TNAG-0896-FCO40-1106-Refugees-from-Vietnam-in-Hong-Kong-Vietnamese-boat-people-1979 — Page 260

CONFIDENTAL

4. REFUGEES : OUTFLOW FROM VIETNAM.

HOLBROOKE EMPHASISED THAT IT WOULD BE NECESSARY TO DEVELOP SCON THE

UNHCRS 7 POINT PROGRAMME OF ORDERLY DEPARTURES FROM VIETNAM. IN

ADDITION TO FAMILY.REUNIFICATION CASES THERE WOULD HAVE TO BE SOME

ALLOCATION FOR HUMANITARIAN CASES. HE SEEMED TO BE ENVISAGING THAT UP TO 1,000 OF THE MONTHLY TOTAL OFFTAKE TO THE UNITED STATES OF 14,000 MIGHT BE ALLOCATED FOR DIRECT DEPARTURES THROUGH SUCH AN ENLARGED 7-

POINT PROGRAMME. HE ARGUED THAT THIS WOULD ACT AS A DISINCENTIVE TO

FURTHER NUMBERS OF REFUGEES TAXING TO THE BOATS, SINCE THEY WOULD BE ABLE TO SEE THAT THE SYSTEM ITSELF PROVIDED FOR A WAY OUT. I SUGGES-

TED THAT IN ORDER TO PREVENT QUEUE JUMPING SUCH REFUGEES MIGHT BE SENT TO A PROCESSING CENTRE.

REFUGEES

HONG KONG.

5. I URGED STRONGLY THE CASE FOR AN INCREASED US OFFTAKE OF REFUGEES FROM HONG KONG, POINTING OUT THE CLEAR IMPLICATIONS FROM US FIGURES THAT MALAYSIA WAS IN FACT BENEFITTING FROM THEIR INHUMANE POLICIES. I SUGGESTED THAT WHEN MONDÁLE VISITED HONG KONG HE SHOULD MAKE A

PUBLIC STATEMENT RECOGNISING HONG KONG'S POLICY OF NON-REFOULEMENT

AND PROMISING THAT THIS WOULD BE ACKNOWLEDGED BY THE UNITED STATES TAKING INCREASED NUMBERS. AMBASSADOR CLARK IN PARTICULAR WAS SYM- PATHETIC AND AGREED THAT THEIR AIM IN AUGUST SHOULD 1500 PLUS THE UNUSED PART OF THE JULY QUOTA. IN SEPTEMBER THEY HOPED TO REACH 2,000. HE WAS NON-COMMITTAL ABOUT ANY FURTHER INCREASE THEREAFTER, HE EMPHASISED THEIR REAL ADMINISTRATIVE DIFFICULTIES. THEY HAD TO HAVE FULL BIOGRAPHIES OF ALL POTENTIAL RESETTLEMENT

CASES WHICH THEY THEN HAD TO NEGOTIATE WITH THE VOLUNTARY AGENCIES

WHO ALONE UNDERTOOK RESETTLEMENT IN THE UNITED STATES. ONE OF THE

REASONS WHY MALAYSIA WAS GETTING SO MANY PLACES WAS THAT IN MALAYSIA

ALONE A LARGE STOCK OF BIOGRAPHIES HAD ALREADY BEEN ACCUMULATED.

A FURTHER DIFFICULTY WAS THAT OUT OF THE TOTAL BEING SCREENED

THROUGHOUT THE REGION 40 PERCENT HAD TO BE PUT ON HEALTH HOLD''

BECAUSE MEMBERS OF THEIR FAMILIES TURNED OUT TO HAVE HEALTH PROBLEMS.

CLARK SAID THAT HE WOULD LIKE TO REDUCE THE NUMBERS FROM MALAYSIA

IN ORDER TO BRING HOME TO THE MALAYSIANS THAT THE POLICY OF REFOULC-

EMENT DID NOT PAY.

THE UNITED STATES ALSO HAD MAJOR OBLIGATIONS TO THE LAND REFUGEES

IN THAILAND, MANY OF WHOM WERE CATEGORY 1 AND 2 WHO HAD BEEN IN

CAMPS FOR A LONG TIME. HOLBROOKE WANTED TO KNOW WHY WE WERE ONLY

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/TARING