XN000022-1994-12-08 — Page 2

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Governor's question & answer session in LegCo

The President: The Governor will answer questions on the ten topics which have been indicated to Members and a Member who has asked a question may, for the purpose of seeking elucidation only, ask a short follow-up question. Can I have a show of hands. please.

Mrs Selina Chow: Thank you Mr President. Governor, given the overwhelming vote that was taken yesterday in this Council in favour of the suggestion that the British Government should take the stranded boat people into the UK in 1997, should any of them still remain in Hong Kong, may I ask you Sir, what you are going to do to put this case forward to the British Government on our behalf?

Governor: What I shall do in the next two and a half years or shorter if we succeed in our objective before then, is to work with my colleagues in the Administration to ensure the successful repatriation of all those Vietnamese migrants in detention centres as soon as possible. I read accounts of yesterday's debate, I wholly endorse the arguments adduced by the Secretary for Security and at the end of studying the Honourable lady's speech and other speeches that were made, I wasn't entirely sure what proposals were being put forward to help us expedite the achievement of an objective that we all share.

As for what the Honourable lady has said about the situation in 1997, as I've said before, as others have said, including I note one or two newspapers, I don't myself think it's very sensible to give Vietnamese migrants in the camps the wholly wrong. impression that if they only hang on they'll be able to be resettled in another country after 1997. I think that that encourages Vietnamese migrants to stay, and indeed it could encourage some Vietnamese migrants to come to Hong Kong. I don't think it's a very helpful proposal. I don't think it represents any sort of reality that I know and I don't think it would be well received by those who want to see us deal successfully with this problem or by those in the international community who have in their turn helped with the resettlement of genuine refugees.

There is one other point that I'd make to the Honourable lady. I'm sure that if she spoke to her honourable friend who was a member of the Executive Council in 1988, which took the key policy decisions on policy on Vietnamese migrants, he would be able to assure her that the policy was made by the Hong Kong Government and wasn't imposed on the Hong Kong Government by the present sovereign. So, I hope the Honourable lady will find that a helpful and comprehensive reply to her question.