TNAG-0557-FCO40-652-Resettlement-of-Vietnamese-refugees-from-Hong-Kong-into-othe-1975 — Page 17

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Life Sentence Prisoners

[22 MAY 1975]

that I do not want to wait for the debate. I want an answer to the question I put to the Home Secretary on the subject.

Lord HARRIS of GREENWICH: My Lords, I note the noble Baroness's point. I will try to ensure that she gets a reply to her letter as soon as possible.

Baroness WARD of NORTH TYNESIDE: I thank the noble Lord.

VIETNAM: REFUGEES

11.24 a.m.

Lord MONSON: My Lords, I beg leave to ask the Question which stands in my name on the Order Paper. The Question was as follows:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they propose to take to offer sanctuary to refugees from South Vietnam, over and above those few who have some previous connection or tie with the United Kingdom.

Lord HARRIS of GREENWICH: My Lords, my right honourable friend has decided to give priority to those refugees who had a connection or tie with the United Kingdom. He announced his policy in these terms in a reply given in another place on 8th May. Upwards of 100,000 refugees have left Vietnam and we do not yet know how many of them have a connection or tie with the United Kingdom, or will wish to come here. We have indicated that, as in the Chilean situation, we are prepared to play a reasonable part, with other countries, in alleviating the distress to refugees, but we have to take into account our existing obligations to United Kingdom passport holders overseas and to the dependants of Commonwealth citizens already settled in this country,

Lord MONSON: My Lords, I thank the Minister for his reply, although it is a somewhat unsatisfactory one. Is he aware that there are a great many people in this country who think that a great deal more ought to be done to assist these uphappy victims of totalitarian aggres- sion, particularly in view of the Western World's moral commitment to help those in South-East Asia who were encouraged to declare themselves openly on the side of the West and against Communist

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imperialism at considerable risk to them- selves and their families? Is he further aware that a high proportion of the refugees at present sitting on leaking ships in Singapore Harbour, or in Army bases in Thailand, have threatened to commit suicide rather than be forced to return to South Vietnam? Could he, therefore. undertake to try to persuade his right hon- ourable friend the Home Secretary to think again?

Lord HARRIS of GREENWICH: My Lords, the staff of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees are at the moment trying to assess the dimen- sions of this problem. So far as the refugees in Hong Kong are concerned, the present indications are that quite a sub- stantial number of them wish to got to the United States, Canada, Australia or France.

Baroness GAITSKELL: My Lords, would it not be true to say, though many of us do not believe that charity only begins at home, that nevertheless we have responsibilities to, and money to be spent on, immigrants who are already here in larly the young school-leavers? this country and their children, particu-

Lord WADE: My Lords, might I raise one general point? I think the feeling in regard to these unfortunate refugees is that they should be accepted on humani- tarian grounds. May I ask whether I am right in understanding that this is to be limited to those with a tie with the United | Kingdom? But where application for entry is made by a person wishing to ask for political asylum, is it normal to link that with a tie with this country? It is very difficult in this case, is it not, to dis- tinguish between those who are at a loss for a home and have humanitarian grounds for being accepted, and those who are, in effect, political refugees? It would be helpful if the Government could outline their position on that.

Lord HARRIS of GREENWICH: My Lords, of course I accept the point made by my noble friend Lady Gaitskell, if I may deal with that first. Dealing with the noble Lord's point, I think cases of political asylum are looked at indi- vidually on their merits. One could not conceivably apply the rules of political asylum to the many thousands of people involved in this case.

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