TNAG-0886-FCO40-1096-Refugees-from-Vietnam-in-Hong-Kong-Vietnamese-boat-people-1979 — Page 90

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3. CLARK ACKNOWLEDGED THAT THE UNHCR WERE VERY FAR BEHIND PROVID ING ACCOMMODATION. PRESENT PLANS ONLY PROVIDED FOR THE HOUSING

OF 16,000 AND PRESSURE MUST THEREFORE BE KEPT ON THEM TO EXPAND ACCOMMODATION.

4. CLARK SAID HARTLING HAD TOLD HIM THAT HE WOULD BE STRENCHENING

LIS STAFF IN HONG KONG AND WOULD NOW BE APPOINTING A REPRESENTATIVE

IN MACAU.

5. IT WAS CLEAR TO ME THAT ALTHOUGH CLARK THOUGHT THE IMMEDIATE PROBLEMS COULD WITH DETERMINATION BE BROUGHT UNDER CONTROL, HE

WAS PESSIMISTIC ABOUT THE PROSPECTS FOR ULTIMATE RESETTLEMENT CIVEN

THE WAY NUMBERS WERE EXPLODING. HE COMMENTED THAT APART

FROM THE SPECIALLY DIFFICULT PROBLEM OF HONG KONG NUMBERS REACHING

MALAYSIA AND INDONESIA HAD DOUBLED THIS MONTH AND EVEN THE NUMBERS

GETTING TO THAILAND, DESPITE THAI HOSTILITY AND PIRATES, WERE GOING UP. HE ESTIMATED THAT 40,903 WOULD COME OUT OF VIETNAM THIS

PONTH ALONE. THE US HAD INCREASED ITS INTAKE FROM 2,303 TO 7,208

PER MONTI SINCE LAST YEAR BUT HE FOUND IT DIFFICULT TO ENVISAGE ANY

SIGNIFICANT INCREASE. ADMITTEDLY THEY WERE ONLY TAKING ABOUT 533 A

MONTH FROM HONG KONG AND HE ACKNOWLEDGED THAT THEY WOULD HAVE TO MAKE SOME ADJUSTMENT''. (IN VIEW OF PARA 2 OF HONG KONG TELNO 625, I DID NOT PRESS HIM ON THIS). BUT THEY WERE TAKING 95 PER CENT CF ALL RESETTLEMENT CASES FROM HONG KONG AS OPPOSED, FOR EXAMPLE, TO ABOUT ONE-THIRD OF THOSE FROM THE PHILIPPINES. I DID NOT

CHALLENGE THIS THOUGH I FOUND IT DIFFICULT TO RECONCILE WITH THE FIGURES AVAILABLE HERE). HE ACCORDINGLY THOUGHT IT IMPORTANT THAT WE SHOULD TAKE ADDITIONAL STEPS TO INTERNATIONALISE'' RESETTLEMENT. IE SUGGESTED THAT WE SHOULD TALK TO THE LATIN AMERICAN COUNTRIES, PARTICULARLY VENEZUELA, COLOMBIA AND BOLIVIA AND ALSO TO ICEM

WHICH HAD MUCH EXPERIENCE OF SETTLEMENT IN LATIN AMERICA AND WAS

PREPARED TO HELP OVER INDO-CHINESE REFUGEES. (A MEMBER OF CLARK'S

STAFF ENQUIRED ABOUT THE PROSPECTS OF OUR REJOINING ICEM).

6. CLARK SAID THAT A QUESTION HE WAS FREQUENTLY ASKED WAS WHY THE UK

DID NOT TAKE MORE REFUGEES FROM HONG KONG. HOW SHOULD HE ANSWER

THIS? I EXPLAINED ABOUT THE NUMBERS WE WERE ALREADY TAKING AND OUR

IPPIGRATION COMMITMENTS FROM THE INDIAN SUB-CONTINENT AND ELSEWHERE.

HE COMMENTED THAT THE US DREW A SHARP DISTINCTION BETWEEN ITS IMMIG-

RATION OF SOME 400,030 A YEAR AND ITS REFUGEE PROGRAMMES.

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