A LONGER PERIOD (POSSIBLY TWO TO THREE YEARS). THEY WOULD BE RELUCTANT TO BE ASSOCIATED WITH A CRASH PROGRAMME OF REPATRIATION, EVEN ON A VOLUNTARY BASIS, WHICH PUT AN UNACCEPTABLE STRAIN ON THEIR STAFFING AND FINANCIAL RESOURCES IN THE LIGHT OF
THEIR MAJOR COMMITMENTS ELSEWHERE AND PUT AT RISK THEIR CAPACITY TO MONITOR ADEQUATELY IN VIETNAM TREATMENT OF RETURNEES. IN OUR VIEW, WE ALSO NEED TO BE SENSITIVE TO AMERICAN RESERVATIONS ON INVOLUNTARY
REPATRIATION AND VIETNAM'S CAPACITY TO ABSORB RETURNEES. PUSHING THE VIETNAMESE TOO FAR TOO FAST, EG BY REFERENCE TO ''LARGE SCALE FLOW'' COULD PUT AT RISK VIETNAM'S ACCEPTANCE OF THE CAREFULLY BALANCED CPA, A POINT VU KHOAN MADE AT THE KUALA LUMPUR PREPARATORY MEETING.
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3. ON POINTS OF DETAIL IN HONG KONG'S DRAFT PAPER ON REPATRIATION
(2ND TUR), WE NEED TO RESPCET THE FACT THAT THE STEERING COMMITTEE IS INTENDED TO DEAL WITH THREE BROAD ISSUES STATUS DETERMINATION RETURN AND RESETTLEMENT, WIHOUT ANY PRIORITY BEING ATTACHED TO REPATRIATION. WE ALSO NEED TO TAKE INTO ACCOUNT UNHCR'S CHAIRMANSHIP
OF THE STEERING COMMITTEE AND THEIR OPPOSITION TO INVOLVEMENT AS THE EXECUTING AGENCY IN INVOLUNTARY REPATRIATION. TO REFLECT THE STEERING COMMITTEE'S WIDER REMIT, PARA 2 OF HONG KONG'S DRAFT PAPER MIGHT BE REWORDED TO REFLECT THE WORDING OF THE SRV/UNHCR MOU AS FOLLOWS: ''THE STEERING COMMITTEE SHALL REVIEW WIHTIN SIX MONTHS AFTER THE DATE OF THE ICIR THE OPERATION OF THE PROVISIONAL
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