B
CONFIDENTIAL
114050
MDHIAN 8931
CONFIDENTIAL
FM TOKYO
TO IMMEDIATE FCO
TELNO 1146
OF 130735Z DEC 89
INFO IMMEDIATE HONG KONG, HANOI, WASHINGTON, UKMIS GENEVA
INFO PRIORITY PARIS ROME, OTTAWA, BANGKOK, PEKING, KUALA LUMPUR
VIETNAMESE BOAT PEOPLE: JAPANESE REACTIONS
SUMMARY
1. MUTED PUBLIC REACTION. JAPANESE GOVERNEMTN SUPPORTIVE BUT SENSITIVE TO US OPINION. INTEREST IN DETAILS OF OUR AGREEMENT WITH VIETNAM.
DETAIL
2. THERE HAS SO FAR BEEN LITTLE COVERAGE IN THE JAPANESE MEDIA OF THE RERURN OF BOAT PEOPLE TO VIETNAM. REPORTING IN THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE PRESS AND TV HAS BEEN FACTUAL AND HAS AVOIDED COMMENT.
3. SO FAR, THE JAPANESE GOVERNMENT HAS ALSO AVOIDED COMMENT. IN HIS TALKS HERE THIS WEEK GILLMORE WARNED KURIYAMA (PUS) AND TOGO (DIRECTOR GENERAL, EUROPE) THAT A DECISION WAS IMMINENT AND SUBSEQUENTLY PRESSED TANINO (DIRECTOR GENERAL, ASIA) FOR JAPAN TO EXPRESS PUBLICLY HER UNDERSTANDING OF OUR ACTION. TSUNOZAKI (HEAD OF REFUGEES DIVISION) HAS SINCE TOLD US THAT THE MFA'S DEFENSIVE LINE TO TAKE IS HELPFUL CINDERSTANDING OF TEHE PRESSURES WHICH HAVE LED TO INVOLUNTARY REPATRIATION, HOPE THAT THE CPA WILL NOT BE AFFECTED BUT JAPAN DOES NOT CONSIDER THAT OUR ACTION IS INCOSISTENT WITH IT). BUT THEY COULD NOT GO FURTHER BECAUSE OF US SENSITIVITIES. IN HIS VIEW JAPANESE PUBLIC OPINION FULLY ACCEPTED THE NEED FOR ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS TO BE RETURNED. THE MFA HAD BEEN PREPARING FOR THIS IN A SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT CONTEXT: THE FIRST BATCH OF CHINESE BOAT PEOPLE MY TELNO 938) WERE TO BE RETURNED FROM JAPAN TO CHINA ON 21/22 DECEMBER.
4. TSUNOZAKI HAS ALSO TOLD US THAT HE HAD RECEIVED A DEMARCHE FROM THE US ON 5DECEMBER URGING JAPAN TO PRESS THE UK NOT TO RETURN ANY BOAT PEOPLE IN ADVANCE OF THE NEXT MEETING OF THE STEERING COMMITTEE IN GENEVA ON THE GROUNDS THAT
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