TNAG-0892-FCO40-1102-Refugees-from-Vietnam-in-Hong-Kong-Vietnamese-boat-people-1979 — Page 219

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HKK 243

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RECEIVED

JUM

DEPARTMENT OF TRADE (3P)

1 VICTORIA STREET

LONDON SWIH OET

TELEPHONE DIRECT LINE 01 215 5406

SWITCHBOARD 01 215 7877

DESK

PA

R Flower Esq

SEAD

Foreign & Commonwealth Office

Downing Street West

London SW1A 2AL

25 June 1979

N William of 727.6 купь Q27/6.

Deau

Draw Revout

VIETNAMESE REFUGEES

I enclose a letter from the Managing Director of BF Tanker Company. Clearly it raises a practical problem of ship safety which BP have chosen to see in the context of one of their shipmasters having effected a rescue, rather than in the context of the master having decided that to effect a rescue would put his own ship in serious danger.

I am reluctant to reply to BP on the lines that if a master considers rescue will place his ship in hazard then, as he may well be entitled under Section 6(1) of the Maritime Conventions Act 1911, he could refrain from this action. Ships masters in that region have a difficult enough decision to make bearing in mind the overwhelming difficulties we now face in off-loading refugees at first port of cell, in deciding whether to pick up refugees or merely render temporary assistance. I would imagine the decision regarding the safety of an oil tanker (or liquified petroleum gas tanker of which there is, I believe, one UK flag ship on constant charter in that region) would never be clearcut but would undoubtedly be influenced by the likeli- hood of a quick resolution of the problem. A situation such as the four week occupation of the Roschbank by refugees would be unaccept- able to a tanker operator, or indeed to a cargo liner shipowner who has dangerous gocâs slowed on deck.

Short of saying that HMG will give an open-ended commitment to take refugees who cannot be given temporary asylum in the region, we can give BP little confort. However, I do think the time has come for us to review the practicalitics of the advice we gave the shipping industry in 1977 on rescue of Vietnamese boatpeople in light of the experience gained during recent indicente, particularly since speed in reaching a situation where decisions on resettlement have to be taken is very important to the shipowner.

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