CONFIDENTIAL
Steering Committee proposed for 16/17 July.
6.
In March 1990, the new UN High Commissioner for Refugees,
Thorvald Stoltenberg, launched an initiative aimed primarily at
tackling the root causes of the exodus in Vietnam and encouraging
the flow of volunteers. He discussed the threat to first asylum
with President Bush on 25 June. We will continue to work closely
with UNHCR for a comprehensive and durable solution. Our intention
is that the rate of return to Vietnam of 1,000 a month should be
maintained, any shortfall in volunteers supplemented by
non-volunteers, with all returnees monitored in Vietnam by UNHCR on
a "good offices" and time-factored basis. We have also worked
closely with UNHCR to limit any shortcomings there may be in the
screening proces. UNHCR are satisfied with the results.
1.
The Government agree in principle with the Committee that
assistance should be given to those who return to Vietnam (paragraph
5.4). Reintegration assistance is available for both volunteers and
non-volunteers, with a slight advantage to volunteers, to help them
to settle back into their communities. The Government has
authorised financial support (£1 million) for NGO activities in
areas of Vietnam from which boat people predominantly come. However, programme aid would need to await full acceptance by the
Vietnamese authorities of their obligations towards their own
people.
8. As the Committee also recommend (paragraph 5.8), the Government
have continued to press the Chinese Government to increase their
efforts to deter asylum seekers from travelling through China or
along the Chinese coast to Hong Kong. Information on the routes
used is passed to the Chinese on a regular basis. The Chinese claim
to have returned some 70,000 Vietnamese over the land border.
However it is likely that only a small number of these were
intending to reach Hong Kong.
In
9. Of nearly 3000 Vietnamese who have reached Hong Kong so far this
year, nearly 90% made most of the journey over land. Nearly 80% came
from the south of Vietnam, reversing the trend of past years.
the first quarter of 1989, over 4,000 reached Hong Kong, the great
PTAAPE (3)
CONFIDENTIAL