CONFIDENTIAL
boat people who arrive at points along the Chinese coast in
unseaworthy boats or who are otherwise unable to continue their
journey. At present there are many instances of boat people
staying for some time in Chinese ports and then being put by officials on newly arrived boats which are travelling to Hong Kong.
There is no reason why such people should be passed on
additional burden to Hong Kong. I urge you to agree to treat
them as having landed in China and to accommodate them in China
in accordance with standard international practice.
as an
[I know you agree that] we need to share the burden of
tackling this common problem, which I am happy to discuss with
you whenever opportunity presents itself. Meantime, I very much
hope that you will feel able to bring immediate relief along the lines that I have suggested.
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CONFIDENTIAL