TNAG-0851-FCO40-1061-Future-of-Hong-Kong-New-Territories-leases-1979 — Page 138

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FIDENTIAL

DESKBY 251130Z

CONFIDENTIAL

also or.

341%,

Некокові

MARVED IN ACASEY NO. 51 2 6 OCT 1979

INDEX

FM HONG KONG 251102Z OCT 79

TO IMMEDIATE F CO

TELEGRAM NUMBER 1496 OF 25 OCTOBER

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INFO PRIORITY PEKING, ROUTINE HONG KONG GOVERNMENT OFFICE LONDON.

HARLIE. 20+1|4

MY TELNOS 1403, 1410 AND 1428: BRIEFING ON IMMIGRATION FOR HUA'S

VISIT.

1. FIGURES FOR BOTH LEGAL AND ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS ARE STILL

CAUSE FOR GREAT CONCERN.

2. THE LATEST FIGURES (UP TO 24 OCTOBER) SHOW THAT SO FAR THIS

YEAR 60,000 LEGAL IMMIGRANTS HAVE ARRIVED. THEY CONTINUE TO ARRIVE AT THE RATE OF NEARLY 5,000 PER MONTH. (THE PRECISE FIGURE IS 157 PER DAY SO FAR THIS MONTH.)

3. THE FIGURE FOR ILLEGALS IS EVEN WORSE. SO FAR THIS YEAR

WE HAVE ARRESTED AND RETURNED OVER 61,000. WE ESTIMATE THAT

97,000 HAVE SLIPPED THROUGH THE NET. THIS MONTH ARRESTS HAVE

AVERAGED 300 PER DAY. THIS IS BACK TO THE HIGH FIGURES OF

EARLY SUMMER. AT A CONSERVATIVE ESTIMATE (AN EVASION RATION OF 1: 1.4) IT MEANS THAT ABOUT 13,0200 ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS WILL

GET THROUGH THE NET THIS MONTH ALONE.

4. THE TWO PRECEDING PARAGRAPHS WILL PROVIDE UP-DATED BACKGROUND FOR THE TALKS WITH HUA AND HIS PARTY. THE SUGGESTED SPEAKING NOTE

IN PARA 2 OF MY TELNO 1403 CAN REMAIN UNALTERED EXCEPT THAT,

BECAUSE OF THE RECENT SHARP INCREASE IN ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION, THE FIGURE FOR THE PRESENT RATE OF COMBINED LEGAL AND ILLEGAL -IMMIGRATION SHOULD READ THE EQUIVALENT OF 210,000 PER YEAR'' (NOT 125,000). THESE FIGURES SPEAK FOR THEMSELVES IN POINTING TO THE URGENT NEED FOR EFFECTIVE ACTION BY THE CHINESE TO

CURB NUMBERS.

CONFIDENTIAL

15.