GR
CONFIDENTIAL
CONFIDENTIAL
FM HANOI 180330Z JUN 79
TO PRIORITY F C O
TELNO 174 OF 8 JUNE
HACK 2013/1
263/1.35
FERIVED IN REUS'
INFO ROUTINE HONG KONG, UKMIS GENEVA AND WASHINGTON JUN 1974
VIETNAMESE REFUGEES
IND
PA
༠༥·༧
tion Tuken
1. I SAW INTERNATIONAL RED CROSS REPRESENTATIVE, RUFFINEN,
ON 16 JUNE. HE HAD JUST REURNED FROM HO CHI MINH CITY. HIS CONVERSATION WITH ME WAS STRICTLY CONFIDENTIAL:
HE SHOULD BE PROTECTED AS SOURCE OF INFORMATION IN FOLLOWING TWO PARAGRAPHS.
2. RUFFINEN TOLD ME THAT, ACCORDING TO HIS ETHNIC CHINESE
SOURCES WHO WERE IN TOUCH WITH THE LEADERS OF THAT, COMMUNITY, THE REFUGEE EXODUS WAS NOW RUNNING AT THE RATE OF 3,000 REPEAT 3,000 A DAY AND THAT PRICE OF ''TICKET''
HAD BEEN REDUCED FROM EIGHT TAELS OF
ESTIMATE
GOLD TO FOUR OR FIVE TAELS. RUFFINEN'S EARLIER THAT 2,000 A DAY WERE LEAVING IN MAY, WHICH I THOUGHT AT THE TIME TO BE AN EXAGGERATION (MY LETTER OF 17 MAY TO MURRAY) APPEARS NOW TO HAVE BEEN NEAR THE TRUTH, PROVIDED THE ESTIMATE OF A TOTAL OF 50,000 REFUGEES IN MAY GIVEN BY MACKELLAR (AUSTRALIAN MINISTER FOR IMMIGRATION) OVER THE WEEKEND IS ITSELF AN ACCURATE ONE. THE REDUCTION IN PRICE WAS TO BE EXPECTED. VIETNAMESE WILL NOT HOLD UP EXODUS BY PRESSING FOR TOO MANY TAELS. MY GUESS IS THAT WHEN THEY HAVE MILKED MAXIMUM NUMBER OF ETHNIC CHINESE AT REDUCED PRICE, THEY WILL SEND THE REMAINDER
AWAY FREE.
3. RUFFINEN SAID THAT IN HIS OPINION THE EFFECT OF ANNOUN-- CEMENT OF UNHCR FAMILY REUNION SCHEME HAD BEEN TO INCREASE REPEAT INCREASE BOAT EXODUS. MANY ETHNIC CHINESE HAD HELD
ON TO SEE WHAT MIGHT BE AGREED. BUT NOW THAT IT WAS
APPARENT THAT UNHCR SCHEME WOULD ONLY COVER FAMILY REUNION
CASES TO WHICH RECEIVING COUNTRIES AND VIETNAMESE AUTHORITIES
CONFIDENTIAL
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