TNAG-0896-FCO40-1106-Refugees-from-Vietnam-in-Hong-Kong-Vietnamese-boat-people-1979 — Page 177

XKS156

UNCLASSIFIED

FM WASHINGTON 152110Z AUG 79

ROUTINE F CO

TEL 02321 OF 15 AUGUST

MEK. 9434.

1575A

RECEIVED IN STAY NO. 51

16 AUG 1979

INFO HONG KONG (FOR POLITICAL ADVISER) UKMTS GENEVA, UKMI ME

YORK,

VIETNAMESE REFUGEES.

Action Taken

1. TODAY'S CHICAGO TRIBUNE CARRIED AN ARTICLE ENTITLED QUOTE WHO IS (AND ISN'T) AIDING REFUGEES UNQUOTE, ACCOMPANIED BY A DIAGRAM SHOWING PERMANENT RE-SETTLEMENT PERFORMANCE AS A FUNCTION OF POPULATION DENSITY, MULTIPLIED BY NUMBER OF REFUGEES ACCEPTED. THE SALIENT FACTOR BOTH IN THE ARTICLE AND IN THE DIAGRAM IS THAT BY THIS CRITERION HONG KONG FAR OUTSTRIPS ANY OTHER COUNTRY, FOLLOWING ARE QUOTATIONS FROM THE ARTICLE.

2. QUOTE THUS, 15,00% REFUGEES HAVE A FAR GREATER IMPACT ON DENSELY POPULATED HONG KONG THAN THE 220,000 IN THE US. ... THE REAL

SIGNIFICANCE OF THE GRAPH, HOWEVER, IS NOT SO MUCH IN THE COUNTRIES

THAT ARE ON IT AS IN THE ONES WHICH ARE NOT. MOST SUPPOSEDLY

CIVILIZED NATIONS HAVE DONE SO LITTLE THAT THEIR EFFORTS WOULD

BARELY RAISE A RIPPLE ON SUCH A GRAPH. BRITAIN FOR EXAMPLE, HAS

TAKEN FEWER THAN 3,000 TO DATE, SWEDEN, WITH A HIGH LIVING STANDARD,

LOW POPULATION DENSITY, AND A HISTORY OF MORAL POSTURING ON VIETNAM, HAS TAKEN FEWER THAN 2,000. THE REST OF WESTERN EUROPE, WITH THE EXCEPTION OF FRANCE, HAS DONE NO BETTER

AT A RECENT GENEVA

CONFERENCE ON THE PROBLEM, A FEW COUNTRIES PROMISED TO INCREASE THEIR INTAKE OF REFUGEES. BUT THE MOST SIGNIFICANT INCREASES WERE

PLEDGED BY THE FEW THE US, FRANCE, AND CANADA THAT ALREADY ARE DOING THE MOST. OF THE OTHERS ONLY WEST GERMANY (12,000 MORE) AND BRITAIN (10,000, MAINLY TO RELIEVE THE BURDEN ON ITS CROWN COLONY, HONG KONG) MADE SUBSTANTIAL ADDITIONAL COMMITMENTS. THAT IS NOT

ENOUGH. PRINCIPLES OF INTERNATIONAL CO-OPERATION SUGGEST THAT THE

REST OF THE NON-COMMUNIST WORLD SHOULD SHARE THE BURDEN. DECENCY

DEMANDS IT. UNQUOTE.

ROBINSON

FILES

SEAD

1K & GD

PS

760

ADDITIONAL DISTRIBUTION BOAT PEOPLE

UND

FED

EESD

NAM D

SAD

HAED

EID

FUSD

OID

IPD

PS/LPS

PS/MR HURD PS/MR BLAKER

PS/PUS

SIR A DUFF

SIR A PARSONS

MR CORTAZZI

MR MURRAY

MR STRATTON

LORD NG LENNOX

NEWS D MVD

MR FERGUSSON

11R FRETWELL