TNAG-0556-FCO40-651-Resettlement-of-Vietnamese-refugees-from-Hong-Kong-into-othe-1975 — Page 90

File No. Lamil.

HKIOD

OUTWARD

Department ...........................................................................................................

Drafted by

(Block Capitals)

PL O'KEEFFE

TELEGRAM

MA615

Tel. Extn...

FOR

COMMS. DEPT.

USE

Despatched

(Date) ........................................

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

PREAMBLE

(Time of Origin) ...............

(Security Class.)

CONFIDENTIAL

(Codeword)

TO......... PRIORITY

(precedence)

i

DESKBY

Security Classification CONFIDENTIAL

POSTBY..............

Precedence

IMMEDIATE

(Restrictive Prefix)...................................................................... (Caveat]

Privacy Marking)..............

XY 42

(Deskby......................i

...Z

OTTAWA

mimi....................... Tel. No, malimi.ilm Of.

(post)

AND TO (precedence/post)........................................................................

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

REPEATED TO (for Info).....Priority to Hong Kong, Washington, Stockholm, Copenhagen ......Wellington, Canberra, Peking, Manila and Singapore (Saigon Unit)

Distribution!.

Coples to:

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

[TEXT]

My telegram no 367 to Hong Kong: Vietnamese Refugees in Hong Kong.

1. Please explain to the Canadian authorities that I am very grateful for the Canadian Government's decision to accept 200 of these refugees out of the 3,000 total they are willing to allow into Canada.

2. Please also say that the problem in Hong Kong has now become so acute (Hong Kong telegram no 451 to the FCO) that I hope they will be prepared to consider applications from others in the Colony. I have had reluctantly to accept that Hong Kong can accept no more until there is a

guarantee for homes for them elsewhere; and remind the Canadian authorities that these refugees are additional to the 36,000 immigrants a year from China which Hong Kong has to accept, despite pressure on its social services.

3. I therefore hope the Canadian authorities will give urgent and sympathetic consideration to the possibility of absorbing more from Hong Kong. You might

CONFIDENTIAL ·

explain

/that

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