TNAG-0891-FCO40-1101-Refugees-from-Vietnam-in-Hong-Kong-Vietnamese-boat-people-1979 — Page 182

COMPID

From the Private Secretary

GROIT

Victron app with

Steal PR 522116.

10 DOWNING STREET

HKK 243

RECEIVED FFI REAKTIN NO. 51

22 JUN 1979

DESK OFFICER

INDEX

Dear Wremed, no

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Sin P. Preston

Sri Ar Pausvis In-Centeren

рт Вичёт pn. Lermitt

Vietnamese Refugees

15 June 1979

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Adveson

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When the Governor of Hong Kong, Sir Murray MacLehose, called on the Prime Minister on 14 June at 1800 in the House of Commons, there was some discussion of the problem of Vietnamese refugees. The Foreign and Commonwealth Secretary was present.

I have recorded separately the discussion of the need for reinforcement of the Hong Kong garrison.

The Prime Minister asked Sir Murray MacLehose how the Hong Kong Government could deal with the Chinese and Vietnamese refugees who reached the colony by water. Sir Murray said that it was impossible to send them back. Refugees who were put to sea from Thailand could hope to end up eventually on the virtually unadmin- instered islands of the Indonesian archipelago; but from Hong Kong there was no destination which they could hope to reach. Hong Kong could only do its best to accommodate refugees and hope for some form of international solution to the problem. The Prime Minister asked whether she should not send a further message to the UN Secretary General and Lord Carrington mentioned Mr. Blaker's forth- coming meeting with the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Mr. Hartling. Sir Murray MacLehose said that he would be asking the Americans to increase their settlement quota for refugees from Hong Kong. It was also essential that the office of the UNHCR in Hong Kong should be enlarged; but the UNHCR was desperately short of funds.

In further discussion, it was agreed that something should be done to make world opinion more aware of the scale of the problem. The Prime Minister suggested that some of the large press corps who would be in Tokyo to cover the Economic Summit should be persuaded to accompany Lord Carrington on his visit to Hong Kong after the Summit meeting. Lord Carrington and Sir Murray MacLehose agreed that this would be valuable, particularly if French and non-aligned journalists could be included in the party. I should be grateful if you would arrange for this possibility to be pursued and for a report in due course on the action taken, for the Prime Minister's information.

CONFIDENTIAL

/Turning to the