Finally, you mention Vietnamese boat people. The Government have been doing everything possible to enlist the support of the international community in working for a durable and humane solution to this problem
At the international conference on Indo-Chinese refugees held in Geneva last June, the international community agreed that all refugees in the region, including those in Hong Kong, should be resettled within the next three years. As part of this process the UK undertook to resettle a further 2,000 refugees from Hong Kong, in addition to the 13,000 we have accepted since 1979. There is no question of any genuine refugee being repatriated.
It was also agreed at last year's Geneva conference that those boat people who, after screening, do not qualify as refugees and who therefore have no prospect of resettlement in the West must return to Vietnam. Britain has made a start by arranging for repatriation to Vietnam, under the auspices of UNHCR, of some 1,100 boat people who asked to go back. A further 1,200 have also volunteered to return and arrangements are being made for this.
But it is clear that a programme of voluntary repatriation alone will not match the scale of the problem. The Government have therefore had to begin repatriating those who are not refugees and who do not volunteer. In December the Hong Kong Government were authorised to proceed with the repatriation of 51 Vietnamese boat people. The repatriation was conducted in line with procedures used worlwide to return illegal immigrants to. their country of origin. No force was used.
It would not be right to let this problem continue unresolved. In the past year, about 34,000 Vietnamese have arrived in Hong Kong and there is a serious possibility of at least as many more thousands arriving this year. Hong Kong is a small and over-crowded territory. The Government do not relish having to resort to repatriation but there is no realistic alternative.
Yousan The
J Morris
Hong Kong Department