TNAG-0801-FCO40-1005-Immigration-from-China-to-Hong-Kong-1978 — Page 153

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Kr Kurray

P3/Lord Gorowy-Roberts

HKK Jull+

CONFIDENTIAL

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HONG KONG: ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION

2 CFFR 1078

DESK OF

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1. The British United Nations Association have forwarded to the Flag A Secretary of State a resolution, passed by their Executive Committee

Flag B Flags C & D

on 14 January, deploring the repatriation to China of illegal immigr ants and calling on the British Government to extend to Hong Kong and other dependent territories where it does not already apply, the 1951 UN Convention on the Status of Refugees and the 1967 Protocol. An interim reply was sent to the Association on 3 February.

2.

The present policy of repatriation stems from an agreement reached in 1974 between the Hong Kong Government and the authorities of Kwangtung Province. The agreement was necessary because the influx of legal immigrants, some 56,000 in 1973, was placing an impossible burden on Hong Kong resources. It was made in the expectation that in return for our co-operation on illegal immigrants the Chinese authorities would be more ready to control legal ones.

3. It is estimated that only some 20% of illegal immigrants are

Each individual is inter caught and not all of these are returned. viewed and, if there are strong humanitarian reasons, illegal immi- grants are permitted to stay. There are strong argumente against spelling out the criteria used in such cases and also against revealing the numbers involved, To do so could enable would-be immigrants to produce more plausible cover stories; could lead China to doubt Hong Kong sincerity da applying the agreement; this in turn could restrict Hong Kong's ability to make exceptions in future cases,

4.

The UN Convention referred to by the Association defines refugee as a person who "owing to well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion, is outside the country of his nationality and is unable or, owing to much fear, is unwilling to

There is no avail himself of the protection of that country”. evidence to suggest that any of those attempting to enter Hong Kong

CONFIDENTIAL