TNAG-0891-FCO40-1101-Refugees-from-Vietnam-in-Hong-Kong-Vietnamese-boat-people-1979 — Page 145

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From the Private Secretary

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CONFIDENTIAL Vatnen Refpectatatation

10 DOWNING STREET

14 June 1979

Dear Stephen,

Vietnamese Refugees

As you know, the problem of the Vietnamese refugees was raised briefly in Cabinet this morning and the Prime Minister expressed her concern that we seem to have no legal position on which to take our stand which would enable us to decline to accept further boatloads of Vietnamese refugees; and that no progress was evident on our proposal that an international conference should be convened to find a solution to the Vietnamese refugee problem.

The Prime Minister would welcome advice, concerted by the Departments concerned, on:-

1.

(i) what position the Government should adopt if, as seems, likely, the Norse Viking is unable to land its 40 refugees in Japan; and

(ii)

(iii)

how her proposal for an international conference under UN sponsorship can be given greater impetus; and

what the UK's stance should be on such a conference, if one is eventually convened.

It would be helpful if advice on these points could reach me not later than 1100 on Tuesday 19 June.

I am sending copies of this letter to John Chilcot (Home Office), Tom Harris (Department of Trade), Bill Beckett (Law Officers' Department) and Martin Vile (Cabinet Office).

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Yours wer

Bryan Carter.

J.S. Wall, Esq.,

Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

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