MIS IS A COPY
TA ORIGINAL HAS BEEN CLOSED UNTIL
UNDER FOI
MiPTION NO.27. a, cad
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4.
I WENT ON TO SAY THAT HMG WERE AWARE OF THE POLICY WHICH,
BECAUSE OF ITS SMALL AREA, SINGAPORE HAD TOWARDS REFUGEES, BUT THEY HOPED THAT, NOT LEAST BECAUSE OF TAIWAN'S LARGER AREA. AND
A DENSITY OF POPULATION PER SQUARE MILE TEN TIMES LESS THAN
THAT OF SINGAPORE AND HONG KONG THE TAIWANESE AUTHORITIES COULD
BE PREVAILED UPON TO MAKE THEIR CONTRIBUTION TOWARDS THE
RESOLUTION OF THE PROBLEM, AND THAT LEE WOULD FEEL ABLE TO USE
HIS GOOD OFFICES WITH THEM TO THIS END.
5. PICKING UP RAJARATNAM'S HARD-NOSED ATTITUDE (MY TELEGRAM NO 175) I SAID THAT WE SHARED THE CONVICTION THAT IT WAS THE DUTY OF EVERY GOVERNMENT TO BRING ABOUT CONDITIONS WHICH WOULD ENABLE ITS PEOPLE TO LIVE CONTENTEDLY WITHIN THE BORDERS OF THEIR COUNTRY. IT WAS A CRITICISM OF A GOVERNMENT THAT ITS POLICIES OR RULE SHOULD MAKE ANY PART OF ITS PEOPLE FEEL SO OPPRESSED THAT THEY SOUGHT TO LEAVE, BUT IT WAS A FUNDAMENTAL HUMAN RIGHT THAT IF THAT WAS THEIR CHOICE THEY SHOULD BE ALLOWED TO GO. BUT FOR A GOVERNMENT TO ADOPT DELIBERATE EXPULSION AS AN ACT OF
F POLICY WAS UTTERLY CYNICAL AND CALLOUS. THE INTERNATIONAL
COMMUNITY, WHILE TAKING NOTE OF THIS OBNOXIOUS POLICY OF THE GOVERNMENT OF VIETNAM, AND REPROBATING IT IN THE MOST VIGOROUS WAY, MUST, IF IT WERE TO BE TRUE TO ITSELF, MOBILISE ITSELF TO RESCLVE THE PROBLEMS OF HUMAN MISERY WHICH IT CAUSED. THE
REFUGEE PROBLEM WOULD NOT GO AWAY WHILE EFFORTS WERE MADE TO TRY AND SHAME THE VIETNAMESE INTO CHANGING THEIR POLICY OF DELIBERATE EXPULSION, AND, EVEN IF THEY DID, THERE WOULD
STILL BE THOSE WHO WOULD SEEK TO GET AWAY TO THE BETTER LIFE WHICH THE VIETNAMESE GOVERNMENT, FOR ANY NUMBER OF REASONS, COULD NOT HOPE TO PROVIDE.
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/ 7. I SAID
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