XN000022-1988-05-30 — Page 7

MONDAY, MAY 30, 1988.

6

-

BIR GEOFFREY BRIEFED ON REFUGEE PRODLEM

AND THE SECRETARY OF STATE FOR FOREIGN

COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS, BRIEFING TODAY (MONDAY) ON SIR GEOFFREY HOWE, WAS GIVEN A DETAILED THE VIETNAMESE REFUGEE PROBLEM THAT CONFRONTS HONG KONG.

THE CHI AFTERWARDS, HE AND LADY HOWE VISITED CENTRE ON LANTAU AND THE GREEN ISLAND RECEPTION CENTRE.

MA WAN CLOSED

THE FOREIGN SECRETARY WAS BRIEFED INITIALLY AT GOVERNMENT HOUSE BY THE GOVERNOR,

DAVID WILSON, AND THE SECRETARY FOR SECURITY, MR GEOFFREY BARNES.

SIR

MONTHS OF THIS HONG KONG

MORE

FIVE SIR GEOFFREY WAS TOLD THAT IN THE FIRST YEAR MORE THAN 4,500 BOAT PEOPLE HAVE ARRIVED IN THAN IN ANY FULL YEAR SINCE 1982.

THE CURRENT ARRIVAL RATE

AND

OF 100 IS SEVERELY RESOURCES FOR ACCOMMODATING ALL THE REFUGEES.

UNPRECEDENTED SINCE 1979,

PER DAY IN

IS STRETCHING HONG KONG'S

MAY

EXISTING

CLOSED CENTRES CENTRES 3,000 MORE

SIR GEOFFREY WAS TOLD THAT THE THREE HAVE REACHED THEIR MAXIMUM CAPACITY, AND ADDITIONAL TEMPORARY

OVER HAVE HAD TO BE ESTABLISHED AT SHORT NOTICE TO HOUSE REFUGEES,

FOLLOWING THE INITIAL BRIEFING BY THE GOVERNOR AND SIK GEOFFREY WENT TO THE CHI MA WAN CLOSED CENTRE, HE WAS BY MR BARNES AND OTHER SENIOR GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS.

CHI MA WAN ACCOMMODATES MORE THAN 2,500 REFUGEES 20 PER CENT OVER THE CENTRE'S OFFICIAL CAPACITY.

MR BARNES, ACCOMPANIED

ALMOST

SIR GEOFFREY SAW FOR HIMSELF THE DORMITORJES.

CONDITIONS IN THE

CENTRE'S

AT THE GREEN ISLAND RECEPTION CENTRE, THE

SECRETARY FOREIGN OF THE WAS BRIEFED BY THE CHIEF STAFF OFFICER

CIVIL AID SERVICES,

FORTUNE, ON THE MR JOHN

PROCEDURES FOR RECEIVING NEWLY ARRIVED VIETNAMESE REFUGEES.

HE WAS ALSO SHOWN THE WOODEN BOATS IN WHICH REFUGEES TRAVEL HÙNG HONG.

TO

THE RECEPTION FACILITIES ON BASIC BUT ADEQUATE.

GREEN

ISLAND WERE DESCRIBED AS