TNAG-0896-FCO40-1106-Refugees-from-Vietnam-in-Hong-Kong-Vietnamese-boat-people-1979 — Page 134

CONFIDENTIAL

countries to appeals for them to include a share from the

CO ly in their agreed quotas of refugees has made it more

important for us to try and prevent our offtake from Hong Kong from being whittled down - as it would be if

other refugees were accepted by us who might not even

have been landed there. In that case the colony

would be bearing the brunt of the open-ended commitment

which the Cabinet refused to accept for the United

Kingdom itself on 29 May. Our ability to persuade the

Hong Kong Government to accept further refugees for

settlement will be impaired if the extent to which

we are eventually able to help them falls short of

the undertakings we have publicly assumed.

5. There is no disposition here to argue with the

priority that ships' Masters must attach to rescuing

people who are in danger of drowning. May I add that

the implication was never intended that "queue-jumpers"

might have to be abandoned. But there were sound

reasons for the Cabinet's decisions that we

could not automatically agree to accept for settlement

here all refugees saved by British flag vessels.

6.

We hope, therefore, that the Department of Trade

will feel able, on reflection to reply to Mr Ropner

as advised in my letter of 2 August.

7.

I am copying this letter to NO 10 and to the

Private Secretary to the Home Secretary.

:

:)