XN000022-1995-11-29 — Page 31

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UK to take VMs still in the Territory in June 1997

The motion before this Council calls again for a commitment from the United Kingdom Government to take all migrants who have not been repatriated by 1 July 1997. This proposal is unhelpful. We have clearly seen the damage caused by legislative initiatives in the US Congress. Suggestions which encourage the non- refugees to believe that they may be resettled elsewhere, if they delay their return to Vietnam until 1997, undermines our repatriation efforts; it strikes a blow at the very heart of the CPA principle that the non-refugees must go home. Particularly at this juncture, we should be seeking ways to reinforce, and not to dilute that message. I can well understand the community and Hon Members' sentiment, and we all share the wish to see an early end to the VM problem. But we should not let our heart rule our head. What we need is clear thinking on the best-means of achieving our objective of early repatriation of the 21,000 VMs in camps here. Calls for the UK to take every one who may be here in 1997 is guaranteed to make it impossible to achieve our common objective.

Conclusion

The Administration share the deeply felt concerns of Honourable Members about the Vietnamese migrant problem. We shall continue to do everything possible to accelerate the repatriation of all the Vietnamese in our camps. I hope that we will get the cooperation, which we have been promised in Geneva in March this year, from the Vietnamese authorities as well as the international community in bringing this long drawn out saga to an early close.

End/Wednesday, November 29, 1995