CO129-578-11 Sino-Japanese War- refugees 17-1-1939 - 5-12-1939 — Page 3

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(31 on the 1938 papers)

(33 on the 1938 papers)

At (28) on the 1938 file the Governor forwarded

a list of refugees of non-British nationality who

were being maintained in the Colony, and stated

that the Consul-General at Shanghai had queried

certain expenditure, amounting to $3,230.50, which

had been incurred in connection with these people.

The Governor asked to be informed whether these

charges were to be borne by the Hong Kong Govt.

or by H.M.G.

in

The F.O. were then asked to consider whether

the cost of the cases in question might not be

accepted as a charge upon the funds of H.M.G.

view of the valuable free services the Hong Kong

Govt. had already rendered, and of the continuing

strain upon the Colony's revenues on account of

refugees generally.

The F.0. answer was that presumably these

refugees were accepted by the Refugee Committee at

Hong Kong in the knowledge that they were not

British subjects, and that in these circumstances the expenditure could not properly be accepted as a

charge on the Vote for Diplomatic and Consular

Services.

The matter was then taken up S.0. with the

Treasury. It was pointed out that Hong Kong had

been facing a difficult situation for some long

time, and had had to bear a considerable burden

of expense, and that we would therefore very much regret having to deny liability for these particular

refugees in the name of H.M.G. The Treasury were

asked whether, failing the acceptance of this

charge on the Vote for Diplomatic and Consular

Services, it could be borne on sub-head F (Minor

Colonial Services) of the Colonial and Middle

Eastern