CONFIDENTIAL
፡
4. THERE IS ALSO THE QUESTION OF THE DISPOSAL OF REFUGEES PICKED
UP BY RN VESSELS OPERATING OUT OF HONG KONG AS PART OF A SAR
OPERATION ORGANISED HERE: BY US WARSHIPS: OR BY MERCHANT SHIPS
ALERTED AS A RESULT OF A HONG KONG SAR OPERATION. THERE IS NO NEED TO REITERATE THE EXTENT TO WHICH OUR CAMPS ARE OVERCROWDED AND OUR RESOURCES OVER-STRETCHED. NEVERTHELESS, IT WOULD SEEM TO THE RESCUERS LOGICAL, IF WE WERE INVOLVED IN THE OPERATION, THAT THE REFUGEES BE BROUGHT HERE. HOWEVER, THE POLITICAL DIFFICULTIES WHICH THIS WOULD RAISE LOCALLY WOULD BE EVEN GREATER THAN THE PRACTICAL ONES. THE PEOPLE OF HONG KONG HAVE, AS A RESULT OF THE GENEVA CONFERENCE, AT LAST SEEN A GLIMMER OF HOPE THAT NUMBERS WILL GO DOWN. IF THEY WERE NOW TO SEE REFUGEES
ARRIVING HERE AS A RESULT OF LOCALLY BASED SAR OPERATIONS,
THERE WOULD BE VERY GREAT ALARM. EVEN IF CAST-IRON GUARANTEES
WERE GIVEN OF ONWARD RESETTLEMENT, PEOPLE HERE WOULD SUSPECT THAT THE EFFECT WOULD BE TO REDUCE THE NUMBERS OF THOSE TO BE
TAKEN FROM HONG KONG'S EXISTING BACKLOG.
CATER
:
FILES SEAD
HK & GD
UND
FED
EESD
NAX D
SAD
EID
PUSD
ΟΙΟ
IPD
DEF D MAED
MR FERGUSSON
MR FRETHELL
NEWS D M & VD PS PS/LPS PS/MR HURD PS/R BLAKER PS/PUS
SIR A DUFF
SIR A PARSONS
MK CORTAZZI
MR MURRAY KR STRATTON
LORD NG LENNOK MR BULLARD
2
ADDITIONAL DISTN
BOAT PEOPLE
COPIES TO:
MR MORRIS SPD DOT
CONFIDENTIAL
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