XN000022-1989-05-17 — Page 9

7

WEDNESDAY, MAY 17, 1989

OUTLINING HONG

KONG'S

THE BOAT PEOPLE ISSUE. PROVIDED FIRST ASYLUM ΤΟ AND HAD SPENT OVER $1.4

ON POSITION MR LEE SAID THAT SINCE 1979 HONG KONG HAD OVER 130,000 VIETNAMESE BOAT PEOPLE (VBP) BILLION ON THE UPKEEP OF THESE BOAT PEOPLE OVER THE YEAR.

THE VERY DIFFICULT CIRCUMSTANCES FACED BY HONG KONG HAD LED THE ADOPTION OF THE SCREENING POLICY ON JUNE 16 LAST YEAR.

TO

AUTOMATICALLY

BEEN SINCE THEN, VIETNAMESE BOAT PEOPLE HAD NOT GRANTED REFUGEE STATUS AND THOSE SCREENED OUT AS NON-REFUGEES BE PUT IN DETENTION CENTRES PENDING REPATRIATION.

HAD TO

FAR BEEN ON A VOLUNTARY

ΤΟ FOR IT

BE OF ANY

UNFORTUNATELY, REPATRIATION HAD SO

NUMBER WAS SO SMALL AND THE BASIS ONLY SIGNIFICANT EFFECT.

NON-REFUGEES "MANDATORY REPATRIATION FOR THOSE SCREENED OUT AS

REALISTIC ΤΟ EXPECT MUST BE THE ONLY ANSWER, SINCE IT IS NO LONGER

WESTERN MOST OF THE RECENT VBP ARRIVALS TO BE GRANTED RESETTLEMENT IN COUNTRIES, HE SAID.

N

MR LEE ADDED THAT THERE WAS AN INTERNATIONAL DIMENSION PROBLEM. THE WHOLE ISSUE WAS AN INTERNATIONAL PROBLEM AND 1T RESOLVED THROUGH INTERNATIONAL CO-OPERATION.

LOOK "IN THIS CONNECTION, WE

ΤΟ THE GENEVA, 10 YEARS AFTER THE FIRST ONE, TO FIND A THE PROBLEM.

"THE OPPORTUNITY MUST BE TAKEN TO EFFECT THE REFUGEES AND REPATRIATION BACK TO VIETNAM OF OUT," HE SAID.

ΤΟ THE MUST BE

COMING

IN CONFERENCE DURABLE SOLUTION TO

ALL

OF RESETTLEMENT

ALL THOSE SCREENED

TURNING TO BRITAIN'S RESPONSIBILITY IN THE ISSUE, MR

REAR RECENT EXPRESSION OF

THE OF

VBP ISSUE IN

IT HAD BEEN MOST DISTURBING TO WHICH SUGGESTED THAT THE HANDLING SHOULD BE TREATED AS A DOMESTIC AFFAIR.

"THIS CANNOT BE RIGHT," HE SAID.

HE SAID THAT GIVEN THE INTERNATIONAL DIMENSION OF THE

AFFAIRS FOREIGN

LEE SAID OPINIONS HONG KONG

PROBLEM,

LAY AND

A

MATTER IT WAS CLEAR THAT THE ISSUE WAS SQUARELY WITHIN THE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE TERRITORY'S SOVEREIGN STATE, THE UNITED KINGDOM.

THE FIRST HE NOTED THAT IT WAS AFTER THE 1979 CONFERENCE THAT

AND AT THAT CONFERENCE HONG ASYLUM POLICY WAS FIRMLY PUT IN PLACE KONG WAS REPRESENTED BY THE UNITED KINGDOM.

MR

LEE

STATE

ΤΟ

FOR FOREIGN AND ALSO

MINISTER QUOTED

OF COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS LORD GLENARTHUR'S REPLY DATED OCTOBER 6, 1987 THE HON RITA FAN.

THIS SAID: "HONG KONG IS A DEPENDENT TERRITORY

THE CONDUCT OF KINGDOM AND THE RESPONSIBILITY FOR RESTS WITH THE UNITED KINGDOM,

OF THE UNITED FOREIGN AFFAIRS

"THIS RESPONSIBILITY