TNAG-0558-FCO40-653-Resettlement-of-Vietnamese-refugees-from-Hong-Kong-into-othe-1975 — Page 47

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Mr Jackson then turned to the question of repatriation to Vietnam. He explained that he had already had dealings with 10 Vietnamese (8 Air Vietnam crew and 2 Tax Inspectors caught at a conference in San Francisco) who had travelled on the Red Cross ship leaving Hong Kong last month and had arrived in Danang. He was now dealing with two ex-employees of the former South Vietnamese Consulate General here, but there were problems because they refused to consider themselves s refugees and fill in the requisite forms. As regards the refugees in the camps, Mr Jackson had processed 25 - 7 cases, the details of which he would be sending to the UNHCR Office in Vientiane today. Most of them were single men without families from Harcourt Road Camp. Very few of the ones with families in the other two camps were interested in returning, but much would depend on the prospects of getting to the United States.. All those who wanted to return were of course pressing the UNHCR for guarantees, but hitherto the UNHCR had refused to admit responsibility for refugees once they had returned to their own countries. This was a point which he hoped to clarify with Mr Jaeger during his visit to Hong Kong. I asked how the repatriation would actually be organised, and Mr Jackson explained that he thought it most likely that the refugees would be flown from Hong Kong to Bangkok and thence to Vientiane (where the U N H C R main South East Asian office is situated) and thence into Vietnam. This is satisfactory as it will avoid a direct return from Hong Kong to Vietnam. I also mentioned to Mr Jackson the request made by Mr Casella, the Head of the U N H CR Mission to South Vietnam, to our Embassy in Hanoi for permission for foreigners stranded in Saigon to get out transiting through Hong Kong (Hanoi telegram No. 169 of 9 July). Mr Jackson had not heard of this but said he would discuss with Mr Casella when the latter is in Hong Kong next week. I found out discreetly that Mr Jackson had not been approached hitherto by the D RV Trade Mission here about repatriation.

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Finally, considering what further efforts could be made, Mr Jackson mentioned two possibilities :

(a) more pressure might be brought on the South

American countries, particularly Colombia and Brazil, to take refugees from Hong Kong. The problem was that they were all keen on getting qualified people, who were exactly the refugees most likely to find places elsewhere. I explained that P A had been in touch with South American missions here and we would continue to lobby them, but I encouraged Mr Jackson to suggest to the UNHCR Headquarters in Geneva they might also like to pursue this possibility;

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