TNAG-0894-FCO40-1104-Refugees-from-Vietnam-in-Hong-Kong-Vietnamese-boat-people-1979 — Page 302

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GR 990

CONFIDENTIAL

FM HONG KONG 1187552 JUL

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HKK 243/1

RECEIVED (0 12

T

TO IMMEDIATE F.C.O.

TELEGRAM NUMBER 967 OF 11 JULY, 1979

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INFO PRIORITY UKMIS GENEVA, UKMIS NEW YORK, WASHINGTON AND HONG KONG GOVERNMENT OFFICE LONDON.

YOUR TELMO 517 (NOT TO ALL) AND UKMIS GENEVA TELNO 279. GENEVA

REFUGEE CONFERENCE,

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1. WE WERE ABOUT TO COMMENT ON THE UNHCR SUGGESTED PLAN OF ACTION IN GENEVA'S TUR IN ORDER TO GIVE YOU MATERIAL TO WORK ON FOR THE U.K. PRESENTATION. ALTHOUGH WE ARE NOT SURE OF THE STATUS OF THIS DOCUMENT WE ASSUME THAT IT REPRESENTS THE GENERAL LINES ALONG WHICH THE UNHCR HOPE THE MEETING WILL DEVELOP. ON THIS ASSUMPTION WE HOPE THAT THE U.K. SPEECH IN PLENARY WILL PICK UP THE FOLLOWING POINTS WHICH ALL REFER TO THE SUB-SECTIONS OF PARAGRAPH 40 IN THE PLAN.

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A. WE STRONGLY SUPPORT THE POINTS MADE IN (1), (II), (IV),

(V), (VII) AND (IX) ON THE NEED FOR INCREASED, ON-GOING, COMMITMENTS TO MATCH THE INCREASED SIZE AND CONTINUING NATURE OF THE PROBLEM. IT IS IMPORTANT BOTH TO CLEAR THE · BACKLOG BY SPEEDING UP THE IMPLEMENTATION OF EXISTING RESETTLEMENT OFFERS ((11), (IV) AND (V))) AND TO RECOGNISE THAT THE REFUGEE EXODUS WILL NOT BE SOLVED SIMPLY BY DEALING WITH THOSE WHO HAVE ALREADY ARRIVED ((VII) AND (IX)). THERE ARE UNDOUBTEDLY MORE TO COME, EVEN IF SOME MEANS CAN BE FOUND OF FORCING VIETNAM TO STEN THE FLOW OR DIVERT IT TO

LEGITIMATE CHANNELS.

B. HONG KONG CAN PLAY ITS PART, AS ENVISAGED IN THE SECOND

SECTION OF (X) (REGIONAL RESETTLEMENT), PROVIDING THAT THIS IS PART OF A GENERAL AND FINAL SOLUTION OF THE PROBLEM AS GUTLINED IN (V) AND (VII). ANY UNDERTAKING BY HONG KONG TO SETTLE 10,000 REFUGEES LOCALLY WOULD HAVE TO BE SEEN AS OUR CONTRIBUTION TO A TOTAL SOLUTION: IT WOULD BE UNREASONABLE TO EXPECT HONG KONG TO RESETTLE 10,000 REFUSEES PER YEAR.

CONFIDENTIAL

/ 0, WE STRONGLY

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