A
Mr Weir
Miss Evans
c.c.
SEAD
HKD FED
CONFIDENTIAL
PS/Lord Goronwy-Roberts
VIETNAMESE REFUGEES:
1.
UNHCR APPEAL
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14.
Mr Luard will wish to know that the Home Secretary has decided to accept into the UK, over a period of time (unspecified), up to 116 Vietnamese refugees. This is in response to last year's appeal by the UNHCR to find resettlement opportunities for the considerable number of refugees leaving Vietnam on small vessels, many of whom have been rescued at sea by passing ships and landed at various ports in South East Asia. About 2,500 such refugees are awaiting resettlement.
2.
The intention of the Home Office (who, inspite of our constant reminders, have been even slower than usual to make up their minds on this case) is that the majority of those accepted into the UK will come from those landed at Hong Kong. As part of the quota of 116, we have already agreed to receive the remaining 21 refugees who were landed in Japan by the SS Mather, a ship flying the British flag.
3.
4.
Sir J Bottomley has informed the UNHCR of this decision.
The Americans have agreed to take 100 such refugees per month provided other countries also contribute to a solution of the problem. The Americans have already accepted 1,136 and France has so far taken 551. A number of other countries have accepted smaller numbers.
5.
Our initial understanding at official level was that the quota of 116 referred to heads of refugee families only and that their dependants would also be allowed in outside the specified quota, as is the case with the quota of 75 refugees, mainly Chilean, from Argentina. However, the Home Office have made it clear that the quota of 116 is a total figure to include both refugees and dependants (like the American
CONFIDENTIAL
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