TNAG-0888-FCO40-1098-Refugees-from-Vietnam-in-Hong-Kong-Vietnamese-boat-people-1979 — Page 65

FCO40 Hong Kong Department Records 聯邦事務部香港部檔案 All

ry

0.

DRAFT

LETTER

SECURITY CLASSIFICATION

Top Secret, Secret.

Confidential.

Restricted.

Unclassified.

To:-

The Lord Inverforth

The Bank Line Ltd

Baltic Exchange Buildings

21 Bury Street LONDON EC3A 5AU

PRIVACY MARKING

1

In Confidence

DSR 11

Type 1 +

From

Lord Privy Seal

Telephone No. Ext.

Department

i

Thank you for writing so frankly to me in your letter

of 25 May, about the difficulties facing the Bank Line as

a result of the humanitarian action of the masters of your

vessels the m.v. "Sibonga" and the m.v. "Roachbank". I

have also seen a copy of your subsequent letter, of

30 May, to the Prime Minister.

23

I understand that you and other representatives of the

British shipping industry are to call on the Secretary of

State for Trade on Tuesday 5 June, to discuss these matters,

and that the Department of Trade have sent you an interim

reply one points you raised. I am particularly glad

that the problem of the refugees on the m.v. "Sibonga" is on

the way to a solution, and can assure you that we have been

working hard on the problem of the m.v. "Roachbank".

The refugee problem has reached such dimensions that

only international action may be able to contain it. That

is why the Prime Minister has called for a special conference

on the matter, under United Nations' auspices. We shall do

our utmost to see that the conference comes to practical

conclusions.

Dd 0532000 800M 5/78 HMSO Bracknell

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