TNAG-0878-FCO40-1088-Refugees-from-Vietnam-in-Hong-Kong-Vietnamese-boat-people-1979 — Page 155

CONFIDENTIAL

T

6. Home Office had submitted their Main Estimates before the Foreign

Secretary's minute was received. It had contained £0.5 million for

refugees. They proposed to increase that by another £0.5 million to

£1 million. That should cover the level of support for refugees in

previous years, the full year cost of the Wellpark refugees and the estimated

cost of the proposed 1,500. The Home Office considered they could meet

this from within the existing PES provision for Community Services (assuming that Treasury agreed with the Home Office revaluation of PES

provision from 1978 to 1979 Survey prices Treasury thought it likely

that it would be possible for the additional £0.5 million to be absorbed).

The Home Office were not certain when they would have a firm estimate of

costs but hoped it would be before completion of Treasury examination of

their Main Estimates. There was pressure for more for Latin American

refugees but they thought any increase could be absorbed. They had no

estimate of the costs which might arise if voluntary bodies could not cope

with the refugees for example, if there were a large influx of

'boat-people' picked up by UK registered ships, but thought they would

be unable to absorb it.

-

7.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office said that there were already considerable

numbers of Indo-Chinese refugees in camps in South-East Asian countries,

such as about 150,000 from Laos in Thailand. Vietnamese refugees in

particular were creating a growing resettlement problem. The potential

refugees included about 1 million ethnic Chinese in Vietnam, apart

from any Vietnamese. In addition to refugees leaving in local craft

("small boat-people") there were a growing number of ships carrying

large numbers out of Vietnam for payment with the encouragement of the

Vietnamese Government. The UK had an existing commitment to accept "small

boat-people" picked up by UK registered ships. For ships carrying refugees

for profit, it was FCO policy that the refugees should be accepted by the

first port of call. This presented particular problems if the first port

of call was the UK colony of Hong Kong. The Huey Fong, which was off

Hong Kong at the moment, had about 2,500 abroad. It could be difficult

to justify not accepting refugees from Mainland China whilst requiring

Hong Kong to accept, as first port of call, Vietnamese. It was against

this background that FCO proposed that the UK accept 1,500 Indo-Chinese

refugees.

CONFIDENTIAL