TNAG-0895-FCO40-1105-Refugees-from-Vietnam-in-Hong-Kong-Vietnamese-boat-people-1979 — Page 249

Hong Kong has nevertheless accepted over 14,000 refugees from Indo-China for permanent resettlement since 1975, and the Hong

Kong Government are considering, in the light of the Geneva conference, what more they can do. That said, I do not think

we can reasonably expect Hong Kong to absorb more than a small

proportion of the 67,000 refugees now in Hong Kong awaiting

resettlement, let alone the tens of thousands more who may

arrive over the next few months.

You may have noticed that Mr Thornton had a letter in the

Daily Telegraph which was very much on the lines of his letter

to you.

In case you have not seen it, I enclose a copy of a

comment on that letter which was published in the Telegraph on

19 July. It is very much to the point.

Peta

(CARRINGTON)