XN000022-1987-04-27 — Page 9

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MONDAY, APRIL 27, 1987

+SPECIAL ARRANGEMENTS HAVE BEEN AGREED WITH THE CHINESE AUTHORITIES FOR THE ISSUE OF ONE-WAY PERMITS TO SUCH CHILDREN PRESENTING THEMSELVES FOR REGISTRATION DURING THIS PERIOD, WHOSE PARENTS ARE IN HONG KONG.

+THIS WILL REQUIRE PARENTS TAKING THEIR CHILDREN TO SHENZHEN TO COLLECT THE PERMITS ON A DAY TO BE DETERMINED, AND RETURNING

PARENTS WILL BE ADVISED LATER THE SAME DAY TO HONG KONG.

INDIVIDUALLY OF THE ARRANGEMENTS.

+ALL CHILDREN SHOWING UP AFTER APRIL 28 WILL BE REPATRIATED AS A MATTER OF POLICY,+ MR CARTER SAID.

ON THE REPATRIATION OF CHILDREN, HE SAID ARRANGEMENTS HAD BEEN MADE TO ENABLE PARENTS OR CLOSE RELATIVES TO ESCORT THE CHILDREN BACK TO CHINA IF THEY WISH TO DO SO. THE PARENTS AND RELATIVES WILL OF COURSE BE ABLE TO RETURN TO HONG KONG AT ANY TIME.

ON CHILDREN LEFT IN CHINA BY PARENTS WHO ARE ALREADY IN HONG KONG, MR CARTER SAID THAT IT IS UNDERSTOOD THAT THE CHINESE AUTHORITIES WILL BE ISSUING ONE-WAY PERMITS TO THEM IN DUE COURSE.

+ IT IS ALSO OUR UNDERSTANDING THAT THE CHINESE AUTHORITIES WILL BE TAKING STEPS IN THE ISSUE OF ONE-WAY PERMITS TO PREVENT FAMILIES BEING SPLIT IN FUTURE,+ MR CARTER ADDED.

IN CONCLUDING, MR CARTER URGED PARENTS WHO HAVE LEFT BEHIND CHILDREN IN CHINA TO APPLY FOR THESE CHILDREN TO COME TO HONG KONG THROUGH THE LEGAL CHANNEL, THE ONE-WAY PERMIT SYSTEM. HE POINTED OUT THAT IN 1986 SOME 8 200 CHILDREN HAVE JOINED THEIR PARENTS USING THIS SYSTEM.

PROVISIONAL TRADE FIGURES FOR MARCH RELEASED

*****

EXTERNAL TRADE SHOWED VERY RAPID GROWTH IN MARCH 1987. COMPARED WITH FEBRUARY, THE YEAR-ON-YEAR GROWTH RATES OF ALL THE TRADE AGGREGATES IN VALUE TERMS ACCELERATED.

ACCORDING TO THE PROVISIONAL TRADE FIGURES PUBLISHED TODAY BY THE CENSUS AND STATISTICS DEPARTMENT, THE VALUE OF DOMESTIC EXPORTS IN MARCH 1987, AT $144 483 MILLION, INCREASED BY 41.0 PER CENT OR $4 214 MILLION OVER MARCH 1986, WHILE THE VALUE OF RE- EXPORTS INCREASED BY 61.8 PER CENT OR $5 298 MILLION TO

$13 864 MILLION.

/TAKING DOMESTIC