TNAG-0847-FCO40-1057-Visits-of-Sir-Murray-MacLehose--Governor-of-Hong-Kong--to-th-1979 — Page 93

Registry No.

•

SECURITY CLASSIFICATION

DRAFT LETTER

t

To:-

Top Secret,

Secret.

}

BG Cartledge Esq

Confidential.

Restricted.

Unclassified.

10 Downing Street

LONDON SW 1

CONFIDENTI AL

Type 1 +

From

DSR 11

Private Secretary

Telephone No. Ext.

Department

PRIVACY MARKING

Сс

................................................................... In Confidence

Private Secre-

taries to the Home Secretary, the Secretary of State for Defence, and the Secretary to the

Cabinet

*

CALL BY THE GOVERNOR OF HONG KONG

1. As you know, the Governor of Hong Kong has been

recalled for consultations over the problem of Vietnamese

refugees. The Prime Minister has agreed to see him at 6 pm

on Thursday, 16 June, and has asked the Foreign and Common-

wealth Secretary to be present.

2.

R

Lord Carrington suggests that the Prime Minister might

focus discussion on the following`areas:

a) Vietnamese Refugees

1) Sir Murray MacLehose's own assessment of the

impact of the refugees on Hong Kong and the outlook

for the future. There are now over 51,000 refugees

from Vietnam in Hong Kong and there could well be

100,000 by the autumn. The inability of the Hong

Kong Government to stem the tide is causing wide-

spread concern and the Governor is under pressure

to take more drastic measures.

ii) What more can the British Government do to

relieve the pressure on Hong Kong? We need to get

the rest of the world to understand the seriousness

of the situation now facing the territory. But

we will not persuade others to take more refugees

from Hong Kong unless we give a lead by taking more

CONFIDENTIAL

/ourselves