CONFIDENTIAL
MKD 30611
нко
TOP COPY Q DIST?
(15)
130725
MDLIAN 1008
CONFIDENTIAL
FM HANOI
TO PRIORITY HONG KONG
TELNO 023
OF 0703OOZ APRIL 89
INFO ROUTINE FCO, PEKING, KUALA LUMPUR, BANGKOK, JAKARTA
YOUR TELNO 210 OF 3 APRIL (NOT TO KUALA LUMPUR, BANGKOK AND JAKARTA): RTHK TRANSMISSIONS
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1 WE HAVE TALKED TO MINISTRY OF INFORMATION OFFICIALS INCLUDING VICE MINISTER PHAN QUANG ABOUT PUBLICITY FOR SCREENING POLICIES AND RETURNS. THIS IS A SUMMARY.
2. COVERAGE OF THE WHOLE PROBLEM OF VBPS IN THE MEDIA HAS SO FAR BEEN A LITTLE DISAPPOINTING BUT IT IS NOW BEGINNING TO INCREASE. QUANG CLAIMED RECENTLY TO HAVE TALKED TO ASSISTANT FOREIGN MINISTER VU KHOAN ABOUT THE NEED FOR PUBLICITY TO DETER DEPARTURES. 3. AS WE HAVE MENTIONED BEFORE THE MINISTRY OF INFORMATION PLANS TO BROADCAST THE THAMES TV PROGRAMME ''BOAT PEOPLE GO HOME'' WITHIN A WEEK OR SO. H OF C HAS SEEN THE VIETNAMESE VERSION OF THE SCRIPT AND IT IS (SO FAR) VERY CLOSE TO THE ORIGINAL. THIS PROGRAMME OF COURSE CONTAINS EXPLICIT REFERENCE TO HONG KONG'S SCREENING POLICY AND SHOTS OF SCREENING INTERVIEWS. THE ARRIVAL OF THE FIRST BATCH OF RETURNEES ON 2 MARCH WAS COVERED BY TV NEWS AT THE TIME.
4. THERE HAVE BEEN AN INCREASING NUMBER OF ARTICLES IN THE PRESS ABOUT THE DANGERS OF LEAVING BY BOAT, CONDITIONS IN HONG KONG AND INTERVIEWS WITH RETURNEES (H OF C HAS SENT AN EXAMPLE TO MIKE HANSON). THESE ARE NOT 100 PER CENT ACCURATE OR COMPLIMENTARY ABOUT HONG KONG BUT THEY CERTAINLY PAINT A GLOOMY PICTURE OF LEAVING BY BOAT SO WE SHOULD NOT OBJECT. ACCORDING TO QUANG MOST, IF NOT ALL, OF THESE ARTICLES AND INTERVIEWS HAVE BEEN BROADCAST ON THE DOMESTIC RADIO.
5. QUANG SAID THAT THERE IS A PLAN TO SEND VIETNAMESE RADIO JOURNALISTS TO HONG KONG UNDER UNHCR AUSPICES TO MAKE SOME PROGRAMMES. HE ALSO SAID (ECHOING WHAT VU KHOAN RECENTLY SAID TO ME, (MY TELNO 167 TO FCO) THAT THERE WILL BE MORE ARTICLES AND BROADCASTS IN THE FUTURE.
6. QUANG SAID THAT HE WAS AWARE OF THE RTHK BROADCASTS BUT HE DOUBTED WHETHER THERE WAS A LARGE AUDIENCE IN VIETNAM PARTICULARLY IN THE COUNTRYSIDE WHERE THERE ARE NOT MANY RADIO SETS. QUANG HAS A POINT AS MANY RURAL PEOPLE LISTEN TO THE RADIO RE-BROADCAST
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CONFIDENTIAL