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illegally fall within this definition and there is no recorded case of a request for political asylum. In addition, such information as is available, including confidential discussions with the Chinese authorities, indicates that those who are repatriated are treated as having committed a civil misdemeanour rather than a criminal offence, and are not harshly treated, It is arguable that if this is the case there could be no harm in applying the UN Convention to Hong Kong The danger in this, however, is that if it were to be done it would soon become widely known and the criteria for establish- ing refugee status would also become widely known. This too would almost certainly lead to individuals who did not merit the status of refhgees being able to produce plausible stories to gain such status.
5. The Hong Kong Government have just replied to our suggestion that a "Prisoner's Friend" be available during the interview of those who are caught: they give a mumber of good reasons why such a measure . would be impractical. We shall be considering this possibility
further. In the meantime I can see no advantage in referring to this possibility in the reply to the UNA.
6. The other dependent territories to which the UN Convention does not apply are Anguilla, Bermuda, British Antarctic Territory, BIOT, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Gibraltar, New Hebrides, Pitcairn and Turks and Caicos Islands. The likelihood of a refugee problem arising in any of these territories is so remote that again I can see no advantage in extending the convention to them.
7. I recommend that a reply be sent to the UN Association making clear that the Hong Kong Government does not repatriate without giving due consideration to all the circumstances; that the great majority of would-be immigrants, when interviewed, claim to be simply in search of higher living standards, and that no requests for political asylum have been made. We do not, therefore, consider that definition of a refugee given in the UN Convention applies to these cases and can see no useful purpose in extending its application to Hong Kong. I further recommend that Lord Goronwy-Roberts should state that he is satisfied that each case is dealt with in a
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