TNAG-0556-FCO40-651-Resettlement-of-Vietnamese-refugees-from-Hong-Kong-into-othe-1975 — Page 88

6063 D.143344 200M 12/73 Cr.P.C. Op.839/3

CONFIDENTIAL

File No.

Department

HKIOD

OUTWARD

Drafted by

(Block Capitals) PL O'KEEFFE

TELEGRAM

Tél. Extn.......

MA615

DESKBY

FOR COMMS, DEPT.

USE

Despatched

POSTBY...

(Time) ........................Z.

PREAMBLE

(Time of Origin)

(Security Class.) CONFIDENTIAL ..........

(Codeword)

(precedence)

AND TO (precedence/post)..

Security Classification CONFIDENTIAL

Precedence IMMEDIATE

(Restrictive Prefix).mutua (Caveat

Privacy Marking)huij

(Deskby)...stifa

WASHINGTON.............. Tel. No. miniminä öf.

(post)

i

XY 42

...........

AND SAVING TO......................

REPEATED TO (for info)............Priority Hong Kong, Ottawa, Stockholm, Copenhagen,

Peking, Manila, Vingapore (Saigon Unit) Canberra Wellington.

Distributions

SAVING TO (for info)...............

[TEXT]

Coples to:.

My telegram 367 to Hong Kong: Vietnamese Refugees

1.

Unless you see objection please speak to the American authorities at an appropriately high level along the following lines:-

(a) We of course recognise the domestic difficulties of such large numbers of Vietnamese refugees into the United States.

(b) The problem of more than 4,600 Vietnamese refugees in Hong Kong is acute (Hong Kong telegram 451 to the FCO) particularly bearing in mind that Hong Kong is obliged to accept immigrants leaving China legally at the rate of 36,000 a year and the resultant strain on the Colony's social services.

(c) Hong Kong has accepted the Vietnamese that have arrived and treated them well; but the pressures on Hong Kong and the closing of the doors by Singapore and the Philippines makes it necessary to prohibit further arrivals.

CONFIDENTIAL

/(d) Despite

1